Multiple Mortal Probations: LDS Related Quotes

"...when brother Pratt went back last fall, and published the
Revelation
concerning the plurality of wives; it was thought there was no
other cat
to let out. But allow me to tell you ... you may expect an
eternity of
cats, that have not yet escaped from the bag ..." BRIGHAM YOUNG,
1853

* Prescendia Huntington Buell (Wife of Joseph Smith)

* George Q. Cannon (Opposed)
* William Clayton (Opposed)
* Orson Hyde
* Heber C. Kimball
* Helen Mar Whitney Kimball (Wife of Joseph Smith)
* Mary Elizabeth Rollins Lightner (Wife of Joseph Smith)
* Alexander Niebar (Taught Joseph Smith reincarnation from the
Zohar, Grandfather to Hugh Nibley)
* Hugh Nibley
* Charles W. Penrose
* Orson Pratt
* Parley P. Pratt
* Joseph L. Robinson
* D. Michael Quinn
* Joseph Smith
* Eliza R. Snow (Wife of Joseph Smith)
* Orson F. Whitney (Opposed to the reincarnation of Jesus Christ)
* Brigham Young (Opposed to transmigration of spirit and no
literal resurrection)

PRESCENDIA HUNTINGTON BUELL

* By the time of his death in 1844, Joseph Smith had also reversed
his
prior rejection of the Cabala's doctrine of "transmigration of the
souls." Two of the women Smith secretly married as plural wives in
the
1840s said that he privately affirmed reincarnation. Apostle
Lorenzo Snow
said that "his sister, the late Eliza R. Snow Smith, was a firm
believer
in the principle of reincarnation and that she claimed to have
received
it from Joseph the Prophet, her husband." Prescendia Huntington
Buell
(later Kimball) also affirmed her belief in "plural probations,"
referring to a statement "in confirmation" by her polyandrous
husband
Joseph Smiths.* In the 1840s their polygamous relationship to the
Mormon
prophet was as secret as his conversion to reincarnation. (*Lorenzo
Snow
 statement, 8 June 1889, and statement of "Aunt Presindia Kimball,"
30
Sept 1883, both in Orson F. Whitney diary, LDS archieves, with
photocopy
at Lee Library and at Marriott Library.) (D. Michael Quinn, EARLY
MORMONISM AND THE MAGIC WORLD VIEW, Signature Books, Salt Lake
City,
Utah 1998)

GEORGE Q. CANNON

George Q. Cannon's circa 1900 address to the Deseret Sunday School

Conference to the effect: These are doctrines that the Elders have
spoken
from the pulpit in times past they should not be taught in Sunday
School:

WILLIAM CLAYTON

"It was finally moved and carried viva voce [by word of mouth],
that the
doctrine of the Resurrection be the subject to commence with, and
the
following Brethren expressed their views in regard to it viz.
Charles
Smith, Jesse Turpin, George Mayer, James Park, David Wilkin, Edward
Stevenson, and Edward Bunker. The views of these Brethren seemed to
vary
materially on the subject, and there was very little or no light
manifested by any one. It appears that the great difference in the
views,
is in regard to what is commonly called the baby resurrection,
which idea
is, that instead of the bodies being raised out of the ground &c.
we
shall again be born of a woman, as we were when we came into this
world.
Brother James Park agreed very strongly in favor of this kind of
doctrine. This was a matter of astonishment to me, as I had never
before
heard of such a doctrine to understand it. (An Intimate Chronicle:
THE
JOURNALS OF WILLIAM CLAYTON, pp 429-430)""

ORSON HYDE

* Orson Hyde received a revelation in about February 1839 which was

recorded in the diary of Joseph Allen Stout: " I was on my return
from
Richmond landing with a span of mares and wagon, belonging to B.
Jones,
and on the wide prairie I saw a man walking behind me. I reined in
the
team to let him overtake me, and who should it be but Orson Hyde,
who had
apostatized in the fuss, but had seen a vision in which it was made
known
 to him that if he did not make immediate restitution to the Quorum
of the
Twelve, he would be cut off and all his posterity, and that the
curse of
Cain would be upon him." (Autobiography and Journal of Joseph Allen
Stout, Utah State Historical Society, pg. 9-10) [There is only one
way in
which Orson could have received this curse: In his next life he
would
have to be born into the lineage of Cain, the black race; thus the
curse
of Cain would be upon him, which would entail being cursed as to
the
priesthood.]

HEBER C. KIMBALL

* I believe in multiple probations" (Letter from Heber C. Kimball to

his
wife Violet)

* Brigham Young laid hands on Heber C. Kimball and "Ordained him to

the
Godhead, and that he would act as the Savior to a world or worlds."
-
This was part of a long prayer. Promised wives, seed without
number, be
full partaker with Abraham, Isaac., and Jacob. The Godhead was a
different blessing from Godhood. (Some received only Godhood.)
Heber C.
Kimball then did the same to Brigham Young, i.e., ordained him to
The
Godhead. They in turn did it by proxy for Joseph and Hyrum Smith.
Other
saints (W.W. Phelps) were blessed to act in Trinities (or
Presidencies of
worlds). NAUVOO TEMPLE RECORD, January 1846

* "How many shapes do you suppose you are put into before you become
Saints, or before you become perfect and sanctified to enter into
the
celestial glory of God? You have got to be like that clay in the
hands of
the potter. Do you not know that the Lord directed the Prophet
anciently,
to go down to the potter's house to see a miracle on the wheel?
Suppose
the Potter takes a lump of clay, and putting it on the wheel, goes
to
work to form it into a vessel, and works it out this way, and that
way,
and the other way, but the clay is refractory and snappish; he
still trys
[tries] it, but it will break, and snap, and snarl, and thus the
potter
will work it and work it until he is satisfied he cannot bring it
into
 the shape he wants, and it mars upon the wheel; he takes his tool,
then,
and cuts it off the wheel, and throws it into the mill to be ground
over
again, until it becomes passive, (don't you think you will go to
hell if
you are not passive?) and after it is ground there so many days,
and it
becomes passive, he takes the same lump, and makes of it a vessel
unto
honor. Now do you see into that, brethren? I know the potters can.
I tell
you, brethren, if you are not passive you will have to go into that
mill,
and perhaps have to grind there one thousand years, and then the
Gospel
will be offered to you again, and then if you will not accept of
it, and
become passive, you will have to go into the mill again, and thus
you
will have offers of salvation from time to time, until all the
human
family, will, except the sons of perdition, are redeemed. The
spirits of
men will have the Gospel as we do, and they are to be judged
according to
men in the flesh. Let us be passive, and take a course that will be
perfectly submissive. (Heber C. Kimball, JOURNAL OF DISCOURSES,
1:160f)

