What caused William Law to apostatize from the Church and turn against Joseph Smith?

William Law in 1836: "I assure you I have found [Joseph Smith] honest and honourable in all our transactions which have been very considerable"

A Canadian, William Law joined the Church in 1836 and moved to Nauvoo in 1839. After having lived near Joseph Smith in Nauvoo, William wrote to a friend:

I have carefully watched his movements since I have been here, and I assure you I have found him honest and honourable in all our transactions which have been very considerable. I believe he is an honest upright man, and as to his follies let who ever is guiltless throw the first stone at him, I shant do it.^[7]

William Law in 1844: "I cannot fellowship the abominations which I verily know are practiced by this man [Joseph]"

8 January 1844

William Law released as Second Counselor in the First Presidency; Joseph Smith noted that William "was injuring him by telling evil of him…" William considered his release to be "illegal," since he had been called "by revelation," but wrote "I cannot fellowship the abominations which I verily know are practiced by this man [Joseph], consequently I am glad to be free from him."^[8]

One of William’s key concerns seems to have revolved around plural marriage

His non-member son, Richard, later recounted:

About the year 1842, he was present at an interview between his father and the Prophet Joseph. The topic under discussion was the doctrine of plural marriage. William Law, with his arms around the neck of the Prophet, was pleading with him to withdraw the doctrine of plural marriage, which he had at that time commenced to teach to some of the brethren, Mr. Law predicting that if Joseph would abandon the doctrine, 'Mormonism' would, in fifty or one hundred years, dominate the Christian world. Mr. Law pleaded for this with Joseph with tears streaming from his eyes. The Prophet was also in tears, but he informed the gentleman that he could not withdraw the doctrine, for God had commanded him to teach it, and condemnation would come upon him if he was not obedient to the commandment.

During the discussion, Joseph was deeply affected. Mr. Richard S. Law says the interview was a most touching one, and was riveted upon his mind in a manner that has kept it fresh and distinct in his memory, as if it had occurred but yesterday.

Mr. Law also says, that he has no doubt that Joseph believed he had received the doctrine of plural marriage from the Lord. The Prophet's manner being exceedingly earnest, so much so, that Mr. Law was convinced that the Prophet was perfectly sincere in his declaration.^[9]

William Law was excommunicated

18 April 1844

William Law excommunicated. Austin Cowles of the Nauvoo high council, James Blakeslee, Charles G. Foster, and Francis M. Higbee joined him in leaving the Church, and he was supported in his opposition to Joseph by his brother Wilson.^[10] They announced the formation of a ‘reform’ Church based upon Joseph’s teachings up to 1838, with William as president.

William even decided that Joseph Smith’s opposition to Missouri (and the treatment the Saints had received there) was "unChristian"!

The hostile spirit and conduct manifested by Joseph Smith, and many of his associates towards Missouri . . . are decidedly at variance with the true spirit of Christianity, and should not be encouraged by any people, much less by those professing to be the ministers of the gospel of peace.^[11]

Williams had financial quarrels with Joseph

William had economic quarrels with Joseph, and was probably too fond of his own financial state, rather than helping the poor of the Church. William and his brother Wilson had bought the higher land on the outskirts of Nauvoo; the Church (through Joseph) owned the land in the river bottom. Joseph declared that new arrivals should purchase lands from the Church (this was in part an effort to help liquidate the Church’s debts), but William objected to this plan as prejudicial to his own financial interests.^[12]

Hyrum presented Law and his wife with the revelation on plural marriage, which affected Law greatly

William was probably also troubled by the death of his wife and daughter even after Church leaders had prayed for them. Hyrum presented Law and his wife with the revelation on plural marriage. Long after the fact, William reported his reaction:

Hyrum gave it [the revelation] to me in his office, told me to take it home and read it, and then be careful with it, and bring it back again…[My wife Jane] and I were just turned upside down by it…We did not know what to do.^[13]

Law ultimately called Joseph a "demon"

It is not clear whether Jane and William Law were ever sealed. Alexander Neibaur and Hyrum Smith both reported that Joseph told William he could not seal him to Jane because the Lord forbade it; Neibaur indicated that this was because William was "a Adulterous person."^[14] There is no evidence of this other than Neibaur's statement however.

In the clash that followed, William began "casting the first stone," at Joseph’s supposed failings, and the man which he had once admired as honourable and without cause for complaint became, in his newspaper, a "demon," a power-mad tyrant, a seducer, and someone who contributed to the early death of young women.

Did Joseph Smith or his associates attempt to reconcile with William Law before he published the Nauvoo Expositor?

Prior to the publication of the Expositor, Hyrum Smith, Almon W. Babbitt, and Sidney Rigdon attempted to reconcile William Law to the Church

William Law announced he would reconcile only under the condition that Joseph publicly state that the practice of polygamy was "from Hell":

I told him [Sidney] that if they wanted peace they could have it on the following conditions, That Joseph Smith would acknowledge publicly that he had taught and practised the doctrine of plurality of wives, that he brought a revelation supporting the doctrine, and that he should own the whole system (revelation and all) to be from Hell.^[15]

The Nauvoo Expositor declared that Joseph was ""blood thirsty and murderous...demon...in human shape"

Shortly afterward, on 7 June 1844, the first (and only) edition of the Nauvoo Expositor was published. It detailed Joseph’s practice of plural marriage, and charged him with various crimes, labeling him a "blood thirsty and murderous...demon...in human shape" and "a syncophant, whose attempt for power find no parallel in history...one of the blackest and basest scoundrels that has appeared upon the stage of human existence since the days of Nero, and Caligula."^[16]

How was the decision reached to destroy the Nauvoo Expositor?

Destruction of Expositor

8 June 1844

Nauvoo city council meets regarding the Expositor.

10 June 1844

The city council declares the Expositor a public nuisance and threat to the peace. This was not mere exaggeration; there were sixteen episodes of mob violence against controversial newspapers in Illinois from 1832 to 1867, and so the leaders’ fears of civil unrest were likely well-founded. The city council therefore ordered the press and the paper destroyed.^[17]

This was done. The decision to suppress the Expositor, while legal for the day, worsened a tense situation (in the years following the Expositor suppression, similar tactics would be used in 1862, 1893, 1918, and 1927).^[18]
Historically, presses which violated community ideas of what was proper were a genuine risk to the public peace. Elijah Lovejoy, an anti-slavery editor of The Saint Louis Observer was killed by a pro-slavery mob in 1837.^[19]

Joseph and the city council might well have had memories of what happened in Missouri when some members of the Church became frustrated with the lack of legal redress for their mistreatment by Missouri citizens.
Missouri probably also set the stage for the legal decision to suppress the press. In 1833, the Evening and Morning Star, the LDS paper in Independence, was subject to being "razed to the ground" at the unanimous decision of the mob committee established to drive out the Mormons.^[20] The mob's ultimatum later stipulated that the Mormons were not to publish anything before leaving.^[21]

The law of the day probably gave Joseph and the council the right to destroy the offending issue; however, since they had also ordered the press and type destroyed, they violated property laws. Joseph later said he would be happy to pay for the damages.^[22] Critics are inconsistent when they complain about the Nauvoo city council's decision to suppress the Expositor (an action that was legal) and yet do not also acknowledge that Mormon presses had been destroyed by mobs acting with no legal authority whatever.

Despite the fact that the Expositor's suppression was legal, the destruction of the press appeared high-handed to Church critics, and other newspapers began to call for the Mormons’ expulsion or destruction. Joseph and others were arrested on charges of "riot."

Why did the Nauvoo City Council feel it was necessary to destroy the Nauvoo Expositor?

One member recorded that Joseph told him that the destruction of the press was necessary for the Saints’ safety

It is claimed that Joseph "could not allow the Expositor to publish the secret international negotiations masterminded by Mormonism’s earthly king." ^[23]

The reality was that the Joseph and the City Council were concerned that the paper would cause turmoil among the Saints.

One member stated,

Brother Joseph called a meeting at his own house and told us that God showed to him in an open vision in daylight [meaning that this was not something he had just conjured up in dreams of the night] that if he did not destroy that printing press that it would cause the blood of the Saints to flow in the streets and by this was that evil destroyed.^[24]

Joseph foresaw his own death as a result of the turmoil that was already occurring

Given Joseph’s numerous presentiments of his own death, it may well be that he knowingly chose this course of action to spare the members’ lives at the cost of his own. Said Joseph to Elizabeth Rollins:

I must seal my testimony with my blood.^[25]

And later:

Some has supposed that Br Joseph Could not die but this is a mistake it is true their has been times when I have had the promise of my life to accomplish such & such things, but having accomplish those things I have not at present any lease of my life I am as liable to die as other men.^[26]

What was John C. Bennett's role in the events leading up to the death of Joseph Smith?

The apostasy of John C. Bennett

May 1842

John C. Bennett is tried before a Church court. He confessed to "wicked and licentious conduct toward certain females in Nauvoo,"^[27] and of past acts of exploiting of women he had attended as a doctor. He may also have performed abortions.^[28] He had also frequented, and perhaps operated, a brothel.^[29] (Bennett was not alone in this; with his encouragement Chauncy and Francis Higbee—who would write attacks on Joseph Smith in the Nauvoo Expositor—also participated in immoral acts and were disciplined for it.)

Bennett claimed that the doctrines he was using to seduce women in Nauvoo were the same as those taught privately by Joseph Smith with regard to plural marriage

Bennett’s apostasy caused particular problems because he claimed that the doctrines he was using to seduce women in Nauvoo were the same as those taught privately by Joseph Smith with regard to plural marriage. Thus, Joseph and the Church spent a great deal of time denying Bennett’s charges, while trying to keep plural marriage from becoming common knowledge for fear of the Church’s enemies.

Bennett left the Church and Nauvoo, and spoke widely about the "evils" of the Church and its leaders to non-member audiences. He also wrote a book and made a good deal of money telling stories against the Mormons; he was later to be associated with Sidney Rigdon’s splinter group and the "Strangite" break-off group, but he soon left them as well.

Orson F. Whitney said this about Bennett:

In May, 1842, the treachery and rascality of a man whom the Mormon leader had befriended and loaded with honors, became known to his benefactor. That man was Dr. John C. Bennett, Mayor of Nauvoo, Chancellor of its University, and Major-General of its legion. He had become associated with the Saints soon after their exodus from Missouri. Though a great egotist, he was a man of education, address and ability. That he had little or no principle was not immediately apparent. Considerable of a diplomat and possessing some influence in political circles, he rendered valuable aid in securing the passage by the Illinois Legislature of the act incorporating the city of Nauvoo. Hence the honors bestowed upon him by the Mormon people. Prior to that, and subsequently, he was Quartermaster-General of Illinois. Bennett professed great sympathy for the Saints. He joined the Church and apparently was a sincere convert to the faith.

Governor Thomas Ford, in his history of Illinois, styles Bennett "probably the greatest scamp in the western country." But this was not until long after the Mormons, thrice victimized, had become aware of his villainy.^[30]

Was Joseph Smith responsible for an assassination attempt on former Missouri governor Lilburn Boggs?

An unknown assailant shot former Missouri governor Boggs through his window, severely wounding him

6 May 1842

an unknown assailant shoots former Missouri governor Boggs through his window, severely wounding him. Later, John C. Bennett encourages Boggs to press charges against the Mormons for their alleged role in the attack.

It was assumed that Orin Porter Rockwell and the Latter-day Saints were responsible for the shooting

8 August 1842

a warrant is issued for Joseph Smith’s extradition to Missouri to face charges in the attempted murder of Boggs; the claim is that Joseph Smith was an "accessory before the fact," and encouraged Orin Porter Rockwell in the deed. Joseph easily proved he had been in Illinois on the day of the shooting (hundreds of miles from Missouri) and obtains a writ of habeas corpus.

December 1842

the state Supreme Court of Illinois finds that the writ voiding the governor’s warrant was illegal. However, Joseph went before a federal judge to again challenge the warrant, and this court found that the warrant "lacked foundation" since it went beyond the statements which Boggs had made in his affidavit. The state Legislative Assembly considers repeal of the Nauvoo charter, but does nothing.

February 1843

Joseph Smith announces he will run for President of the United States.

June 1843

Missouri again attempted to extradite Joseph for trial. Joseph proceeded to Nauvoo, was welcomed by cheering crowds, and was again granted a writ of habeas corpus by the Nauvoo municipal court, voiding the warrant. The city council then made it illegal to arrest Joseph within Nauvoo, and gave the mayor (Joseph Smith, since the excommunicatin of Bennett) power to approve any outside warrants. This only increased the non-Mormons’ sense that Joseph was combining religious and civil power in an effort to put himself "beyond the law."

12 July 1843

Joseph dictates the first written record of the revelations on plural marriage: D&C 132.

What is the timeline of events that led to Joseph Smith's death in Carthage?

There were attempts to arrest Joseph after the destruction of the Nauvoo Expositor

13 June 1844

The Nauvoo municipal court released Joseph on a writ of habeas corpus, finding that the charge of "riot" was unsubstantiated since the destruction of the press had been orderly.

14 June 1844

Thus cleared, Joseph Smith (as mayor) took his seat as judge over the municipal court, and cleared all others charged the day following his own release. This recurrent mix of religious, executive, and judicial power again infuriated the anti-Mormons.

17 June 1844

Joseph and others consented to be brought before another court, headed by a (then non-Mormon) justice of the peace, Daniel H. Wells. Wells again discharged them, but did not have the authority to acquit them.

18 June 1844

Joseph Smith declares martial law in Nauvoo and calls out the militia to protect the city from anti-Mormon mobs.

Governor Ford writes to tell Joseph that he must face charges

22 June 1844

Governor Ford writes to tell Joseph that he must face charges before the same judge that issued the writ for his arrest, because only this will appease the public. This requires Joseph to appear in a very hostile community, where feelings against the Mormons run high.

23 June 1844

Joseph and Hyrum leave Nauvoo to seek refuge over the Mississippi. Some members appeal to Joseph to return, believing (contrary to Joseph’s promise) that the members of the Church would be despoiled and driven out if he did not. Joseph agrees to return, stating, "If my life is of no value to my friends it is of none to myself."

Governor Ford guaranteed the safety of Joseph and others if they went to Carthage

25 June 1844

the state governor (Thomas Ford) believed that only a state trial would calm the furor over the Expositor. Joseph and fifteen others therefore received guarantees of safety and presented themselves in Carthage. They were freed on bail pending the October arrival of the circuit court. However, Joseph and Hyrum were jailed by a writ issued by Robert F. Smith, a Methodist minister, justice of the peace, and captain of the Carthage Greys militia. Joseph and Hyrum were accompanied to the jail by John Taylor, Willard Richards, Dan Jones, Stephen Markham, and John S. Fullmer. The latter three left to run errands, and were not readmitted, leaving only Joseph, Hyrum, John Taylor, and Willard Richards.

26 June 1844

Governor Ford meets with the prisoners. He then disbands all the militia companies, except the hostile Carthage Greys.

Governor Ford left the hostile Carthage Greys to guard the jail

27 June 1844

Ford leaves for Nauvoo, leaving two companies of Carthage Greys to guard the jail, while Ford takes a third to Nauvoo. He did not keep his promise that the prisoners could go with him to Nauvoo. After Ford’s departure, the discharged Warsaw militia company attacked the jail. The Carthage Greys gave only token resistance; they had loaded their weapons with gunpowder but no bullets. The Warsaw company stormed the jail, and murdered Joseph and Hyrum. John Taylor was severely injured; Willard Richards was unharmed.

Full text of the Nauvoo Expositor

See also Brian Hales' discussion

William and Jane Law and the Prophet	William Law was Joseph's counselor, but eventually broke with the Prophet and helped publish the Nauvoo Expositor.
Plural Marriage and the Martyrdom	Opposed to polygamy, Joseph's counsellor William Law opened a printing press where he planned to expose the teachings he could not accept. The June 7 edition of the Nauvoo Expositor, the first and only edition, included plain accusations against the Prophet.
Did Joseph Smith Intend to Abandon Plural Marriage?	William Marks related that Joseph’s conversation denouncing plural marriage occurred “three weeks before his death” or around June 6. Perhaps Joseph had such a change of heart during the first week of June, but this seems unlikely and other parts of Marks’ recollection are implausible.

⍗

Source(s) of the criticism

Critical sources

John Dehlin, "Questions and Answers," Mormon Stories Podcast (25 June 2014).

Notes

1. ↑ Richard N. and Joan K. Ostling, Mormon America: The Power and the Promise, (New York:HarperCollins Publishers, 2000), 16. ( Index of claims )
2. ↑ John Dehlin, "Questions and Answers," Mormon Stories Podcast (25 June 2014).
3. ↑ John Dehlin, "Questions and Answers," Mormon Stories Podcast (25 June 2014).
4. ↑ "Chapter 46: The Martyrdom: The Prophet Seals His Testimony with His Blood," Teachings of the Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith," The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (2011), 528–40.
5. ↑ It should be noted that History of the Church was begun after Joseph's death, and was written in the "first person," as if Joseph himself had written it. For further information on this, see Who is the author of ''History of the Church''?
6. ↑ History of the Church, 6:432. Volume 6 link
7. ↑ William Law to Isaac Russell, 29 November 1840, Archives Division, Church Historical Department, Salt Lake City, Utah, as cited in Lyndon W. Cook, William Law (Orem, Utah: Grandin Book Co., 1994), 11; cited by Susan Easton Black, Who’s Who in the Doctrine and Covenants (Salt Lake: Deseret Book, 1997), 173.
8. ↑ William Law, "Record of Doings at Nauvoo in 1844" (William Law's Nauvoo diary), as cited in Lyndon W. Cook, William Law (Orem, Utah: Grandin Book Co., 1994), 46; cited by Susan Easton Black, Who’s Who in the Doctrine and Covenants (Salt Lake: Deseret Book, 1997), 176.
9. ↑ Joseph W. McMurrin, "An Interesting Testimony / Mr. Law’s Testimony," Improvement Era (May 1903), 507–510.
10. ↑ Wilson may or may not have been a member. He was not a member when he came to Nauvoo, but is later mentioned as having been "excommunicated." We have no record of his baptism.
11. ↑ Nauvoo Expositor, "Resolution 4", (7 June 1844): 2; cited in Lyndon W. Cook, "William Law, Nauvoo Dissenter," Brigham Young University Studies 22 no. 1 (Fall 1982), 47–72.
12. ↑ Cook, "Nauvoo Dissenter."
13. ↑ Dr. W. Wyl interview with William Law in Shullsburg, Wisconsin, 30 March 1887, published in The Salt Lake Daily Tribune, 31 July 1887, 6; cited by Cook, "Nauvoo Dissenter"
14. ↑ See Cook, "Nauvoo Dissenter."
15. ↑ William Law, "Record of Doings at Nauvoo in 1844," 13 May 1844; cited by Cook, "Nauvoo Dissenter"
16. ↑ Francis M. Higbee, "Citizens of Hancock County," Nauvoo Expositor (7 June 1844).
17. ↑ Dallin H. Oaks, "The Suppression of the Nauvoo Expositor," Utah Law Review 9 (1965):874.  (Key source)
18. ↑ Oaks, 897–898.
19. ↑ "Today in History, November 7," United States Library of Congress. off-site
20. ↑ Joseph Fielding Smith, Essentials in Church History (Salt Lake City: Deseret News Press, 1922), 134. See also Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 volumes, edited by Brigham H. Roberts, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1957), 1:390–395. Volume 1 link; Anonymous, "A History, of the Persecution, of the Church of Jesus Christ, of Latter Day Saints in Missouri," Times and Seasons 1 no. 2 (December 1839), 18. off-site GospeLink
21. ↑ Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 volumes, edited by Brigham H. Roberts, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1957), 1:338–339. Volume 1 link
22. ↑ James B. Allen and Glen M. Leonard, Story of the Latter-day Saints, 2nd edition revised and enlarged, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Company, 1992[1976]), 208. ISBN 087579565X. GospeLink
23. ↑ Richard N. and Joan K. Ostling, Mormon America: The Power and the Promise, (New York:HarperCollins Publishers, 2000), 16. ( Index of claims )
24. ↑ Truman G. Madsen, Joseph Smith the Prophet (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1989), 114; citing Diary of George Laub, BYU Special Collections, 18.
25. ↑ Journal of Mary Elizabeth Rollins Lightner, BYU Special Collections, 7; cited by Truman G. Madsen, Joseph Smith the Prophet (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1989), 103.
26. ↑ Joseph Smith, Discourse of 9 April 1842, Wilford Woodruff Diary; cited in Andrew F. Ehat and Lyndon W. Cook, The Words of Joseph Smith: The Contemporary Accounts of the Nauvoo Discourses of Joseph Smith, 2nd Edition, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1996), 112.
27. ↑ Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 volumes, edited by Brigham H. Roberts, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1957), 5:18–19. Volume 5 link
28. ↑ Susan Easton Black, Who’s Who in the Doctrine and Covenants (Salt Lake: Deseret Book, 1997), 14; see also Zeruiah N. Goddard, affidavit, August 28, 1842 in Affidavits and Certificates, Disproving the Statements and Affidavits Contained in John C. Bennett's Letters (Nauvoo, no publisher, 31 August 1842); cited by Danel W. Bachman, "A Study of the Mormon Practice of Polygamy Before the Death of Joseph Smith," (1975) (unpublished M.A. thesis, Purdue University), 225.
29. ↑ Bachman, "Polygamy Before the Death of Joseph Smith," 225; citing L.D. Wasson to Joseph Smith, 29 July 1842 in Times and Seasons 5:891-892.
30. ↑ Orson F. Whitney, History of Utah, 4 volumes, (Salt Lake City: George Q. Cannon and Sons Co., 1892-1904), 1:193–194; cited in Roy W. Doxy, Latter-day Prophets and the Doctrine and Covenants, Volume 4, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1978), 255–257.

Response to claim: 465 - Joseph fought his attackers at Carthage using a six-shooter

The author(s) of The Changing World of Mormonism make(s) the following claim:

Joseph fought his attackers at Carthage using a six-shooter.

FAIR's Response

Fact checking results: This claim contains propaganda - The author, or the author's source, is providing information or ideas in a slanted way in order to instill a particular attitude or response in the reader

Joseph returned fire with a pistol when he and his three friends were attacked by 200 men armed with rifles. Joseph fired no shot until his brother had been shot in the face and killed. Three of Joseph's shots misfired; he killed no one. Yet, critics wish to portray this event as a "gunfight". Joseph's gun, by the way, has been on display at the Church History Museum in Salt Lake City for years.

FAIR Answers—back to home page

V

Articles about Joseph Smith

Life and Character	Status in Latter-day Saint belief Joseph's trustworthiness Money digging Folk magic or the occult The Word of Wisdom Alleged narcissism
Youth	Joseph Smith's family as trustworthy and hard-working Education Use of seer stones as a youth The Hurlbut affidavits Joseph Smith's 1826 trial
Revelations and the Church	Witness of Jesus Christ First Vision Book of Mormon Joseph Smith's inspired revision of the Bible (JST) The restoration of the priesthood Personages who appeared to Joseph Smith Production of the Book of Abraham Kinderhook Plates
Prophetic Statements	The U.S. Civil War Rocky Mountain prophecy The White Horse prophecy Alleged false prophecies of Joseph Smith
Society	Legal issues 1826 trial Creation of the Kirtland Safety Society Failure of the Kirtland Safety Society Campaign for President of the United States
Plural marriage (polygamy)	Plural marriage or polygamy Polygamy navigator Plural wives of Joseph Smith
Death	The Nauvoo Expositor Events surrounding the death of Joseph Smith Firing a gun at Carthage Jail Qualification as a martyr 1844 Succession to Joseph Smith

Was Joseph a martyr?

Is it possible that Joseph Smith is not a martyr because, while in jail, he had a gun and he had the temerity to defend himself, his brother, and his friends?

Joseph and Hyrum were martyrs by the accepted definition of the term—they suffered death for their beliefs

It seems clear that:

1. Joseph and Hyrum were martyrs by the accepted definition of the term—they suffered death for their beliefs. (Note that martyrs can die for worthy or ignoble causes, but this makes them no less martyrs.)
2. The Church has not hidden this fact, but published it from the beginning and includes it in the History of the Church twice.
3. Joseph was not guilty of murder, because no one died from his shots, and his actions would have been justifiable as self-defense and defense of others even if deaths had resulted.