* If you do not cultivate yourselves, and cultivate your spirits in

this
state of existence, it is just as true as there is a God that
liveth, you
WILL have to go into another state of existence, and bring your
spirits
into subjection there. Now you may reflect upon it, you NEVER WILL
OBTAIN
your RESURRECTED BODIES, until you bring your spirits into
subjection. I
am not talking to this earthly house of mine, neither am I talking
to
your BODIES, but I am speaking to your spirits. I am not talking as
to
people who are not in the house. Are not your spirits in the house?
Are
not your BODIES your houses, your tabernacles or temples, and
places for
your spirits? Look at it; reflect upon it. If you keep your spirits
trained according to the wisdom and fear of God, you WILL attain to
the
salvation of both body and spirit. I ask, then, if it is your
spirits
that must be brought into subjection? It is; and if you do not do
that in
these BODIES, you WILL have to go into another estate to do it. You
have
 got to train yourselves according to the law of God, or you WILL
NEVER
OBTAIN your RESURRECTED BODIES. "Mark 1:1 Mark 1t! You do not think
of
these things, you only think of to-day. If you can pass along to-
day, it
is all right, thinking that brother Brigham, brother Heber, brother
Willard, and the Twelve, with brother Joseph at our head, WILL lead
you
all into the celestial world. We cannot do it. Why? Because Justice
sits
at the door, and WILL not admit a single soul until he has paid the
uttermost farthing. Do you think we can pass you in there
clandestinely?
If you do, you WILL find justice sitting at the door, and she WILL
require justice at your hand, and mercy WILL claim all that is due
to
her, but mercy WILL not rob justice, not one whit, neither WILL
justice
rob mercy; they are united together, just as much as the Father,
Son, and
Holy Ghost ever were. As brother Brigham said here, if you sin
against
God, you have got to satisfy Him; and if you sin against Jesus
Christ,
you have got to make confession to Jesus, and He and the Father can
forgive you; and if you sin against the Holy Ghost, you have got to
satisfy the Holy Ghost, for neither the Father nor the Son can
forgive
that sin. Is not that good law? That is the law of Deseret,
gentlemen.
And when you sin against brother Brigham, WILL the Father forgive
you?
No: you have got to ask forgiveness of brother Brigham. And when
you sin
against me, you have got to seek forgiveness of me, before you get
it
from the Father. You have got to repent of your sins, and turn unto
the
Lord your God, with full purpose of heart, and cease your murmuring
and
complaining, that you may be forgiven.

I could not get a company here last Conference, I could not get one
solitary vote for a man to preside over a company, of murmurers.
You
cannot organize ten murmurers in this whole city; for if you can
get them
together, they cannot agree, and that is the difficulty.

I will tell you what will be good for us, and it will bestow upon
us all
the luxuries of this life, of heaven and earth. You are talking
about
heaven and about earth, and about hell, &c.; but let me tell you,
you are
in hell now, and you have got to qualify yourselves here in hell to
 become subjects for heaven; and even when you have got into heaven,
you
will find it right here where you are on this earth. When we escape
from
this earth, we suppose we are going to heaven? Do you suppose you
are
going to the earth that Adam came from? that Eloheim came from?
where
Jehovah the Lord came from? No. WHEN YOU HAVE LEARNED TO BECOME
OBEDIENT
TO THE FATHER THAT DWELLS UPON THIS EARTH, TO THE FATHER AND GOD OF
THIS
EARTH, AND OBEDIENT TO THE MESSENGERS HE SENDS WHEN YOU HAVE DONE
ALL
THAT, REMEMBER YOU ARE NOT GOING TO LEAVE THIS EARTH. YOU WILL
NEVER
LEAVE IT UNTIL YOU BECOME QUALIFIED, AND CAPABLE, AND CAPACITATED
TO
BECOME A FATHER OF AN EARTH YOURSELVES. NOT ONE SOUL OF YOU EVER
WILL
LEAVE THIS EARTH, FOR IF YOU GO TO HELL, IT IS ON THIS EARTH; AND
IF YOU
GO TO HEAVEN, IT IS ON THIS EARTH; AND YOU WILL NOT FIND IT
ANYWHERE
ELSE. Is it not hard to bring these truths home to you. I tell you
I am
at home now, and I am in heaven; but the heaven I have to enjoy is
the
heaven I make myself. Do you know it? Well, if this be the case,
which
you will probably all admit, for it will be the case with me, it
will be
the same with you, and you cannot help yourselves I want to know if
you
have any peace at home, in your families, only what your wife and
children make? You have not. If you make peace and a heaven in your
habitations, then you are in heaven, both you and your families.
Now
suppose we apply this principle to the house of every man in
Israel, who
is a father of a family, and they all agree they will make heaven
at
home, and after that they all conclude to come together and make a
general heaven. But the first place to begin to make a heaven, is
to make
it at home, and then we will club together, and conclude to have it
all
over. Do you understand my logic? Do you, brother Hyde? [Elder
Hyde,
"Yes, sir."] These are my feelings.