Critics of Joseph Smith redefine the term "martyr"

Ensign (June 2013): 40, shows Joseph with the pepperbox pistol he would fire to defend himself and others prior to his murder.

In order to make their argument tenable, the critics must do three things. First, they must take some creative liberties with the English language. In this case, the word being redefined is the term martyr. Webster’s New World Dictionary defines a "martyr" as

"a person who chooses to suffer or die rather than give up his faith or his principles."^[1]

The online resource, Dictionary.com, defines a martyr as

"one who chooses to suffer death rather than renounce religious principles."^[2]

Both are nearly identical and fairly standard definitions, and neither includes a requirement or qualifiers of any sort. However, some anti-Mormon writers have taken the term martyr and subtly changed its definition to suit their own needs. The new definition would probably read something like this: Martyr: a person who chooses to suffer or die rather than give up his faith or his principles without any resistance or effort at self-defense on his part whatsoever.

Critics are free to use such a definition, but it belongs to them alone; it is not the standard use of the word, and not what Church members mean when they refer to the "martyrdom" of Joseph and Hyrum Smith at Carthage.

Throughout Christian history, "martyrs" have been understood to be those who suffered quietly, and those who resisted, even with violence, and even to the death of those who persecuted them for their beliefs.

The first anti-Mormon argument thus focuses on the fact that Joseph had a firearm and that he used that firearm to defend himself. Is it possible that Joseph's announcement that he was going "as a lamb to the slaughter" is false, since he fought back?

Anyone who has ever worked on a farm or in a slaughterhouse knows that sheep do not go willingly to the slaughter. They kick and buck, bleat, scream, and make every attempt to escape their fate. In fact, they make such a haunting sound, that the title of an extremely popular Hollywood film was based on it: The Silence of the Lambs. The term "lamb to the slaughter" simply refers to the inevitability of the final outcome. No matter how valiantly they struggle, the fate of the sheep is sealed. If we apply this understanding to Joseph Smith and his brother, it is clear that they truly were slaughtered like lambs. Fight as they might, they were doomed.

Martyrdom in Christian history

Summary: Christians have never required someone to go passively and unresisting to their death to be considered a martyr.

Joseph Smith's qualification as a martyr

Summary: By any reasonable definition, Joseph and Hyrum were martyrs for their faith.

Has the Church tried to hide the fact that Joseph fired a pepperbox pistol at the mob which murdered him?

Joseph's gun is on display at the Church History Museum in Salt Lake City, where anyone can see it. It has been there for years

Some claim that the Church has tried to hide the fact that Joseph fired a pepperbox pistol at the mob which murdered Hyrum and was soon to kill him.

Ensign (June 2013): 40, shows Joseph with the pepperbox pistol he would fire to defend himself and others prior to his murder.

Joseph's gun is on display at the Church History Museum in Salt Lake City, where anyone can see it. It has been there for years.

Both official and unofficial Church publications have repeatedly mentioned Joseph's pistol since his death

There is overwhelming evidence that from the earliest days following the martyrdom, to the present, that both official and unofficial Church publications have repeatedly mentioned Joseph's pistol.

Photograph of the pistols used by Joseph and Hyrum. The pepperbox pistol fired by Joseph Smith at Carthage Jail is located on the right. From the museum of Church History in Salt Lake City, Utah, and labeled as such. Photo (c) Blair Hodges, used with permission. Another image of the pepperbox pistol may be viewed here

From the very beginning of the Church, Joseph's possession and use of a pepperbox pistol in defense of himself and his brother and friends has been repeatedly mentioned. This includes statements by LDS, anti-Mormon, and other secular sources even from a very early period, demonstrating that there was no attempt to hide the facts.

1844

• George T. M. Davis, of Alton, Illinois, An Authentic Account of the Massacre of Joseph Smith, the Mormon Prophet, and Hyram Smith, his brother, together with a Brief History of the Rise and Progress of Mormonism, and all the circumstances which led to their death (St. Louis 1844); also quoted in "The Mormons, or Latter Day Saints", The United States Catholic Magazine 4 (1845): 362-3.
• Brooklyn Eagle, July 8, 1844, page 2
• Willard Richards, "Two Minutes in Jail", in Times and Seasons 5/14 (1 August 1844): 597-98
• A True and Descriptive Account of the Assassination of Joseph and Hiram Smith, the Mormon Prophet and Patriarch At Carthage, Illinois, June 27th, 1844, By an Eye Witness, T[HOMAS]. A. LYNE (NY: 1844): 9-10.

1845

• "Mormonerna, en beväpnad religionssekt i de Förenta Staterna," Borgå Tidning, [Porvoo, Finland] August 20, 1845, p. 1-4, and August 23, 1845, p. 2-3. English translations by this author [Kim Ostman, Finland 2006: "The Mormons, an armed religious sect in the United States."]. According to a footnote, the article comes from Wilhelm Grisson’s original text "Beiträge zur Charakteristik der Vereinigten Staaten von Nordamerika."

1846

• James Allen Scott Journal., 19 April 1846; quoted in Richard Bennett, Mormons at the Missouri (U of Oklahoma 1987): 236, note 20.

1851

• James Linforth, "The Rev. C.W. Lawrence’s ‘Few Words from a Pastor to his People on the subject of the Latter-day Saints,’ replied to and refuted". (no date [contains reference to Millennial Star 13.4 (Feb 15, 1851); my copy bound with MS volume 12, in U of Minnesota Library]; published by J. Sadler, Liverpool): 2.

1852

• J. M. Grant, The Truth for the Mormons ‘Three Letters to the New York Herald’’ 64 pages.
• History of the Persecutions!! Endured by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in America. Compiled from Public Documents, and Drawn from Authentic Sources. By C. W. Wandell, Minister of the Gospel (Sydney: Albert Mason 1852). 55.

1854

• Thomas Ford, History of Illinois, 1818-1847 (Chicago, 1854), 354-5. "An attempt was made to break open the door; but Joe Smith being armed with a six-barrelled pistol, furnished by his friends, fired several times as the door was bursted open, and wounded three of the assailants…."
• Benjamin G. Ferris, Utah and the Mormons. The History, Government, Doctrines, Customs and Prospects of the Latter-day Saints. From personal observation during a six months’ residence at Great Salt Lake City (New York: 1854).
• The Californian Crusoe; or, The Last Treasure Found. A Tale of Mormonism (London: John Henry Parker 1854; New York: Stanford and Swords): 98.
• Joseph Smith et Les Mormons ou Examen de Leurs Pretentions Relativement a leur Bible, a leur Prophete et a leur Eglise, par L. Favez (Lausamme: Delefrontaine and Comp 1854): 47.

1856

• Jules Remy and Julius Brenchley, A Journey to Great Salt Lake City, with a sketch of the History, Religion, and Customs of the Mormons, and an Introduction on the Religious Movement in the United States, in two volumes (London: W. Jeffs 1856) [reprinted from 1861 London edition; Preface dated Paris August 1860], volume I: 395

1857

• "History of Joseph Smith," Deseret News Weekly 7/37 (November 18, 1857): 290b and 7/38 (November 25, 1857): 297a.

1862

• L. A. Bertrand, Memoires d’un Mormon (Paris 1862).
• Richard F. Burton, The City of the Saints (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1862): Appendix. John Taylor, Witness to the Martyrdom [written in response to request by Elder Wilford Woodruff, in letter dated June 30, 1856. This account in Burton was first publication of the work by John Taylor]

1863

• Le Prophete du XIX Siecle ou vie des Saints des Derniers Jours (Mormons), Hortense G. Du Fay (Paris: Dentu 1863): 100.

1865

• Hyppolite Taine, Nouveaux Essais de Critique et d’Histoire (Paris, 1865; reprinted 1900, 1901, 1914). Review article of Jules Remy, Voyage au pays des Mormons (Paris, 1860). Translated in Austin E. Fife, "Taine’s Essay on the Mormons. Translated with Introduction and Notes," Pacific Historical Review 31/1 (February 1962): 58.

1867

• Pomeroy Tucker, Origin, Rise, and Progress of Mormonism. Biography of its Founders and History of its Church. Personal Remembrances and Historical Collections Hitherto Unwritten (New York: D. Appleton and Company 1867): 190.

1875

• CCA Christensen's moving panorama illustrating church history. One of the 23 scenes illustrates the

martyrdom and actually shows the smoking gun in Joseph's hand (circa this date). This was a traveling show of huge painted canvases that would be displayed to LDS audiences.

1880

• Autobiography of B. H. Roberts, Gary J. Bergera p.76

1881

• Daniel Tyler, A Concise History of the Mormon Battalion in the Mexican War, 1846-47 (Salt Lake City 1881). [includes statement by John Taylor on martyrdom of Joseph Smith]

1882

• Lyman O. Littlefield, The Martyrs; A Sketch of the Lives and a Full account of the Martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, together with a Concise Review of the Most Prominent Incidents Connected with the Persecutions of the Saints, from the time the Church was Organized up to the Year 1846 (Salt Lake City, Utah: Juvenile Instructor Office 1882): [quoting from an earlier work by William M. Daniels in pamphlet form]: (Littlefield, page 78)

1883

• R. W. Young, "In the Wake of the Church", The Contributor 4/8 (May 1883): 307.

1885

• Mrs. Ellen E. Dickinson, New Light on Mormonism Introduction by Thurlow Weed (NYC: Funk & Wagnalls, 1885), 108.

1887

• B.H. Roberts, "The Rise and Fall of Nauvoo," The Contributor 8/11 (September 1887): 406, 407 note

1888

• Andrew Jenson, Historical Record 7/1-3 (Jan 1888): 568-571
• George Q. Cannon, Life of Joseph Smith the Prophet (October 1, 1888): 515

1892

• B.H. Roberts, The Life of John Taylor (SLC: 1989; first published 1892) p.134

1895

• B. H. Roberts, New Witnesses for God, Vol. 1, (Salt Lake City, January, 1895: 484; Reprinted 1911: 482).

1905

• Orson F. Whitney, "The Mormon Prophet's Tragedy," A review of an Article by the late John Hay, published originally in the Atlantic Monthly for December, 1869, and republished in the Saints Herald of June 21, 1905. Whitney’s response published 1905, p.68-81

1933

• John Henry Evans, Joseph Smith. An American Prophet (NY: MacMillan 1933; 1961 Amy Evans; 1989 Deseret Book): 204, 206.

1943

• John Taylor, The Gospel Kingdom p.358-360 [taken from Roberts, History of the Church 7:100; 252f; 2:267-8; 2:284-5; Published initially in 1943; this is from Taylor’s Witness to the Martyrdom, mentioned earlier under "Richard F. Burton"

1951

• John A. Widtsoe, Joseph Smith. Seeker after Truth; Prophet of God (Salt Lake City, Utah: Bookcraft, 1951; 1991): 319 [quotes from the Willard Richards account]

1967

• The last Days at Carthage (video), Department of Seminaries and Institutes of Religion, 1967, 5 minutes. This video was re-released as a segment in "Moments from Church History, 1990, copyrighted by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 102 Minutes. The video is pretty clear in teaching that Joseph used a gun. At the beginning it says; "Cyrus Wheelock brings a gun" and it shows a close-up of the pepperbox. In a more dramatic part, for a documentary anyway, it shows the gun again and it says: "The gun misfires".

1969

• LeGrand L. Baker, "On to Carthage to Die", Improvement Era 72/6 (June 1969): 15

1973

• Reed Blake, 24 Hours to Martyrdom (SLC: Bookcraft, 1973): 127-8

1979

• Leonard J. Arrington and Davis Bitton, The Mormon Experience. A History of the Latter-day Saints (New York: Knopf, 1979; 1980): 81

1981

• Dean C. Jessee, "Return to Carthage: Writing the History of Joseph Smith’s Martyrdom," Journal of Mormon History 8 (1981): 1-19.

1985

• Book Reviews; BYU Studies Vol. 25, No. 3, (Summer 1985): .124 Review of Dean C. Jessee, The Personal Writings of Joseph Smith; Review by Marvin S. Hill, BYU History Professor

1990

• Moments from Church History, 1990, copyrighted by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 102 Minutes. The video is pretty clear in teaching that Joseph used of a gun. At the beginning it says; "Cyrus Wheelock brings a gun" and it shows a close-up of the pepperbox. In a more dramatic part, for a documentary anyway, it shows the gun again and it says: "The gun misfires".

1994

• Reed Blake, "Martyrdom at Carthage," Ensign (June 1994), 30. off-site
• The same information was contained in a "First Presidency Message" in the same Ensign issue (anniversary of Joseph's assassination). Thomas S. Monson, "The Prophet Joseph Smith: Teacher by Example," Ensign, Jun 1994

There was to be one great final lesson before his mortal life ended. He was incarcerated in Carthage Jail with his brother Hyrum, with John Taylor, and with Willard Richards. The angry mob stormed the jail; they came up the stairway, blasphemous in their cursing, heavily armed, and began to fire at will. Hyrum was hit and died. John Taylor took several balls of fire within his bosom. The Prophet Joseph, with his pistol in hand, was attempting to defend his life and that of his brethren, and yet he could tell from the pounding on the door that this mob would storm that door and would kill John Taylor and Willard Richards in an attempt to kill him. And so his last great act here upon the earth was to leave the door and lead Willard Richards to safety, throw the gun on the floor, and go to the window, that they might see him, that the attention of this ruthless mob might be focused upon him rather than the others. Joseph Smith gave his life. Willard Richards was spared, and John Taylor recovered from his wounds. "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." The Prophet Joseph Smith taught us love—by example.

• Church History in the Fulness of Times, Religion 342-343, Church Educational System manual.
• Dallin H. Oaks and Marvin J. Hill, Carthage Conspiracy;;
• Davis Bitton, The Martyrdom Remembered. A one-hundred-fifty-year perspective on the assassination of Joseph Smith (Salt Lake City, Utah: Aspen Books, 1994).

2004

• Matthew B. Brown, Joseph Smith: The Man, The Mission, The Message (American Fork, UT: Covenant Communications, 2004): 90, shows a picture of the gun. "Composite photograph of the pepperbox pistol that Joseph Smith used to defend himself after Hyrum had been murdered". Story given in more detail pages 92-4.

2005

• Gospel Doctrine Teacher’s Manual for 2005: "Doctrine and Covenants and Church History" lesson 32, page 184: the following account of the martyrdom by Elder Willard Richards:

"As he struck the floor he exclaimed emphatically, ‘I am a dead man.’ Joseph looked towards him and responded, ‘Oh, dear brother Hyrum!’ and opening the door two or three inches with his left hand, discharged one barrel of a six shooter (pistol) at random in the entry. . A ball [from the musket of one of the mob] grazed Hyrum’s breast, and entering his throat passed into his head, while other muskets were aimed at him and some balls hit him.

Joseph continued snapping his revolver round the casing of the door into the space as before, while Mr. Taylor with a walking stick stood by his side and knocked down the bayonets and muskets which were constantly discharging through the doorway....

When the revolver failed, we had no more firearms, and expected an immediate rush of the mob, and the doorway full of muskets, half way in the room, and no hope but instant death from within." off-site

2008

• Joseph L. Lyon and David W. Lyon, "Physical Evidence at Carthage Jail and What It Reveals about the Assassination of Joseph and Hyrum Smith," Brigham Young University Studies 47 no. 4 (2008), 35. PDF link

The FAIR Blog responds to these questions

Roger Nicholson,"The Prophet and the Pistol: A Perspective on the Martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith", FAIR Blog, (November 7, 2013)

In the Church History Museum near Temple Square, located inside a glass case, resides a pair of 19th century pistols and a walking stick. The placard reads, in part, as follows,

Joseph’s Pepperbox Pistol and Hyrum’s Single Shot Pistol. These guns were used by both men for their defense during the attack at Carthage

These were the guns that were smuggled into the Carthage Jail while Joseph Smith, Hyrum and their friends awaited their fate. On the morning of June 27, 1844, Cyrus Wheelock visited the jail.

The morning being a little rainy, favoured his wearing an overcoat, in the side pocket of which he was enabled to carry a six-shooter, and he passed the guard unmolested. During his visit in the prison he slipped the revolver into Joseph’s pocket. Joseph examined it, and asked Wheelock if he had not better retain it for his own protection.
This was a providential circumstance, as most other persons had been very rigidly searched. Joseph then handed the single barrel pistol, which had been given him by John S. Fullmer, to his brother Hyrum, and said, "You may have use for this." Brother Hyrum observed, "I hate to use such things, or to see them used." "So do I," said Joseph, "but we may have to, to defend ourselves;" upon this Hyrum took the pistol. [i]

Although it was referred to as a "six shooter," the pepper-box pistol was not a revolver in the normal sense. It incorporated six individual barrels, it was difficult to aim and tended to be unreliable. The June 2013 Ensign features a painting Greater Love Hath No Man, by Casey Childs. [ii] The artwork features all three items in the display case. Joseph, Hyrum and Willard Richards are attempting to hold the door shut as the mob attempts to enter the room. John Taylor is holding his walking stick. In Hyrum’s left pocket is the single shot pistol brought into the jail by Fullmer, and in Joseph’s left pocket, clearly visible, is the pepper-box pistol given to him by Wheelock.

Click here to view the complete article

⍗

Source(s) of the criticism

Critical sources

Watchman Fellowship, The Watchman Expositor (Page 3)

Is it true that Joseph killed two men by firing at the mob?

The attackers who were hit by Joseph were not killed (as was first reported in some Church publications) but only wounded

Joseph fired his gun six times (only three shots discharged) and he hit two of the mobbers, which John Taylor later mistakenly stated had died. Was Joseph a murderer?

Joseph's actions were clearly self-defense and defense of others under the common law. However, this point is moot since the attackers who were hit were not killed (as was first reported in some Church publications) but only wounded. They were alive and well at the trial held for mob leaders, and were identified by witnesses. Their good health allowed them to receive gifts because of their role in the assault on Joseph, Hyrum, and the other prisoners.

According to Dallin Oaks and Marvin Hill:

Wills, Voras, and Gallaher were probably named in the indictment because their wounds, which testimony showed were received at the jail, were irrefutable evidence that they had participated in the mob. They undoubtedly recognized their vulnerability and fled the county. A contemporary witness reported these three as saying that they were the first men at the jail, that one of them shot through the door killing Hyrum, that Joseph wounded all three with his pistol, and that Gallaher shot Joseph as he ran to the window.[Hay, "The Mormon Prophet's Tragedy," 675] According to Hay, Wills, whom the Mormon prophet had shot in the arm, was an Irishman who had joined the mob from "his congenital love of a brawl."[Statement of Jeremiah Willey, August 13, 1844, Brigham Young correspondence, Church Archives.] Gallaher was a young man from Mississippi who was shot in the face.[Hay, "The Mormon Prophet's Tragedy," 669, 675. Another source says Wills was a former Mormon elder who had left the Church. Davis, An Authentic Account, 24.] Hay described Voras (Voorhees) as a "half-grown hobbledehoy from Bear Creek" whom Joseph shot in the shoulder. The citizens of Green Plains were said to have given Gallaher and Voras new suits of clothes for their parts in the killing.[Statement of Jeremiah Willey, August 13, 1844]^[3]

Has the Church hidden the fact that Joseph fired a gun while in Carthage Jail?

Many members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are not aware of all the excruciatingly minute details of the history of the Church

Mob fires at Joseph Smith in the upper window at Carthage Jail.

Many members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (and this is especially true of new members or less-active members) are not aware of all the excruciatingly minute details of the history of the Church. It has become a common tactic among some anti-Mormon aficionados of Mormon history to use this historical ignorance as a weapon. These writers often claim to "expose" these minor events of Church history in a sensationalistic attempt to shock members of the Church with "hidden" revelations or "secret" accounts about various episodes in Church history. They will often claim that the Church has kept this knowledge under wraps for fear that if it was generally known it would cause many members of the Church to immediately renounce their faith and result in the ruination of the Church.

Joseph's attempt to defend himself using the gun is clearly described in History of the Church

Unfortunately for the critics, Joseph's attempt to defend himself, his brother, and his friends, and his possession of a pepperbox gun, is clearly spelled out in the History of the Church:

In the meantime Joseph, Hyrum, and Elder Taylor had their coats off. Joseph sprang to his coat for his six-shooter, Hyrum for his single barrel, Taylor for Markham's large hickory cane, and Dr. Richards for Taylor's cane. All sprang against the door, the balls whistled up the stairway, and in an instant one came through the door.

Joseph Smith, John Taylor and Dr. Richards sprang to the left of the door, and tried to knock aside the guns of the ruffians...

Joseph reached round the door casing, and discharged his six shooter into the passage, some barrels missing fire. Continual discharges of musketry came into the room. Elder Taylor continued parrying the guns until they had got them about half their length into the room, when he found that resistance was vain, and he attempted to jump out of the window, where a ball fired from within struck him on his left thigh, hitting the bone, and passing through to within half an inch of the other side. He fell on the window sill, when a ball fired from the outside struck his watch in his vest pocket, and threw him back into the room.^[4]

The next volume of the History of the Church tells the story from John Taylor's point of view:

I shall never forget the deep feeling of sympathy and regard manifested in the countenance of Brother Joseph as he drew nigh to Hyrum, and, leaning over him, exclaimed, 'Oh! my poor, dear brother Hyrum!' He, however, instantly arose, and with a firm, quick step, and a determined expression of countenance, approached the door, and pulling the six-shooter left by Brother Wheelock from his pocket, opened the door slightly, and snapped the pistol six successive times; only three of the barrels, however, were discharged.^[5]

If the Church wished to hide these facts, why did they publish them in the History of the Church not once, but twice?

⍗

Source(s) of the criticism

Critical sources

Bill McKeever and Eric Johnson, Mormonism 101. Examining the Religion of the Latter-day Saints (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Books, 2000), Chapter 17. ( Index of claims ) Richard N. and Joan K. Ostling, Mormon America: The Power and the Promise, (New York:HarperCollins Publishers, 2000), 17. ( Index of claims ) Jerald and Sandra Tanner, Utah Lighthouse Ministry (accessed 7 May 2003). Jerald and Sandra Tanner, The Changing World of Mormonism (Moody Press, 1979), 465.( Index of claims ) Wilhelm Wyl, Mormon Portraits Volume First: Joseph Smith the Prophet, His Family and Friends (Salt Lake City: Tribune Printing and Publishing Co., 1886), 153–.

Notes

1. ↑ Webster's New World Dictionary of the American Language, Second College Edition (New York: World Publishing Company, 1970), 870.
2. ↑ Dictionary.com website, s.v. "martyr."(accessed May 7, 2003).
3. ↑ Dallin H. Oaks and Marvin S. Hill, Carthage Conspiracy, the Trial of the Accused Assassins of Joseph Smith (Urbana, Illinois: University of Illinois Press, 1979), 52. ISBN 025200762X.
4. ↑ Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 volumes, edited by Brigham H. Roberts, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1957), 6:617–618. Volume 6 link
5. ↑ Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 volumes, edited by Brigham H. Roberts, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1957), 7:102–103. Volume 7 link

FAIR Answers—back to home page

V

Articles about Joseph Smith

Life and Character	Status in Latter-day Saint belief Joseph's trustworthiness Money digging Folk magic or the occult The Word of Wisdom Alleged narcissism
Youth	Joseph Smith's family as trustworthy and hard-working Education Use of seer stones as a youth The Hurlbut affidavits Joseph Smith's 1826 trial
Revelations and the Church	Witness of Jesus Christ First Vision Book of Mormon Joseph Smith's inspired revision of the Bible (JST) The restoration of the priesthood Personages who appeared to Joseph Smith Production of the Book of Abraham Kinderhook Plates
Prophetic Statements	The U.S. Civil War Rocky Mountain prophecy The White Horse prophecy Alleged false prophecies of Joseph Smith
Society	Legal issues 1826 trial Creation of the Kirtland Safety Society Failure of the Kirtland Safety Society Campaign for President of the United States
Plural marriage (polygamy)	Plural marriage or polygamy Polygamy navigator Plural wives of Joseph Smith
Death	The Nauvoo Expositor Events surrounding the death of Joseph Smith Firing a gun at Carthage Jail Qualification as a martyr 1844 Succession to Joseph Smith

Was Joseph a martyr?