Now let us go to work, every one of us, and pull together, and put
means
into the hands of the Trustee-in-trust, pay up our tithing, and
then if
we have a surplus which we do not want to put out to usury now, put
it in
 the hands of the Trustee-in-trust. Go to work, not only next
spring, but
now make preparations, and let us build a temple. What say you? I
do not
want you to say yes, unless you calculate to do it, but, as brother
Joseph used to say, "Yankee doodle do it." Now go to work, and do
the
thing right up, and when next fall comes to pass, let us see the
walls of
the temple erected, and the roof on it. What say you? It is just as
you
say. No one man has the capacity and power to do it himself, but if
you
say it, and you will do it, there will be a temple next fall, with
a roof
upon it. Do you believe it? You do. You nod your heads; come, nod
them a
little lower still; none of your half winks here, but whole winks
or
nothing. We can do it just as easily as I have built a little house
on
the corner there. How do you feel, brethren? Do you feel, do it?
Don't
you say yes, or give me a half wink, without meaning it; but, as
the
girls say, give me a whole heart or nothing. I do not want you
should
have my heart, and I do not want you should have the hearts of my
brethren, because if you have their hearts, they will do nothing
for God
or His cause. You know I talk just as I have a mind to, when I get
up to
talk here. Do you consider it sensible, that we go to work, and
rear a
temple to the name of the Lord, and have the roof on it next fall?
Say?
None of your half winks to me again; is it not reasonable to say,
it
cannot be done unless you do it?

It is necessary to unite and cultivate the hearts of this people

together, more than any thing else. The subject of building a
temple
alone will not do it, or your means; but to bring this to a focus,
your
hearts must be where your treasure is. If you place your treasure
in the
temple, your hearts must be there, they are wherever you place your
treasure. The Scripture says so, and so say I. I am a servant of
God, a
man of truth, and President Young is my brother, my leader, and
governor,
and shall be for ever and ever, and you cannot unhorse me if you
try, and
we will unhorse the whole of you if you do not do right. Shall we
go to
 work, and build a temple, and a wall around it? Now, gentlemen, if
we do
it at all, we have got to commence the work, and continue to
progress in
it until we have completed it. You must put your means and labor in
it.
How many hands do we see here on the public works weekly? Why there
is
scarcely a man to be seen, except regularly employed hands. Do not
talk
to me about doing a thing, when you do not do it. As brother Hyde
said,
it is punctuality that will save you. The Lord said, through
Joseph, in
the Book of Doctrine and Covenants, that a covenant breaker never
could
be saved. You never can be saved, only in truth and faithfulness to
God,
and those whom He has appointed and selected to govern the affairs
of His
Church on the earth. Now, you say, "Brother Kimball, you talk
rather
barefaced, the Gentiles will hear you." That is what they dread.
Bless
your souls, we want they should hear it more and more and more,
until the
kingdom of our God brings under subjection every kingdom in the
world.
Can we do it, gentlemen and ladies, upon any other principle than
by
being one? Tell me if any of you have got an argument to prove to
the
contrary? I know you have not got it; if you have, I am ready for
it
to-day.

I am perhaps trespassing upon your time and patience; well, I do

not care
whether I am or not, you seem to sit very easy notwithstanding. It
is not
very cold; though your faces appear rather blooming, your eyes are
bright
and your spirits look cheerful. I do not think you are cold; you
never
saw a man or a woman have the blues yet, but they looked black, and
their
flesh looked blue, like the green fly. I have got the start of you,
for I
have on a great coat. I have not spoken in public for some time,
and I
did not know if ever I should again, my lungs are so injured by
speaking
in private meetings.

What do you say now, casting away the blues and everything of this
kind,
 what do you say about going to, ye Bishops, with your several
wards,
after this day to-morrow morning, with light hearts, and cheerful
spirits, and glad countenances, to prepare for the erection of a
temple
to the name of the Almighty. We want to get stone on the ground,
and
other preparations are necessary to be made, to lay the foundation
for
this work. What do you say? I will have no half winks, neither will
I
call a vote without you go it as the heart of one man. What do you
say,
brethren and sisters? Will you say, "Yankee doodle do it?" If you
do, say
aye. [All said, "Aye."] (Heber C. Kimball, JOURNAL OF DISCOURSES,
1:355-356, Nov. 14, 1852)

* "Comparing us to clay that is in the hands of the potter, if that

clay is
passive, I have power as a potter to mould it and make it into a
vessel
unto honor. Who is to mould these vessels? Is it God Himself in
person,
or is it His servants, His potters, or journeymen, in company with
those
He has placed to oversee the work? The great Master Potter dictates
His
servants, and it is for them to carry out His purposes, and make
vessels
according to his designs; and when they have done the work, they
deliver
it up to the Master for His acceptance; and if their works are not
good,
He does not accept them; the only works He accepts, are those that
are
prepared according to the design He gave. God will not be trifled
with;
neither will His servants; their words have got to be fulfilled,
and they
are the men that are to mould you, and tell you what shape to move
in. I
do not know that I can compare it better than by the potter's
business.
It forms a good comparison. This is the course you must pursue, and
I
know of no other way that God has prepared for you to become
sanctified,
and moulded, and fashioned, until you become modelled to the
likeness of
the Son of God, by those who are placed to lead you. This is a
lesson you
have to learn as well as myself. When I know that I am doing just
as I am
told by him who is placed to lead this people, I am then a happy
man, I
 am filled with peace, and can go about my business with joy and
pleasure;
I can lie down and rise again in peace, and be filled with gladness
by
night and by day. But when I have not done the things that are
right, my
conscience gnaws upon my feelings. This is the course for me to
take. If
it is the course for me to take, it is the course for every other
Elder
in Israel to take-it does not matter who he is, or where he came
from
whether he be an American, an Englishman, Irishman, Frenchman or
German,
Jew or Gentile to this you have got to bow, and you have got to bow
down
like the clay in the hands of the potter, that suffers the potter
to
mould it according to his own pleasure. You have all got to come to
this
and if you do not come to it at this time, as sure as the sun ever
rose
and set, you will be cut from the wheel, and thrown back into the
mill.
You have come from the mill, and you have been there grinding. For
what
purpose? To bring you into a passive condition. You have been
gathered
from the nations of the earth, from among the kindreds, tongues,
and
peoples of the world, to the Valley of the Great Salt Lake, to
purify and
sanctify yourselves, and become like the passive clay in the hands
of the
potter. Now suppose I subject myself enough, in the hands of the
potter,
to be shaped according as he was dictated by the Great Master
potter,
that rules over all things in heaven and on earth, he would make me
into
a vessel of honor. There are many vessels that are destroyed after
they
have been moulded and shaped. Why? Because they are not contented
with
the shape the potter has given them, but straightway put themselves
into
a shape to please themselves; therefore they are beyond
understanding
what God designs, and they destroy themselves by the power of their
own
agency, for this is given to every man and woman, to do just as
they
please. That is all right, and all just. Well, then, you have to go
through a great many modellings and shapes, then you have to be
glazed
and burned; and even in the burning, some vessels crack. What makes
them
 crack? Because they are snappish; they would not crack, if they
were not
snappish and wilful. If you go to the potteries in Staffordshire,
England, where the finest china ware is manufactured, you will see
them
take the coarsest materials about the pottery, and make a thing in
the
shape of a half bushel; then put the finest ware in these to secure
it
from danger in the burning operation. All the fine ware made in
Europe
and in China, is burnt in this kind of vessels. After they are done
with,
they are cast away-they are vessels of wrath fitted for
destruction. So
God takes the wicked, and makes them protect the righteous, in the
process of sanctifying, and burning, and purifying, and preparing
them,
and making them fit for the Master's use. These saggars, as they
are
called, are compounded of refuse articles that have been cast out;
so
even they are good for something. The wicked are of use, for they
are a
rod in the hands of the Almighty to scourge the righteous, and
prepare
them for their Master's use, that they may enter into the celestial
world, and be crowned with glory in His presence." (Heber C.
Kimball,
JOURNAL OF DISCOURSES 2:150)