Is it possible that Joseph Smith is not a martyr because, while in jail, he had a gun and he had the temerity to defend himself, his brother, and his friends?

Joseph and Hyrum were martyrs by the accepted definition of the term—they suffered death for their beliefs

It seems clear that:

1. Joseph and Hyrum were martyrs by the accepted definition of the term—they suffered death for their beliefs. (Note that martyrs can die for worthy or ignoble causes, but this makes them no less martyrs.)
2. The Church has not hidden this fact, but published it from the beginning and includes it in the History of the Church twice.
3. Joseph was not guilty of murder, because no one died from his shots, and his actions would have been justifiable as self-defense and defense of others even if deaths had resulted.

Critics of Joseph Smith redefine the term "martyr"

Ensign (June 2013): 40, shows Joseph with the pepperbox pistol he would fire to defend himself and others prior to his murder.

In order to make their argument tenable, the critics must do three things. First, they must take some creative liberties with the English language. In this case, the word being redefined is the term martyr. Webster’s New World Dictionary defines a "martyr" as

"a person who chooses to suffer or die rather than give up his faith or his principles."^[1]

The online resource, Dictionary.com, defines a martyr as

"one who chooses to suffer death rather than renounce religious principles."^[2]

Both are nearly identical and fairly standard definitions, and neither includes a requirement or qualifiers of any sort. However, some anti-Mormon writers have taken the term martyr and subtly changed its definition to suit their own needs. The new definition would probably read something like this: Martyr: a person who chooses to suffer or die rather than give up his faith or his principles without any resistance or effort at self-defense on his part whatsoever.

Critics are free to use such a definition, but it belongs to them alone; it is not the standard use of the word, and not what Church members mean when they refer to the "martyrdom" of Joseph and Hyrum Smith at Carthage.

Throughout Christian history, "martyrs" have been understood to be those who suffered quietly, and those who resisted, even with violence, and even to the death of those who persecuted them for their beliefs.

The first anti-Mormon argument thus focuses on the fact that Joseph had a firearm and that he used that firearm to defend himself. Is it possible that Joseph's announcement that he was going "as a lamb to the slaughter" is false, since he fought back?

Anyone who has ever worked on a farm or in a slaughterhouse knows that sheep do not go willingly to the slaughter. They kick and buck, bleat, scream, and make every attempt to escape their fate. In fact, they make such a haunting sound, that the title of an extremely popular Hollywood film was based on it: The Silence of the Lambs. The term "lamb to the slaughter" simply refers to the inevitability of the final outcome. No matter how valiantly they struggle, the fate of the sheep is sealed. If we apply this understanding to Joseph Smith and his brother, it is clear that they truly were slaughtered like lambs. Fight as they might, they were doomed.

Martyrdom in Christian history

Summary: Christians have never required someone to go passively and unresisting to their death to be considered a martyr.

Joseph Smith's qualification as a martyr

Summary: By any reasonable definition, Joseph and Hyrum were martyrs for their faith.

Has the Church tried to hide the fact that Joseph fired a pepperbox pistol at the mob which murdered him?

Joseph's gun is on display at the Church History Museum in Salt Lake City, where anyone can see it. It has been there for years

Some claim that the Church has tried to hide the fact that Joseph fired a pepperbox pistol at the mob which murdered Hyrum and was soon to kill him.

Ensign (June 2013): 40, shows Joseph with the pepperbox pistol he would fire to defend himself and others prior to his murder.

Joseph's gun is on display at the Church History Museum in Salt Lake City, where anyone can see it. It has been there for years.

Both official and unofficial Church publications have repeatedly mentioned Joseph's pistol since his death

There is overwhelming evidence that from the earliest days following the martyrdom, to the present, that both official and unofficial Church publications have repeatedly mentioned Joseph's pistol.

Photograph of the pistols used by Joseph and Hyrum. The pepperbox pistol fired by Joseph Smith at Carthage Jail is located on the right. From the museum of Church History in Salt Lake City, Utah, and labeled as such. Photo (c) Blair Hodges, used with permission. Another image of the pepperbox pistol may be viewed here

From the very beginning of the Church, Joseph's possession and use of a pepperbox pistol in defense of himself and his brother and friends has been repeatedly mentioned. This includes statements by LDS, anti-Mormon, and other secular sources even from a very early period, demonstrating that there was no attempt to hide the facts.

1844

• George T. M. Davis, of Alton, Illinois, An Authentic Account of the Massacre of Joseph Smith, the Mormon Prophet, and Hyram Smith, his brother, together with a Brief History of the Rise and Progress of Mormonism, and all the circumstances which led to their death (St. Louis 1844); also quoted in "The Mormons, or Latter Day Saints", The United States Catholic Magazine 4 (1845): 362-3.
• Brooklyn Eagle, July 8, 1844, page 2
• Willard Richards, "Two Minutes in Jail", in Times and Seasons 5/14 (1 August 1844): 597-98
• A True and Descriptive Account of the Assassination of Joseph and Hiram Smith, the Mormon Prophet and Patriarch At Carthage, Illinois, June 27th, 1844, By an Eye Witness, T[HOMAS]. A. LYNE (NY: 1844): 9-10.

1845

• "Mormonerna, en beväpnad religionssekt i de Förenta Staterna," Borgå Tidning, [Porvoo, Finland] August 20, 1845, p. 1-4, and August 23, 1845, p. 2-3. English translations by this author [Kim Ostman, Finland 2006: "The Mormons, an armed religious sect in the United States."]. According to a footnote, the article comes from Wilhelm Grisson’s original text "Beiträge zur Charakteristik der Vereinigten Staaten von Nordamerika."

1846

• James Allen Scott Journal., 19 April 1846; quoted in Richard Bennett, Mormons at the Missouri (U of Oklahoma 1987): 236, note 20.

1851

• James Linforth, "The Rev. C.W. Lawrence’s ‘Few Words from a Pastor to his People on the subject of the Latter-day Saints,’ replied to and refuted". (no date [contains reference to Millennial Star 13.4 (Feb 15, 1851); my copy bound with MS volume 12, in U of Minnesota Library]; published by J. Sadler, Liverpool): 2.

1852

• J. M. Grant, The Truth for the Mormons ‘Three Letters to the New York Herald’’ 64 pages.
• History of the Persecutions!! Endured by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in America. Compiled from Public Documents, and Drawn from Authentic Sources. By C. W. Wandell, Minister of the Gospel (Sydney: Albert Mason 1852). 55.

1854

• Thomas Ford, History of Illinois, 1818-1847 (Chicago, 1854), 354-5. "An attempt was made to break open the door; but Joe Smith being armed with a six-barrelled pistol, furnished by his friends, fired several times as the door was bursted open, and wounded three of the assailants…."
• Benjamin G. Ferris, Utah and the Mormons. The History, Government, Doctrines, Customs and Prospects of the Latter-day Saints. From personal observation during a six months’ residence at Great Salt Lake City (New York: 1854).
• The Californian Crusoe; or, The Last Treasure Found. A Tale of Mormonism (London: John Henry Parker 1854; New York: Stanford and Swords): 98.
• Joseph Smith et Les Mormons ou Examen de Leurs Pretentions Relativement a leur Bible, a leur Prophete et a leur Eglise, par L. Favez (Lausamme: Delefrontaine and Comp 1854): 47.

1856

• Jules Remy and Julius Brenchley, A Journey to Great Salt Lake City, with a sketch of the History, Religion, and Customs of the Mormons, and an Introduction on the Religious Movement in the United States, in two volumes (London: W. Jeffs 1856) [reprinted from 1861 London edition; Preface dated Paris August 1860], volume I: 395

1857

• "History of Joseph Smith," Deseret News Weekly 7/37 (November 18, 1857): 290b and 7/38 (November 25, 1857): 297a.

1862

• L. A. Bertrand, Memoires d’un Mormon (Paris 1862).
• Richard F. Burton, The City of the Saints (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1862): Appendix. John Taylor, Witness to the Martyrdom [written in response to request by Elder Wilford Woodruff, in letter dated June 30, 1856. This account in Burton was first publication of the work by John Taylor]

1863

• Le Prophete du XIX Siecle ou vie des Saints des Derniers Jours (Mormons), Hortense G. Du Fay (Paris: Dentu 1863): 100.

1865

• Hyppolite Taine, Nouveaux Essais de Critique et d’Histoire (Paris, 1865; reprinted 1900, 1901, 1914). Review article of Jules Remy, Voyage au pays des Mormons (Paris, 1860). Translated in Austin E. Fife, "Taine’s Essay on the Mormons. Translated with Introduction and Notes," Pacific Historical Review 31/1 (February 1962): 58.

1867

• Pomeroy Tucker, Origin, Rise, and Progress of Mormonism. Biography of its Founders and History of its Church. Personal Remembrances and Historical Collections Hitherto Unwritten (New York: D. Appleton and Company 1867): 190.

1875

• CCA Christensen's moving panorama illustrating church history. One of the 23 scenes illustrates the

martyrdom and actually shows the smoking gun in Joseph's hand (circa this date). This was a traveling show of huge painted canvases that would be displayed to LDS audiences.

1880

• Autobiography of B. H. Roberts, Gary J. Bergera p.76

1881

• Daniel Tyler, A Concise History of the Mormon Battalion in the Mexican War, 1846-47 (Salt Lake City 1881). [includes statement by John Taylor on martyrdom of Joseph Smith]

1882

• Lyman O. Littlefield, The Martyrs; A Sketch of the Lives and a Full account of the Martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, together with a Concise Review of the Most Prominent Incidents Connected with the Persecutions of the Saints, from the time the Church was Organized up to the Year 1846 (Salt Lake City, Utah: Juvenile Instructor Office 1882): [quoting from an earlier work by William M. Daniels in pamphlet form]: (Littlefield, page 78)

1883

• R. W. Young, "In the Wake of the Church", The Contributor 4/8 (May 1883): 307.

1885

• Mrs. Ellen E. Dickinson, New Light on Mormonism Introduction by Thurlow Weed (NYC: Funk & Wagnalls, 1885), 108.

1887

• B.H. Roberts, "The Rise and Fall of Nauvoo," The Contributor 8/11 (September 1887): 406, 407 note

1888

• Andrew Jenson, Historical Record 7/1-3 (Jan 1888): 568-571
• George Q. Cannon, Life of Joseph Smith the Prophet (October 1, 1888): 515

1892

• B.H. Roberts, The Life of John Taylor (SLC: 1989; first published 1892) p.134

1895

• B. H. Roberts, New Witnesses for God, Vol. 1, (Salt Lake City, January, 1895: 484; Reprinted 1911: 482).

1905

• Orson F. Whitney, "The Mormon Prophet's Tragedy," A review of an Article by the late John Hay, published originally in the Atlantic Monthly for December, 1869, and republished in the Saints Herald of June 21, 1905. Whitney’s response published 1905, p.68-81

1933

• John Henry Evans, Joseph Smith. An American Prophet (NY: MacMillan 1933; 1961 Amy Evans; 1989 Deseret Book): 204, 206.

1943

• John Taylor, The Gospel Kingdom p.358-360 [taken from Roberts, History of the Church 7:100; 252f; 2:267-8; 2:284-5; Published initially in 1943; this is from Taylor’s Witness to the Martyrdom, mentioned earlier under "Richard F. Burton"

1951

• John A. Widtsoe, Joseph Smith. Seeker after Truth; Prophet of God (Salt Lake City, Utah: Bookcraft, 1951; 1991): 319 [quotes from the Willard Richards account]

1967

• The last Days at Carthage (video), Department of Seminaries and Institutes of Religion, 1967, 5 minutes. This video was re-released as a segment in "Moments from Church History, 1990, copyrighted by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 102 Minutes. The video is pretty clear in teaching that Joseph used a gun. At the beginning it says; "Cyrus Wheelock brings a gun" and it shows a close-up of the pepperbox. In a more dramatic part, for a documentary anyway, it shows the gun again and it says: "The gun misfires".

1969

• LeGrand L. Baker, "On to Carthage to Die", Improvement Era 72/6 (June 1969): 15

1973

• Reed Blake, 24 Hours to Martyrdom (SLC: Bookcraft, 1973): 127-8

1979

• Leonard J. Arrington and Davis Bitton, The Mormon Experience. A History of the Latter-day Saints (New York: Knopf, 1979; 1980): 81

1981

• Dean C. Jessee, "Return to Carthage: Writing the History of Joseph Smith’s Martyrdom," Journal of Mormon History 8 (1981): 1-19.