* If men and women do not qualify themselves and become sanctified

and
purified in this life, they will go into a world of spirits where
they
will have a greater contest with the devils than ever you had with
them
here. (Heber C. Kimball, JOURNAL OF DISCOURSES, Vol.3, p.230, ,
March 2,
1856) [This says nothing of repentance outside mortality]

* "WE HAVE NOT AS YET ANY DURABLE LOCATION; WE ARE MERELY

PROBATIONERS IN
THIS PRESENT STATE, AND WE SHALL ALWAYS BE SO, UNTIL WE OBTAIN A
PERMANENT EXALTATION, by following in the footsteps of our God. He
is our
Father and our God, and His Son Jesus Christ is our Savior, and the
Holy
Ghost is to be our comforter, and will comfort all those who will
prepare
their tabernacles as fit temples for him to dwell in. When the
Holy
Ghost dwells in us it will enable us to discern between right and
wrong,
will show us things to come, and bring things to our remembrance,
and
 will make every one of this people prophets and prophetesses of
God. We
have acknowledged brother Brigham to be our leader, and he holds
the keys
of the kingdom of heaven here on the earth. Whether people believe
it or
not, he is God's representative in the flesh, and is the mouth-
piece of
God unto us. Brother Joseph Smith many a time said to brother
Brigham and
myself, and to others, that he was a representative of God to us,
to
teach and direct us and reprove the wrong doers, He has past [sic]
behind
the veil, but there never will a person in this dispensation enter
into
the celestial glory without his approbation. Brother Brigham is
brother
Joseph's rightful successor, and he has his Counselors, and
together they
are an earthly pattern of the divine order of government. Those men
are
God's agents, His servants, and are witnesses of your covenants,
which
you will have to fulfil. And what you do not fulfil in this year
you will
have to do in the next; and what are not then fulfilled will have
to be
in some future time... Brother Dan Jones has been talking to you
about
the clay in the hands of the potter. If you get hold of a lump of
clay
that is snappish and wilful, and not willing that you should twist
it
into any shape or form, what is the use of working it? You throw it
back
into the mill and let it be ground again, and then take it out and
make
of it a vessel unto honor. Perhaps some do not really believe that
when
a man is thrown back into the mill, or goes into the spirit world,
that
he ever will be redeemed, but he will, if he has not sinned against
the
Holy Ghost. He will be ground and worked up until he becomes
passive, and
then God, through His servants, will redeem him, and make him a
vessel
unto honor. A great many will go to hell, and the very men that are
preaching to you now will visit you and offer you salvation, after
you
have laid there, perhaps, thousands of years, for you must stay in
the
mill until you are passive and obedient. Jeremiah, at the command
of God,
went to the potter's house where the potter was molding the clay,
and
 when he went to turn it on the wheel it was refractory and
rebellious:
and he worked at it and sweat over it, but after all it was
rebellious,
and fell down on the wheel. What did he do then? He cut it off from
the
wheel and threw it back into the mill, and after he had ground it
awhile,
he took it out and made of it a vessel unto honor; so of the same
lump he
made a vessel unto dishonor, and one unto honor. Did the potter
make it
dishonorable? No, the vessel made itself unto dishonor; and the
next time
it was pliable and passive, and the potter made of it a vessel unto
honor, because it was honorable and submissive. I wished to make
these
few remarks, because they touch upon things that are on my mind all
the
time. And if you wish to be Saints, for God's sake be Saints, and
if you
wish to be devils, be devils, and get out of this place; and let
those
that will be Saints, be Saints; and let them commune together and
carry
out the purpose of God. I would rather have three hundred men and
women
that are perfectly amenable to the authorities of this Church, than
a
numerous people that are rebellious; and I could do more to bring
about
the purposes of God, and do it ten times quicker, with a few
faithful
persons, than with hosts of the wicked." (Heber C. Kimball; JOURNAL
OF
DISCOURSES 4:119f)

* What I do not to-day, when the sun goes down, I lay down to sleep,
which
is typical of death; and in the morning I rise and commence my work
where
I left it yesterday. That course is typical of the probations we
take.
But suppose that I do not improve my time today, I wake up tomorrow
and
find myself in the rear; and then, if I do not improve upon that
day, and
again lay down to sleep, on awaking, I find myself still in the
rear.
THIS DAY'S WORK IS TYPICAL OF THIS PROBATION, AND THE SLEEP OF
EVERY
NIGHT IS TYPICAL OF DEATH, AND RISING IN THE MORNING IS TYPICAL OF
THE
RESURRECTION. They are days' labors, and it is for us to be
faithful
today, tomorrow, and every day. (Heber C. Kimball, JOURNAL OF
DISCOURSES,
 4:329 1857/05/3)