1985

• Book Reviews; BYU Studies Vol. 25, No. 3, (Summer 1985): .124 Review of Dean C. Jessee, The Personal Writings of Joseph Smith; Review by Marvin S. Hill, BYU History Professor

1990

• Moments from Church History, 1990, copyrighted by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 102 Minutes. The video is pretty clear in teaching that Joseph used of a gun. At the beginning it says; "Cyrus Wheelock brings a gun" and it shows a close-up of the pepperbox. In a more dramatic part, for a documentary anyway, it shows the gun again and it says: "The gun misfires".

1994

• Reed Blake, "Martyrdom at Carthage," Ensign (June 1994), 30. off-site
• The same information was contained in a "First Presidency Message" in the same Ensign issue (anniversary of Joseph's assassination). Thomas S. Monson, "The Prophet Joseph Smith: Teacher by Example," Ensign, Jun 1994

There was to be one great final lesson before his mortal life ended. He was incarcerated in Carthage Jail with his brother Hyrum, with John Taylor, and with Willard Richards. The angry mob stormed the jail; they came up the stairway, blasphemous in their cursing, heavily armed, and began to fire at will. Hyrum was hit and died. John Taylor took several balls of fire within his bosom. The Prophet Joseph, with his pistol in hand, was attempting to defend his life and that of his brethren, and yet he could tell from the pounding on the door that this mob would storm that door and would kill John Taylor and Willard Richards in an attempt to kill him. And so his last great act here upon the earth was to leave the door and lead Willard Richards to safety, throw the gun on the floor, and go to the window, that they might see him, that the attention of this ruthless mob might be focused upon him rather than the others. Joseph Smith gave his life. Willard Richards was spared, and John Taylor recovered from his wounds. "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." The Prophet Joseph Smith taught us love—by example.

• Church History in the Fulness of Times, Religion 342-343, Church Educational System manual.
• Dallin H. Oaks and Marvin J. Hill, Carthage Conspiracy;;
• Davis Bitton, The Martyrdom Remembered. A one-hundred-fifty-year perspective on the assassination of Joseph Smith (Salt Lake City, Utah: Aspen Books, 1994).

2004

• Matthew B. Brown, Joseph Smith: The Man, The Mission, The Message (American Fork, UT: Covenant Communications, 2004): 90, shows a picture of the gun. "Composite photograph of the pepperbox pistol that Joseph Smith used to defend himself after Hyrum had been murdered". Story given in more detail pages 92-4.

2005

• Gospel Doctrine Teacher’s Manual for 2005: "Doctrine and Covenants and Church History" lesson 32, page 184: the following account of the martyrdom by Elder Willard Richards:

"As he struck the floor he exclaimed emphatically, ‘I am a dead man.’ Joseph looked towards him and responded, ‘Oh, dear brother Hyrum!’ and opening the door two or three inches with his left hand, discharged one barrel of a six shooter (pistol) at random in the entry. . A ball [from the musket of one of the mob] grazed Hyrum’s breast, and entering his throat passed into his head, while other muskets were aimed at him and some balls hit him.

Joseph continued snapping his revolver round the casing of the door into the space as before, while Mr. Taylor with a walking stick stood by his side and knocked down the bayonets and muskets which were constantly discharging through the doorway....

When the revolver failed, we had no more firearms, and expected an immediate rush of the mob, and the doorway full of muskets, half way in the room, and no hope but instant death from within." off-site

2008

• Joseph L. Lyon and David W. Lyon, "Physical Evidence at Carthage Jail and What It Reveals about the Assassination of Joseph and Hyrum Smith," Brigham Young University Studies 47 no. 4 (2008), 35. PDF link

The FAIR Blog responds to these questions

Roger Nicholson,"The Prophet and the Pistol: A Perspective on the Martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith", FAIR Blog, (November 7, 2013)

In the Church History Museum near Temple Square, located inside a glass case, resides a pair of 19th century pistols and a walking stick. The placard reads, in part, as follows,

Joseph’s Pepperbox Pistol and Hyrum’s Single Shot Pistol. These guns were used by both men for their defense during the attack at Carthage

These were the guns that were smuggled into the Carthage Jail while Joseph Smith, Hyrum and their friends awaited their fate. On the morning of June 27, 1844, Cyrus Wheelock visited the jail.

The morning being a little rainy, favoured his wearing an overcoat, in the side pocket of which he was enabled to carry a six-shooter, and he passed the guard unmolested. During his visit in the prison he slipped the revolver into Joseph’s pocket. Joseph examined it, and asked Wheelock if he had not better retain it for his own protection.
This was a providential circumstance, as most other persons had been very rigidly searched. Joseph then handed the single barrel pistol, which had been given him by John S. Fullmer, to his brother Hyrum, and said, "You may have use for this." Brother Hyrum observed, "I hate to use such things, or to see them used." "So do I," said Joseph, "but we may have to, to defend ourselves;" upon this Hyrum took the pistol. [i]

Although it was referred to as a "six shooter," the pepper-box pistol was not a revolver in the normal sense. It incorporated six individual barrels, it was difficult to aim and tended to be unreliable. The June 2013 Ensign features a painting Greater Love Hath No Man, by Casey Childs. [ii] The artwork features all three items in the display case. Joseph, Hyrum and Willard Richards are attempting to hold the door shut as the mob attempts to enter the room. John Taylor is holding his walking stick. In Hyrum’s left pocket is the single shot pistol brought into the jail by Fullmer, and in Joseph’s left pocket, clearly visible, is the pepper-box pistol given to him by Wheelock.

Click here to view the complete article

⍗

Source(s) of the criticism

Critical sources

Watchman Fellowship, The Watchman Expositor (Page 3)

Is it true that Joseph killed two men by firing at the mob?

The attackers who were hit by Joseph were not killed (as was first reported in some Church publications) but only wounded

Joseph fired his gun six times (only three shots discharged) and he hit two of the mobbers, which John Taylor later mistakenly stated had died. Was Joseph a murderer?

Joseph's actions were clearly self-defense and defense of others under the common law. However, this point is moot since the attackers who were hit were not killed (as was first reported in some Church publications) but only wounded. They were alive and well at the trial held for mob leaders, and were identified by witnesses. Their good health allowed them to receive gifts because of their role in the assault on Joseph, Hyrum, and the other prisoners.

According to Dallin Oaks and Marvin Hill:

Wills, Voras, and Gallaher were probably named in the indictment because their wounds, which testimony showed were received at the jail, were irrefutable evidence that they had participated in the mob. They undoubtedly recognized their vulnerability and fled the county. A contemporary witness reported these three as saying that they were the first men at the jail, that one of them shot through the door killing Hyrum, that Joseph wounded all three with his pistol, and that Gallaher shot Joseph as he ran to the window.[Hay, "The Mormon Prophet's Tragedy," 675] According to Hay, Wills, whom the Mormon prophet had shot in the arm, was an Irishman who had joined the mob from "his congenital love of a brawl."[Statement of Jeremiah Willey, August 13, 1844, Brigham Young correspondence, Church Archives.] Gallaher was a young man from Mississippi who was shot in the face.[Hay, "The Mormon Prophet's Tragedy," 669, 675. Another source says Wills was a former Mormon elder who had left the Church. Davis, An Authentic Account, 24.] Hay described Voras (Voorhees) as a "half-grown hobbledehoy from Bear Creek" whom Joseph shot in the shoulder. The citizens of Green Plains were said to have given Gallaher and Voras new suits of clothes for their parts in the killing.[Statement of Jeremiah Willey, August 13, 1844]^[3]

Has the Church hidden the fact that Joseph fired a gun while in Carthage Jail?

Many members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are not aware of all the excruciatingly minute details of the history of the Church

Mob fires at Joseph Smith in the upper window at Carthage Jail.

Many members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (and this is especially true of new members or less-active members) are not aware of all the excruciatingly minute details of the history of the Church. It has become a common tactic among some anti-Mormon aficionados of Mormon history to use this historical ignorance as a weapon. These writers often claim to "expose" these minor events of Church history in a sensationalistic attempt to shock members of the Church with "hidden" revelations or "secret" accounts about various episodes in Church history. They will often claim that the Church has kept this knowledge under wraps for fear that if it was generally known it would cause many members of the Church to immediately renounce their faith and result in the ruination of the Church.

Joseph's attempt to defend himself using the gun is clearly described in History of the Church

Unfortunately for the critics, Joseph's attempt to defend himself, his brother, and his friends, and his possession of a pepperbox gun, is clearly spelled out in the History of the Church:

In the meantime Joseph, Hyrum, and Elder Taylor had their coats off. Joseph sprang to his coat for his six-shooter, Hyrum for his single barrel, Taylor for Markham's large hickory cane, and Dr. Richards for Taylor's cane. All sprang against the door, the balls whistled up the stairway, and in an instant one came through the door.

Joseph Smith, John Taylor and Dr. Richards sprang to the left of the door, and tried to knock aside the guns of the ruffians...

Joseph reached round the door casing, and discharged his six shooter into the passage, some barrels missing fire. Continual discharges of musketry came into the room. Elder Taylor continued parrying the guns until they had got them about half their length into the room, when he found that resistance was vain, and he attempted to jump out of the window, where a ball fired from within struck him on his left thigh, hitting the bone, and passing through to within half an inch of the other side. He fell on the window sill, when a ball fired from the outside struck his watch in his vest pocket, and threw him back into the room.^[4]

The next volume of the History of the Church tells the story from John Taylor's point of view:

I shall never forget the deep feeling of sympathy and regard manifested in the countenance of Brother Joseph as he drew nigh to Hyrum, and, leaning over him, exclaimed, 'Oh! my poor, dear brother Hyrum!' He, however, instantly arose, and with a firm, quick step, and a determined expression of countenance, approached the door, and pulling the six-shooter left by Brother Wheelock from his pocket, opened the door slightly, and snapped the pistol six successive times; only three of the barrels, however, were discharged.^[5]

If the Church wished to hide these facts, why did they publish them in the History of the Church not once, but twice?

⍗

Source(s) of the criticism

Critical sources

Bill McKeever and Eric Johnson, Mormonism 101. Examining the Religion of the Latter-day Saints (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Books, 2000), Chapter 17. ( Index of claims ) Richard N. and Joan K. Ostling, Mormon America: The Power and the Promise, (New York:HarperCollins Publishers, 2000), 17. ( Index of claims ) Jerald and Sandra Tanner, Utah Lighthouse Ministry (accessed 7 May 2003). Jerald and Sandra Tanner, The Changing World of Mormonism (Moody Press, 1979), 465.( Index of claims ) Wilhelm Wyl, Mormon Portraits Volume First: Joseph Smith the Prophet, His Family and Friends (Salt Lake City: Tribune Printing and Publishing Co., 1886), 153–.

Notes

1. ↑ Webster's New World Dictionary of the American Language, Second College Edition (New York: World Publishing Company, 1970), 870.
2. ↑ Dictionary.com website, s.v. "martyr."(accessed May 7, 2003).
3. ↑ Dallin H. Oaks and Marvin S. Hill, Carthage Conspiracy, the Trial of the Accused Assassins of Joseph Smith (Urbana, Illinois: University of Illinois Press, 1979), 52. ISBN 025200762X.
4. ↑ Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 volumes, edited by Brigham H. Roberts, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1957), 6:617–618. Volume 6 link
5. ↑ Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 volumes, edited by Brigham H. Roberts, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1957), 7:102–103. Volume 7 link

FAIR Answers—back to home page

V

Articles about Joseph Smith

Life and Character	Status in Latter-day Saint belief Joseph's trustworthiness Money digging Folk magic or the occult The Word of Wisdom Alleged narcissism
Youth	Joseph Smith's family as trustworthy and hard-working Education Use of seer stones as a youth The Hurlbut affidavits Joseph Smith's 1826 trial
Revelations and the Church	Witness of Jesus Christ First Vision Book of Mormon Joseph Smith's inspired revision of the Bible (JST) The restoration of the priesthood Personages who appeared to Joseph Smith Production of the Book of Abraham Kinderhook Plates
Prophetic Statements	The U.S. Civil War Rocky Mountain prophecy The White Horse prophecy Alleged false prophecies of Joseph Smith
Society	Legal issues 1826 trial Creation of the Kirtland Safety Society Failure of the Kirtland Safety Society Campaign for President of the United States
Plural marriage (polygamy)	Plural marriage or polygamy Polygamy navigator Plural wives of Joseph Smith
Death	The Nauvoo Expositor Events surrounding the death of Joseph Smith Firing a gun at Carthage Jail Qualification as a martyr 1844 Succession to Joseph Smith

Was Joseph a martyr?