* I improved yesterday: I worked and made all the improvements I

could, and
did the best I could; but it came night, and I LAID DOWN TO TAKE A
NAP,
WHICH IS TYPICAL OF DEATH. THIS MORNING I HAVE RISEN UP AND AGAIN
COMMENCED MY LABORS; AND I AM GOING TO IMPROVE TODAY, AND DO BETTER
THAN
I DID YESTERDAY. But in comes another night of sleep; I lay down,
which
is typical of death; and I rise in the morning, which is typical of
the
resurrection, and I renew my labors. I have to begin where I left
off;
but you cannot realize but that you have to take one jump away
ahead,
when you come to leave your bodies and go into the spirit world.
That is
not so, for you will have to commence to hoe your row where you
left off.
(Heber C. Kimball, JOURNAL OF DISCOURSES, 4:336)

* "I frequently talk about the clay in the hands of the potter. The
Lord
said to Jeremiah, "I will show you a thing that I cannot tell you.
Go
down to the potter's house, and I will be there, but you shall not
see
me; and I will make that potter mar a vessel." Jeremiah went down
to the
potter's house, and the Lord showed him the very thing he had
promised;
for the potter undertook to make a vessel, and the clay marred in
his
hands, and he cut it off the wheel and threw it into the mill; "and
now,"
says he, "take it out again and shape it into a ball, and turn it
into a
vessel of honour." He did that very thing, though it is not
written. The
Scriptures say that out of the same lump he made a vessel first
unto
dishonour, and then unto honour. I USED TO PREACH UPON THAT IN
NAUVOO,
AND JOSEPH SAID IT WAS THE TRUE INTERPRETATION. Now, Jeremiah was a
man
like brother Brigham, brother Heber, Amasa, and thousands of the
servants
of God that were valiant. There are thousands here that have never
seen a
potter's house. But if I was in one, I could take a lump of clay
and show
you; and perhaps, being out of practice, it would mar in my hands:
then I
would throw it back into the mill and grind it, and afterwards I
would
 take it up again and make a vessel unto honour. And thus the Lord
said to
Jeremiah, "As you see that clay mar in the hands of the potter, so
shall
it be with the house of Israel. They shall go and be in prison till
I
bring them out and make them vessels unto honour." That is to be
done in
the latter days, when the Lord is to say to the dry bones, "Come
forth,"
and so on. Go and read the Bible, and you will learn about it. It
will be
just so with thousands and tens of thousands who will embrace
"Mormonism:" they will go back into the mill again, through
disobedience." (Heber C. Kimball, JOURNAL OF DISCOURSES, 5:271f)

* "Joseph always told us that we would have to pass by sentinels that

are
placed between us and our Father and God. Then, of course, we are
conducted along from this probation to other probations, or from
one
dispensation to another, by those who conducted those
dispensations."
(Heber C. Kimball, JOURNAL OF DISCOURSES, 6:63)

MARY ELIZABETH ROLLINS LIGHTNER

"Dominion and power in the great future would be commensurate with

the
number of wives, children and friends that we inherit (are sealed
to)
here, and that our mission to the earth was to organize a nucleus
of
Heaven, to take with us, the increase of which there would be no
end."
Autobiography of Mary E. Rollins Lightner. From MY LIFE'S REVIEW
by
Benjamin F. Johnson. Zion's Printing and publishing Co.;
Independence,
Mo. Page 10.)

"Joseph said I was his before I came here and he said all the Devils
in
hell should never get me from him." (Mary E. Rollins as recorded in
Joseph Smith, THE FIRST MORMON BY DONNA HILL, P. 351)

ALEXANDER NEIBAUR

* D Michael Quinn wrote: "The year 1843 was probably when the Mormon
prophet reconsidered his position on reincarnation. In June
Neibaur's
article was about the "very singular notions of the Jews, with
regard to
their resurrection," which was the term Neibaur used repeatedly and
quoted his cabalistic sources as using. However, in one instance,
the
 first of Neibaur's two articles said this concept was "called by
them
Gilgool." This was an English phonetic spelling of "Gilgul (Heb.),
transmigration of souls, metempsychosis. Kabbalistic doctrine (fr.
12th
c.) that souls go through several bodies."519 Since January 1843
Joseph
Smith had noted that his "German Lesson" lasted as long as an
hour-and-a-half, and his diary later mentioned that Neibaur was his
personal instructor in both German and Hebrew. Neibaur's verified
knowledge of the Cabala's doctrine of transmigration of the soul in
1843
provides one explanation for the Mormon prophet's conversion to the
reincarnation doctrine he had previously condemned. Smith's
apparent
textual indebtedness to the books by Eisenmenger and Allen also
demonstrates that he had access to their extensive discussions of
the
Cabala's doctrine of transmigration of souls. (D. Michael Quinn,
EARLY
MORMONISM AND THE MAGIC WORLD VIEW, p. 302 Signature Books, Salt
Lake
City, Utah 1998)

* THE JEWS: Times & Seasons. 1 June and 15 June 1843

The following very singular notions of the Jews, with regard to their
resurrection, will, no doubt, be read with interest by many of the
curious, especially the lovers of Jewish literature. We do not give
publicity to it to establish the idea that the Jews believe in the
resurrection. This every intelligent man must concede. The Jews, as a
body those that were considered orthodox, at least always believed in
the
resurrection, as the scriptures abundantly testify. There was a sect in
our Savior's day, that did not believe in the resurrection, nor in
angels
or spirits; but they were very inconsiderable. Their doctrines were
considered unpopular and false, and Paul in his day had nothing to do
but
to proclaim himself a believer in the resurrection, to obtain a
temporary
protection from the Pharisees, at least in the time of his difficulty.
ED.

SIR: If you should judge the following remarks interesting to your

readers, they are at your disposal.