Is it possible that Joseph Smith is not a martyr because, while in jail, he had a gun and he had the temerity to defend himself, his brother, and his friends?

Joseph and Hyrum were martyrs by the accepted definition of the term—they suffered death for their beliefs

It seems clear that:

1. Joseph and Hyrum were martyrs by the accepted definition of the term—they suffered death for their beliefs. (Note that martyrs can die for worthy or ignoble causes, but this makes them no less martyrs.)
2. The Church has not hidden this fact, but published it from the beginning and includes it in the History of the Church twice.
3. Joseph was not guilty of murder, because no one died from his shots, and his actions would have been justifiable as self-defense and defense of others even if deaths had resulted.

Critics of Joseph Smith redefine the term "martyr"

Ensign (June 2013): 40, shows Joseph with the pepperbox pistol he would fire to defend himself and others prior to his murder.

In order to make their argument tenable, the critics must do three things. First, they must take some creative liberties with the English language. In this case, the word being redefined is the term martyr. Webster’s New World Dictionary defines a "martyr" as

"a person who chooses to suffer or die rather than give up his faith or his principles."^[1]

The online resource, Dictionary.com, defines a martyr as

"one who chooses to suffer death rather than renounce religious principles."^[2]

Both are nearly identical and fairly standard definitions, and neither includes a requirement or qualifiers of any sort. However, some anti-Mormon writers have taken the term martyr and subtly changed its definition to suit their own needs. The new definition would probably read something like this: Martyr: a person who chooses to suffer or die rather than give up his faith or his principles without any resistance or effort at self-defense on his part whatsoever.

Critics are free to use such a definition, but it belongs to them alone; it is not the standard use of the word, and not what Church members mean when they refer to the "martyrdom" of Joseph and Hyrum Smith at Carthage.

Throughout Christian history, "martyrs" have been understood to be those who suffered quietly, and those who resisted, even with violence, and even to the death of those who persecuted them for their beliefs.

The first anti-Mormon argument thus focuses on the fact that Joseph had a firearm and that he used that firearm to defend himself. Is it possible that Joseph's announcement that he was going "as a lamb to the slaughter" is false, since he fought back?

Anyone who has ever worked on a farm or in a slaughterhouse knows that sheep do not go willingly to the slaughter. They kick and buck, bleat, scream, and make every attempt to escape their fate. In fact, they make such a haunting sound, that the title of an extremely popular Hollywood film was based on it: The Silence of the Lambs. The term "lamb to the slaughter" simply refers to the inevitability of the final outcome. No matter how valiantly they struggle, the fate of the sheep is sealed. If we apply this understanding to Joseph Smith and his brother, it is clear that they truly were slaughtered like lambs. Fight as they might, they were doomed.

Martyrdom in Christian history

Summary: Christians have never required someone to go passively and unresisting to their death to be considered a martyr.

Joseph Smith's qualification as a martyr

Summary: By any reasonable definition, Joseph and Hyrum were martyrs for their faith.

Has the Church tried to hide the fact that Joseph fired a pepperbox pistol at the mob which murdered him?

Joseph's gun is on display at the Church History Museum in Salt Lake City, where anyone can see it. It has been there for years

Some claim that the Church has tried to hide the fact that Joseph fired a pepperbox pistol at the mob which murdered Hyrum and was soon to kill him.

Ensign (June 2013): 40, shows Joseph with the pepperbox pistol he would fire to defend himself and others prior to his murder.

Joseph's gun is on display at the Church History Museum in Salt Lake City, where anyone can see it. It has been there for years.

Both official and unofficial Church publications have repeatedly mentioned Joseph's pistol since his death

There is overwhelming evidence that from the earliest days following the martyrdom, to the present, that both official and unofficial Church publications have repeatedly mentioned Joseph's pistol.

Photograph of the pistols used by Joseph and Hyrum. The pepperbox pistol fired by Joseph Smith at Carthage Jail is located on the right. From the museum of Church History in Salt Lake City, Utah, and labeled as such. Photo (c) Blair Hodges, used with permission. Another image of the pepperbox pistol may be viewed here

From the very beginning of the Church, Joseph's possession and use of a pepperbox pistol in defense of himself and his brother and friends has been repeatedly mentioned. This includes statements by LDS, anti-Mormon, and other secular sources even from a very early period, demonstrating that there was no attempt to hide the facts.

1844

• George T. M. Davis, of Alton, Illinois, An Authentic Account of the Massacre of Joseph Smith, the Mormon Prophet, and Hyram Smith, his brother, together with a Brief History of the Rise and Progress of Mormonism, and all the circumstances which led to their death (St. Louis 1844); also quoted in "The Mormons, or Latter Day Saints", The United States Catholic Magazine 4 (1845): 362-3.
• Brooklyn Eagle, July 8, 1844, page 2
• Willard Richards, "Two Minutes in Jail", in Times and Seasons 5/14 (1 August 1844): 597-98
• A True and Descriptive Account of the Assassination of Joseph and Hiram Smith, the Mormon Prophet and Patriarch At Carthage, Illinois, June 27th, 1844, By an Eye Witness, T[HOMAS]. A. LYNE (NY: 1844): 9-10.

1845

• "Mormonerna, en beväpnad religionssekt i de Förenta Staterna," Borgå Tidning, [Porvoo, Finland] August 20, 1845, p. 1-4, and August 23, 1845, p. 2-3. English translations by this author [Kim Ostman, Finland 2006: "The Mormons, an armed religious sect in the United States."]. According to a footnote, the article comes from Wilhelm Grisson’s original text "Beiträge zur Charakteristik der Vereinigten Staaten von Nordamerika."

1846

• James Allen Scott Journal., 19 April 1846; quoted in Richard Bennett, Mormons at the Missouri (U of Oklahoma 1987): 236, note 20.

1851

• James Linforth, "The Rev. C.W. Lawrence’s ‘Few Words from a Pastor to his People on the subject of the Latter-day Saints,’ replied to and refuted". (no date [contains reference to Millennial Star 13.4 (Feb 15, 1851); my copy bound with MS volume 12, in U of Minnesota Library]; published by J. Sadler, Liverpool): 2.

1852

• J. M. Grant, The Truth for the Mormons ‘Three Letters to the New York Herald’’ 64 pages.
• History of the Persecutions!! Endured by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in America. Compiled from Public Documents, and Drawn from Authentic Sources. By C. W. Wandell, Minister of the Gospel (Sydney: Albert Mason 1852). 55.

1854

• Thomas Ford, History of Illinois, 1818-1847 (Chicago, 1854), 354-5. "An attempt was made to break open the door; but Joe Smith being armed with a six-barrelled pistol, furnished by his friends, fired several times as the door was bursted open, and wounded three of the assailants…."
• Benjamin G. Ferris, Utah and the Mormons. The History, Government, Doctrines, Customs and Prospects of the Latter-day Saints. From personal observation during a six months’ residence at Great Salt Lake City (New York: 1854).
• The Californian Crusoe; or, The Last Treasure Found. A Tale of Mormonism (London: John Henry Parker 1854; New York: Stanford and Swords): 98.
• Joseph Smith et Les Mormons ou Examen de Leurs Pretentions Relativement a leur Bible, a leur Prophete et a leur Eglise, par L. Favez (Lausamme: Delefrontaine and Comp 1854): 47.

1856

• Jules Remy and Julius Brenchley, A Journey to Great Salt Lake City, with a sketch of the History, Religion, and Customs of the Mormons, and an Introduction on the Religious Movement in the United States, in two volumes (London: W. Jeffs 1856) [reprinted from 1861 London edition; Preface dated Paris August 1860], volume I: 395

1857

• "History of Joseph Smith," Deseret News Weekly 7/37 (November 18, 1857): 290b and 7/38 (November 25, 1857): 297a.

1862

• L. A. Bertrand, Memoires d’un Mormon (Paris 1862).
• Richard F. Burton, The City of the Saints (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1862): Appendix. John Taylor, Witness to the Martyrdom [written in response to request by Elder Wilford Woodruff, in letter dated June 30, 1856. This account in Burton was first publication of the work by John Taylor]

1863

• Le Prophete du XIX Siecle ou vie des Saints des Derniers Jours (Mormons), Hortense G. Du Fay (Paris: Dentu 1863): 100.

1865

• Hyppolite Taine, Nouveaux Essais de Critique et d’Histoire (Paris, 1865; reprinted 1900, 1901, 1914). Review article of Jules Remy, Voyage au pays des Mormons (Paris, 1860). Translated in Austin E. Fife, "Taine’s Essay on the Mormons. Translated with Introduction and Notes," Pacific Historical Review 31/1 (February 1962): 58.

1867

• Pomeroy Tucker, Origin, Rise, and Progress of Mormonism. Biography of its Founders and History of its Church. Personal Remembrances and Historical Collections Hitherto Unwritten (New York: D. Appleton and Company 1867): 190.

1875

• CCA Christensen's moving panorama illustrating church history. One of the 23 scenes illustrates the

martyrdom and actually shows the smoking gun in Joseph's hand (circa this date). This was a traveling show of huge painted canvases that would be displayed to LDS audiences.

1880

• Autobiography of B. H. Roberts, Gary J. Bergera p.76

1881

• Daniel Tyler, A Concise History of the Mormon Battalion in the Mexican War, 1846-47 (Salt Lake City 1881). [includes statement by John Taylor on martyrdom of Joseph Smith]

1882

• Lyman O. Littlefield, The Martyrs; A Sketch of the Lives and a Full account of the Martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, together with a Concise Review of the Most Prominent Incidents Connected with the Persecutions of the Saints, from the time the Church was Organized up to the Year 1846 (Salt Lake City, Utah: Juvenile Instructor Office 1882): [quoting from an earlier work by William M. Daniels in pamphlet form]: (Littlefield, page 78)

1883

• R. W. Young, "In the Wake of the Church", The Contributor 4/8 (May 1883): 307.

1885

• Mrs. Ellen E. Dickinson, New Light on Mormonism Introduction by Thurlow Weed (NYC: Funk & Wagnalls, 1885), 108.

1887

• B.H. Roberts, "The Rise and Fall of Nauvoo," The Contributor 8/11 (September 1887): 406, 407 note

1888

• Andrew Jenson, Historical Record 7/1-3 (Jan 1888): 568-571
• George Q. Cannon, Life of Joseph Smith the Prophet (October 1, 1888): 515

1892

• B.H. Roberts, The Life of John Taylor (SLC: 1989; first published 1892) p.134

1895

• B. H. Roberts, New Witnesses for God, Vol. 1, (Salt Lake City, January, 1895: 484; Reprinted 1911: 482).

1905

• Orson F. Whitney, "The Mormon Prophet's Tragedy," A review of an Article by the late John Hay, published originally in the Atlantic Monthly for December, 1869, and republished in the Saints Herald of June 21, 1905. Whitney’s response published 1905, p.68-81

1933

• John Henry Evans, Joseph Smith. An American Prophet (NY: MacMillan 1933; 1961 Amy Evans; 1989 Deseret Book): 204, 206.

1943

• John Taylor, The Gospel Kingdom p.358-360 [taken from Roberts, History of the Church 7:100; 252f; 2:267-8; 2:284-5; Published initially in 1943; this is from Taylor’s Witness to the Martyrdom, mentioned earlier under "Richard F. Burton"

1951

• John A. Widtsoe, Joseph Smith. Seeker after Truth; Prophet of God (Salt Lake City, Utah: Bookcraft, 1951; 1991): 319 [quotes from the Willard Richards account]

1967

• The last Days at Carthage (video), Department of Seminaries and Institutes of Religion, 1967, 5 minutes. This video was re-released as a segment in "Moments from Church History, 1990, copyrighted by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 102 Minutes. The video is pretty clear in teaching that Joseph used a gun. At the beginning it says; "Cyrus Wheelock brings a gun" and it shows a close-up of the pepperbox. In a more dramatic part, for a documentary anyway, it shows the gun again and it says: "The gun misfires".

1969

• LeGrand L. Baker, "On to Carthage to Die", Improvement Era 72/6 (June 1969): 15

1973

• Reed Blake, 24 Hours to Martyrdom (SLC: Bookcraft, 1973): 127-8

1979

• Leonard J. Arrington and Davis Bitton, The Mormon Experience. A History of the Latter-day Saints (New York: Knopf, 1979; 1980): 81

1981

• Dean C. Jessee, "Return to Carthage: Writing the History of Joseph Smith’s Martyrdom," Journal of Mormon History 8 (1981): 1-19.

1985

• Book Reviews; BYU Studies Vol. 25, No. 3, (Summer 1985): .124 Review of Dean C. Jessee, The Personal Writings of Joseph Smith; Review by Marvin S. Hill, BYU History Professor

1990

• Moments from Church History, 1990, copyrighted by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 102 Minutes. The video is pretty clear in teaching that Joseph used of a gun. At the beginning it says; "Cyrus Wheelock brings a gun" and it shows a close-up of the pepperbox. In a more dramatic part, for a documentary anyway, it shows the gun again and it says: "The gun misfires".

1994

• Reed Blake, "Martyrdom at Carthage," Ensign (June 1994), 30. off-site
• The same information was contained in a "First Presidency Message" in the same Ensign issue (anniversary of Joseph's assassination). Thomas S. Monson, "The Prophet Joseph Smith: Teacher by Example," Ensign, Jun 1994

There was to be one great final lesson before his mortal life ended. He was incarcerated in Carthage Jail with his brother Hyrum, with John Taylor, and with Willard Richards. The angry mob stormed the jail; they came up the stairway, blasphemous in their cursing, heavily armed, and began to fire at will. Hyrum was hit and died. John Taylor took several balls of fire within his bosom. The Prophet Joseph, with his pistol in hand, was attempting to defend his life and that of his brethren, and yet he could tell from the pounding on the door that this mob would storm that door and would kill John Taylor and Willard Richards in an attempt to kill him. And so his last great act here upon the earth was to leave the door and lead Willard Richards to safety, throw the gun on the floor, and go to the window, that they might see him, that the attention of this ruthless mob might be focused upon him rather than the others. Joseph Smith gave his life. Willard Richards was spared, and John Taylor recovered from his wounds. "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." The Prophet Joseph Smith taught us love—by example.

• Church History in the Fulness of Times, Religion 342-343, Church Educational System manual.
• Dallin H. Oaks and Marvin J. Hill, Carthage Conspiracy;;
• Davis Bitton, The Martyrdom Remembered. A one-hundred-fifty-year perspective on the assassination of Joseph Smith (Salt Lake City, Utah: Aspen Books, 1994).

2004

• Matthew B. Brown, Joseph Smith: The Man, The Mission, The Message (American Fork, UT: Covenant Communications, 2004): 90, shows a picture of the gun. "Composite photograph of the pepperbox pistol that Joseph Smith used to defend himself after Hyrum had been murdered". Story given in more detail pages 92-4.

2005

• Gospel Doctrine Teacher’s Manual for 2005: "Doctrine and Covenants and Church History" lesson 32, page 184: the following account of the martyrdom by Elder Willard Richards:

"As he struck the floor he exclaimed emphatically, ‘I am a dead man.’ Joseph looked towards him and responded, ‘Oh, dear brother Hyrum!’ and opening the door two or three inches with his left hand, discharged one barrel of a six shooter (pistol) at random in the entry. . A ball [from the musket of one of the mob] grazed Hyrum’s breast, and entering his throat passed into his head, while other muskets were aimed at him and some balls hit him.

Joseph continued snapping his revolver round the casing of the door into the space as before, while Mr. Taylor with a walking stick stood by his side and knocked down the bayonets and muskets which were constantly discharging through the doorway....

When the revolver failed, we had no more firearms, and expected an immediate rush of the mob, and the doorway full of muskets, half way in the room, and no hope but instant death from within." off-site

2008

• Joseph L. Lyon and David W. Lyon, "Physical Evidence at Carthage Jail and What It Reveals about the Assassination of Joseph and Hyrum Smith," Brigham Young University Studies 47 no. 4 (2008), 35. PDF link

The FAIR Blog responds to these questions

Roger Nicholson,"The Prophet and the Pistol: A Perspective on the Martyrdom of Joseph and Hyrum Smith", FAIR Blog, (November 7, 2013)

In the Church History Museum near Temple Square, located inside a glass case, resides a pair of 19th century pistols and a walking stick. The placard reads, in part, as follows,

Joseph’s Pepperbox Pistol and Hyrum’s Single Shot Pistol. These guns were used by both men for their defense during the attack at Carthage

These were the guns that were smuggled into the Carthage Jail while Joseph Smith, Hyrum and their friends awaited their fate. On the morning of June 27, 1844, Cyrus Wheelock visited the jail.

The morning being a little rainy, favoured his wearing an overcoat, in the side pocket of which he was enabled to carry a six-shooter, and he passed the guard unmolested. During his visit in the prison he slipped the revolver into Joseph’s pocket. Joseph examined it, and asked Wheelock if he had not better retain it for his own protection.
This was a providential circumstance, as most other persons had been very rigidly searched. Joseph then handed the single barrel pistol, which had been given him by John S. Fullmer, to his brother Hyrum, and said, "You may have use for this." Brother Hyrum observed, "I hate to use such things, or to see them used." "So do I," said Joseph, "but we may have to, to defend ourselves;" upon this Hyrum took the pistol. [i]

Although it was referred to as a "six shooter," the pepper-box pistol was not a revolver in the normal sense. It incorporated six individual barrels, it was difficult to aim and tended to be unreliable. The June 2013 Ensign features a painting Greater Love Hath No Man, by Casey Childs. [ii] The artwork features all three items in the display case. Joseph, Hyrum and Willard Richards are attempting to hold the door shut as the mob attempts to enter the room. John Taylor is holding his walking stick. In Hyrum’s left pocket is the single shot pistol brought into the jail by Fullmer, and in Joseph’s left pocket, clearly visible, is the pepper-box pistol given to him by Wheelock.

Click here to view the complete article

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Source(s) of the criticism

Critical sources

Watchman Fellowship, The Watchman Expositor (Page 3)

Is it true that Joseph killed two men by firing at the mob?

The attackers who were hit by Joseph were not killed (as was first reported in some Church publications) but only wounded

Joseph fired his gun six times (only three shots discharged) and he hit two of the mobbers, which John Taylor later mistakenly stated had died. Was Joseph a murderer?

Joseph's actions were clearly self-defense and defense of others under the common law. However, this point is moot since the attackers who were hit were not killed (as was first reported in some Church publications) but only wounded. They were alive and well at the trial held for mob leaders, and were identified by witnesses. Their good health allowed them to receive gifts because of their role in the assault on Joseph, Hyrum, and the other prisoners.

According to Dallin Oaks and Marvin Hill:

Wills, Voras, and Gallaher were probably named in the indictment because their wounds, which testimony showed were received at the jail, were irrefutable evidence that they had participated in the mob. They undoubtedly recognized their vulnerability and fled the county. A contemporary witness reported these three as saying that they were the first men at the jail, that one of them shot through the door killing Hyrum, that Joseph wounded all three with his pistol, and that Gallaher shot Joseph as he ran to the window.[Hay, "The Mormon Prophet's Tragedy," 675] According to Hay, Wills, whom the Mormon prophet had shot in the arm, was an Irishman who had joined the mob from "his congenital love of a brawl."[Statement of Jeremiah Willey, August 13, 1844, Brigham Young correspondence, Church Archives.] Gallaher was a young man from Mississippi who was shot in the face.[Hay, "The Mormon Prophet's Tragedy," 669, 675. Another source says Wills was a former Mormon elder who had left the Church. Davis, An Authentic Account, 24.] Hay described Voras (Voorhees) as a "half-grown hobbledehoy from Bear Creek" whom Joseph shot in the shoulder. The citizens of Green Plains were said to have given Gallaher and Voras new suits of clothes for their parts in the killing.[Statement of Jeremiah Willey, August 13, 1844]^[3]

Has the Church hidden the fact that Joseph fired a gun while in Carthage Jail?

Many members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are not aware of all the excruciatingly minute details of the history of the Church

Mob fires at Joseph Smith in the upper window at Carthage Jail.

Many members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (and this is especially true of new members or less-active members) are not aware of all the excruciatingly minute details of the history of the Church. It has become a common tactic among some anti-Mormon aficionados of Mormon history to use this historical ignorance as a weapon. These writers often claim to "expose" these minor events of Church history in a sensationalistic attempt to shock members of the Church with "hidden" revelations or "secret" accounts about various episodes in Church history. They will often claim that the Church has kept this knowledge under wraps for fear that if it was generally known it would cause many members of the Church to immediately renounce their faith and result in the ruination of the Church.

Joseph's attempt to defend himself using the gun is clearly described in History of the Church

Unfortunately for the critics, Joseph's attempt to defend himself, his brother, and his friends, and his possession of a pepperbox gun, is clearly spelled out in the History of the Church:

In the meantime Joseph, Hyrum, and Elder Taylor had their coats off. Joseph sprang to his coat for his six-shooter, Hyrum for his single barrel, Taylor for Markham's large hickory cane, and Dr. Richards for Taylor's cane. All sprang against the door, the balls whistled up the stairway, and in an instant one came through the door.

Joseph Smith, John Taylor and Dr. Richards sprang to the left of the door, and tried to knock aside the guns of the ruffians...

Joseph reached round the door casing, and discharged his six shooter into the passage, some barrels missing fire. Continual discharges of musketry came into the room. Elder Taylor continued parrying the guns until they had got them about half their length into the room, when he found that resistance was vain, and he attempted to jump out of the window, where a ball fired from within struck him on his left thigh, hitting the bone, and passing through to within half an inch of the other side. He fell on the window sill, when a ball fired from the outside struck his watch in his vest pocket, and threw him back into the room.^[4]

The next volume of the History of the Church tells the story from John Taylor's point of view:

I shall never forget the deep feeling of sympathy and regard manifested in the countenance of Brother Joseph as he drew nigh to Hyrum, and, leaning over him, exclaimed, 'Oh! my poor, dear brother Hyrum!' He, however, instantly arose, and with a firm, quick step, and a determined expression of countenance, approached the door, and pulling the six-shooter left by Brother Wheelock from his pocket, opened the door slightly, and snapped the pistol six successive times; only three of the barrels, however, were discharged.^[5]

If the Church wished to hide these facts, why did they publish them in the History of the Church not once, but twice?

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Source(s) of the criticism

Critical sources

Bill McKeever and Eric Johnson, Mormonism 101. Examining the Religion of the Latter-day Saints (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Books, 2000), Chapter 17. ( Index of claims ) Richard N. and Joan K. Ostling, Mormon America: The Power and the Promise, (New York:HarperCollins Publishers, 2000), 17. ( Index of claims ) Jerald and Sandra Tanner, Utah Lighthouse Ministry (accessed 7 May 2003). Jerald and Sandra Tanner, The Changing World of Mormonism (Moody Press, 1979), 465.( Index of claims ) Wilhelm Wyl, Mormon Portraits Volume First: Joseph Smith the Prophet, His Family and Friends (Salt Lake City: Tribune Printing and Publishing Co., 1886), 153–.

Notes

1. ↑ Webster's New World Dictionary of the American Language, Second College Edition (New York: World Publishing Company, 1970), 870.
2. ↑ Dictionary.com website, s.v. "martyr."(accessed May 7, 2003).
3. ↑ Dallin H. Oaks and Marvin S. Hill, Carthage Conspiracy, the Trial of the Accused Assassins of Joseph Smith (Urbana, Illinois: University of Illinois Press, 1979), 52. ISBN 025200762X.
4. ↑ Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 volumes, edited by Brigham H. Roberts, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1957), 6:617–618. Volume 6 link
5. ↑ Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 7 volumes, edited by Brigham H. Roberts, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1957), 7:102–103. Volume 7 link

Notes