The gospel says "Blindness in part has happened unto Israel," &c. The
reader of this will perceive how far the apostle was correct in his
assertion, The resurrection is one of the important subjects of faith
amongst them. The most of them believe it. Every Jew is commanded to
rehearse
the thirteen articles of faith daily. The last of the thirteen is: "I
believe,
with a perfect faith, that there will be a resurrection of the dead, at
the
time when it shall please the Creator, blessed and exalted be his name
forever." The following is the opinion of the Rabbies on the subject:

Rabbi Manasse Ben Israel says in Nishmath Cajim:

"we find many proofs of the resurrection in the five Books of Moses
and
the Prophets. Faith in it is essential and godly. Those who say the
resurrection cannot be proven from the law, bar themselves out from
the
communion of the saints, and deny a particular point of the law.
All such
are hereticks and infidels, and will have no part in the world to
come,
and be deprived of eternal life."

R. Isaac Aberhaph in his Menorat Hamoor, says:

"Who denies the resurrection, or one miracle contained in the law,

denies
the whole law, and will have no part in the world to come, in Talm
Tract
Sanhedrim. Those that deny the resurrection, can have no part in
it,
because it is one of the great properties of God to pay with the
same
measure wherewith we have measured, and according to every sin we
shall
be punished."

Why is the resurrection not named in the law of Moses? R. Baccay

answers:

"It is one of the mightiest matters of the law to be very short and
brief."

Mysterious things, the shorter and more mysterious, the more difficult
is the
explanation; and you find, generally, short accounts of mysterious
things for
instance: in the creation of the world, you find but a short account
upon the
light, while the third day has a full description. Even so with the
waters
above to the waters beneath. Furthermore, all promises wherewith Moses
encourages the seed of Adam diligently to keep the commandments, are
bodily,
that man might more easily believe his words, and press forward on their
own
account to reach a higher state of felicity. This makes him to be so
short on
the subject. Would he have attempted at that time to impress this truth
on
their dark minds, they would not have believed him; because it was a
future
and distant subject, and what proofs could he have given them? A wise
and
diligent searcher of the Bible will find out the sacred hints of it by
degrees, and then he will search more diligently, which he would not
have done
if he had seen it all at once. At the time when the dead shall rise, the
Rabbies give the following: R. Isaac Abarbanel says, on "Isa. 18:1Isaiah
18:
3:

"The prophet would gather the dispersed Jews at the last day, and
at the
same time performing the wonderful work of the resurrection from
the
dead, then all those dwelling upon the earth will acknowledge the
high
and lofty one."

R. D. Kimchi is of the same opinion. He says, on "Isa. 66:1Isaiah 66: 5:

"You that are in trouble about the word of the Lord, when it will
come at
last, your God in whom you trust, will fulfil unto you his
promises."

Rabbi Naphtali in Emakhamelek puts the resurrection forty years after

the
gathering together of the Jews. The proofs he takes from "Ps.
147:1Psalms 147:
2, 3. The Jalkut Kodosh and Medrash Neelam agrees with him, from which
the
Abarbanel concludes that the redemption of the Jews must undoubtedly be
in the
year of the world 5294 A. D., 1534, and the resurrection 5335 A. D.,
1575. R.
Bacay takes a different view. From "Deut. 30:1Deuteronomy 30: 15, he
says:

"If one compares this place, which begins with the first verse and
ends
with the tenth, and which, undoubtedly, speaks on the redemption,
it will
appear from this that the resurrection will be 206 years after the
redemption because the Hebrew has 206 in number. In the Song of
Solomon
it is said: "Unto thee, Solomon, are due one thousand;"

but unto the keepers of his fruit two hundred. Understand 206 he would
shew
thee with it that the resurrection from the dead would be 206 years
after
Spiritual Solomon, viz: Messiah which would spring from him: you must
understand this verse, then, in the following manner: When Solomon and
the
Messiah, which is the Prince of Peace, will make their appearance (after
their
allowed time, 1,000 years,) then shall the keepers of his fruits, (those
that
kept his commandments,) 206 years afterwards, be raised from the dead.
Who
shall perform the resurrection? In Aphkat Rackel it is said:

"All Israel, young and old, must believe that in future the most
holy God
will quicken the dead, call them forth out of the dust, and unite
their
souls to their bodies."

R. Joseph Albo says:

"Because this is so supernatural, the men of the large

congregation, Ezra
and his collego, attribute it only to the power of God, and for
this
reason, in compiling the prayer, have said this blessing: 'Thou art
powerful to raise the dead.'

R. Jacanan counts three keys the Lord kept wherewith he would trust no
messenger, viz:

1st. The key of the Womb "Gen. 30:1Genesis 30: 22.

2d. The key of the Rain "Deut. 28:1Deut. 28: 12.

3d. The key of Raising the Dead "Ezek. 37:1Ezekiel 37: 13.

Talmuh Tract Sanhedrim and Bereshith Rabba agree with Rabbi Jocanan.
Others
attribute the resurrection to the Messiah. The Medrash Mihle R. Levi ber
Gerohonon, "Deut. 34:1Deuteronomy 34: 10, literally then, should not be
a
prophet like Moses; but Messiah would be a greater prophet: he would be
the
prophet of all nations and this his general power he would prove by the
resurrection from the dead.

Some Rabbies attribute the power of raising the dead to the righteous
and
godly, and they also bring their proofs from the Bible. R. Jonathan
finds a
proof in "Zech. 8:1Zechariah 8: 4, and Second Kings 4: 29 even as Elijah
and
Elisha raised the dead, even so in future all righteous, old men and
women
with their sticks, will raise the dead. See Talmud Tract Resokim

In the book Emek Hameleck it is said that those only which have embraced
the
Jewish religion will have power to raise the dead. The proofs are taken
from
"Isa. 65:1Isaiah 65: 20, saying those who did not embrace the Jewish
religion
before the coming of Mesiah, he will not acknowledge them: then they
will be
ashamed at their obstinacy repent and die afterward the righteous will
raise
them. The same is said in Jalkut Kadash.
The Sohar speaks differently on the subject. Those who died in the
promised
land will rise 40 years before those who died without its boundary. Now
every
one that dies without and has but one relative there to mourn for him,
can
rest most assuredly to profit by the resurrection, because his relative
in the
promised land has power to raise all his kinsmen who died out of it. But
this
quickening is connected with a painful sensation, called by them Gilgool
Meholus, the rolling in the caves beneath. R. Elias means the corps
rolls
itself, under the earth, to the Romish land. That this is possible, says
Rabbi
Akiba, at the time when the dead shall rise, God Almighty will come down
from
the highest Heaven, set himself upon his Throne at Jerusalem. "Jer.
3:1Jeremiah 3: 17. Then he will call his ministering spirits and angels
and
say: My sons, I have had no other motive in your creation than that you
should
do me a favor at this hour. Lord of the Universe, will they say, we are
ready
to fulfil all thy commands. Well, says the praiseworthy, walk through
the
whole earth; go in the four parts, lift up the surface of the earth, so
that
there might be a cave, but in such a manner that every righteous person
will
have his own cave, and bring unto me, every one separately, the
righteous N.,
son of N. the good N * * * Bring me all those who have labored for my
namesake, that they may not torment themselves long. I will quicken them
in
the land of Israel. At this all the angels go forth in the four parts to
take
hold of the four corners to lift her up, according to "Job 38:1Job 38:
13.
Draw out the ungodly, and in that manner make the caves so that they
might
roll themselves into the promised land. Then God himself will quicken
them, to
the comfort of those who are afraid of this troublesome journey. The
book
Avodath Hakodash promises that the righteous out of the promised land
will
stand upright in their caves, and go there. The Rabbies all agree that
this
journey will be painful. Talmut Tract Ketuboth and Sohar show the
occassion,
viz: The passengers will be plagued by the powers of Darkness. The Jews
believe the world is parted among the seventy nations, and they call the
rulers of them Chipa Devils when they pass through their dominion, and
this is
the reason that they are so much afraid of it, and many in their old age
go to
Jerusalem to die. They believe a fear of it is discovered by the
patriarchs
Jacob and Joseph, who were, most assuredly, good; and yet they commanded
to be
taken to the promised land, so that they might not robe themselves
there. See
Talkut Kadash, R. Solman Jarkian and "Gen. 39:1Genesis 39: 20. The place
where
those who roll themselves, will come-out is Mount Olivet, according to
the
Chaldaic translation 8: 5, Song of Solomon. Solomon prophesies there
that at
the resurrection, Mount Olivet will open itself so that the righteous
may come
out of it, but the wicked will be drawn out of their graves like a stone
out
of a sling. "Zech. 14:1Zechariah 14: 4. In Abodah Hakadash Rabbi Simeon,
son
of Jacay and Pesikta Raba, are of the same opinion. The reason of this
painful
and troublesome journey, is that the Almighty might swear unto them that
they
never should be carried from their land. He will do it in the following
manner: The Holy One, blessed be his name, will let down the Heavenly
Jerusalem with the already finished Temple, which never will be
destroyed, and
because in future the souls of the Jews will always remain with God,
they
(body and soul,) could not be united together in any other place but
such as
will remain forever, according to "Isa. 4:1Isaiah 4: 3. Now in like
manner as
the body of Zebaoth is holy and lives forever, even so shall the
righteous be
called holy and live forever. There are some Rabbies who deny the
rolling
altogether. R. Abarbane denies the rolling. He says, on "Isa. 18:1Isaiah
18:
Because the resurrection will take place in all the world, then the
nations of
the earth will be afraid and tremble: yea, even those of the Euphrates,
and
will send messengers upon the Sea unto the land of the children of
Israel,
acknowledging that the law comes out of Zion and the word of the Lord
from
Jerusalem. Most assuredly when they shall see their dead come out of the
graves and hear them call upon the name of Jehovah, and openly
acknowledge
their faith in Messiah, then will they (the heathen,) also call upon the
name
of Jehovah, and worship him with one mind and one spirit.

R.D. Kimchi's commend. on Ez. 37: 18, says: "our Rabbis dispute about
the
dead, out of the promised land; some say that the dead out of the
promised
land shall also be raised; others believe they shall have to roll
themselves
there and rise, but the prophet speaks very clear: See, I will open your
graves and call my people out of them, and bring them into the land of
Israel.
These words are proof enough that the dead out of the promised land will
rise
and come to the promised land. Some of the more pious Jews, at the
approach of
age, go to the promised land to die there, so that they might not have
to roll
themselves, and to rise many years sooner than those that die out of it.
Rabbi
Jehuda says, 103 R: 214 years before the general resurrection, the
righteous
will rise. Rabbi Joshua ben Menaser teaches that the holy and
praiseworthy
will raise, those first that sleep in Hebron, viz: Adam, Abraham, Isaac,
and
Jacob, with their wives. (The Jews believe that the cave mentioned in
"Gen.
23:1Gen. 23: 19, not only the three patriarchs, but Adam and Eve are
interred,
yet some give a place to the head of Esau in it.) Afterwards he would
purify
the land of the unclean ones, viz. the heathen, and then quicken the
dead. See
the book Ophkat Rochel. 4th part.

Some believe that God will first raise all the dead, then those in
Hebron,
that they might be joyfully surprised to behold so many righteous and
godly
that have come from their loins; then they will break forth in loud
praises.
God will act here in like manner as at the creation of the world; he did
not
create man until he had prepared everything for his reception.

The most disputed point is about who shall be partakers at the

resurrection;
some extend it only to the Jews, others to the Godly of all nations.
Rabbi
Bachay holds the first; in his comment. on the five books of Moses, he
says,
"it is well known there are four things in which no nation has part but
Israel: 1st, prophecy; 2d, receiving of the law; 3d, the promised land;
4th,
the resurrection." As proofs he gives the following verses, in which
only the
name of Jacob appears: 1st, prophecy, it is written, Deuteronomy, 18:15,
15, A
prophet like unto me, I that am from the seed of Jacob, that you might
not
reckon the seed of Esau or Ishmael. it is said out of thy brethren. But
we
find Bileam, who was a Midianite, had the spirit of prophecy; it was
only
perchance, which you will find, 4 B. M. 24: 4-16, God met perchance
Bileam; it
was for two reasons, 1st, for the honor of Israel: 2d, that the heathen
might
have no excuse on the day of judgement, by saying Israel has had
prophets to
reveal unto them the will of God, but we have had none. 2d. The law is
given
to none out Jacob. 5 B. M. 33: 4, Moses has commanded us to the law, for
an
inheritance the congregation of Jacob. 3d. the promised land belongs by
inheritance to Jacob, as you may see from 5 B. M. 33: 28, the eye of
Jacob is
upon the land. 4th. the seed of Jacob may only comfort themselves with
the
resurrection, because it is said at the conclusion of the forementioned
verses, "his heaven will drop dew." The word 'his,' refer to Jacob,
namely:
over Jacob's heaven, or over the land of Israel shall drop the dew, with
which
dew the Almighty, at the resurrection will quicken the dead.
Furthermore,
Dan.12: 2, Many that sleep in the dust shall wake. But that the word
many only
means the Jews, our Rabbies have fully proven in the Book Siphri, from
Esther,
8:17, Many of the people became Jews. Compare with this Psalms, 50:4, he
calls
the heaven from above, and the earth to judge his people; and Isaiah,
26:
14-19, The dead shall not live, and they will not rise; thy dead will be
quickened, and my corpse will rise. Wake and be joyful you that lay in
the
earth. Even the same meaning is in the Book Rad Hakemah, where it is
said,
when the jetcer horah, evil desire, or original sin will be no more;
then all
mourning shall be at an end; every tear shall be wiped away from our
eyes, and
all Israel shall be worthy of the resurrection because this glorious
privilege
belongs only to Israel.

MR. EDITOR: Having commenced this sometime since and having had the
privilege,
a few Sundays back, to hear our worthy Prophet on the same subject, I
was
determined to go on with it, and hand it over to you. If you think it
will be
of any interest to your readers I shall take another time to continue
the
subject, and tell you the means, as held by my brethren the Jews,
whereby the
Lord will bring to pass this glorious work.

Yours, Respectfully,

A. NEIBAUR.

HUGH NIBLEY

* "I may have been a chair in the preexistence, but that doesn't give
me
any satisfaction now. Or to think that I will be a cockroach
hereafter
gives me no great comfort either. That is not me continuing."
(Hugh
Nibley, ANCIENT DOCUMENTS AND THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE, 1986.
Lecture 4,
2.)

* [Gregory of Nyssa, one of the Cappadocian Fathers, stated] "The

soul had
a previous existence and a life of its own where, even as in this
life,
it was given its free agency by the Creator. And such as grew
weary at
doing good entered this life at a disadvantage, having passed the
tests
less satisfactorily than others." (As cited by Hugh Nibley,
Ancient
Documents and the Pearl of Great Price, Lecture 3, 13) [Having
made
reference to St. Gregory's citation, Professor Nibley explains] Now
this
is writing which is accepted by Origen, the earliest Christian
theologian, and he says that this is what the brethren taught. "I
don't
believe it," [Origen] said, "but the brethren in the early church
taught
it." Now the fact is when we are born into this world it's with
unequal
advantages, isn't it? Some are born blind, lame, crippled ... some
are
born into poverty; some into riches. [Origen asks], "How does that
happen? They [the early Fathers] used to teach that before we came
here
life was a test too, and when we passed the test, we came into this
world. Our life here is a reward for our performance before we
came
here." [Origen] says, That would certainly explain the inequality
of
people being born. ... Basilides, also a contemporary, says that
suffering in this life is punishment for sins in the
preexistence ...
that the opportunity to suffer here, even martyrdom, is rather a
reward
earned before, an opportunity for greater glory. Persecutions are
not to
 punish the saints but to sanctify them.[1] (Hugh Nibley, ANCIENT
DOCUMENTS AND THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE, LECTURE 3, p.13-14)

* "Don't resent it [disparity at birth], because you know perfectly

well
why you are not more intelligent than you are.... So you can't
complain
that somebody is ahead of you. You might be far, far better than
you
are. So don't worry about him; just improve yourself. And this is
the
gospel of repentance." (Hugh Nibley, ANCIENT DOCUMENTS AND THE
PEARL OF
GREAT PRICE, LECTURE 3, p.14)

* "No man can learn enough in a lifetime to count for very much, and
no one
knows that better than the man who diligently seeks knowledge." (An
Approach to the Book of Mormon, THE COLLECTED WORKS OF HUGH NIBLEY:
Vol.
6:376.)

* "Yes, for if (we) leave anything out, how will (we) know that it is
not
the most important of all? ... This journey may last for ages, and
it
holds forth the anticipation of wonders and delights that grow as
ever-increasing knowledge heightens our capacity to comprehend what
we
are experiencing." (Approaching Zion, THE COLLECTED WORKS OF HUGH
NIBLEY: Vol. 9:271 (emphasis added).

* [Nibley writes of the] "recurrent missions" [of the Lord]. (Enoch

The
Prophet, THE COLLECTED WORKS OF HUGH NIBLEY: Vol. 2, 39.)

* A cultural shock occurs when you pass from one state to the other.
And
the transitions are usually quite abrupt. You are born all of a
sudden;
you die all of a sudden. Each time you get a new name, a new rank,
a new
identity, a new function, a new office of priesthood or whatever it
may
be, you get new duties, new privileges; you become a different
person. On
many of these occasions, you change your name. You go not into
another
existence (the Egyptians would say kheper). That implies changing
form
without changing identity. The classic example with the Egyptians
was the
butterfly or the frog. A cocoon is not a caterpillar, nor is it a
butterfly. The two states are the same creature, but what
resemblance
would you ever recognize? Even while we are here, we must give up.
Lech
 lecha, which means "get up and keep going," is the title of
Abraham's
life in the chapters of Genesis that describe him. The book of
Abraham
begins, "At the residence of my fathers, ... I saw that it was
needful
for me to obtain another place of residence" (Abraham 1:1). Abraham
had
to get up and go, and he never settled until the end of his life.
He had
to buy a grave for his wife and himself from strangers in a
strange
land. His life was one continual going from one phase to another,
moving
from one existence to another all the time. HUGH NIBLEY

CHARLES W. PENROSE

March 4th, 1883. There are different ideas about hell now-a-days. A few
years
ago there was only the one idea, which was that hell is a great,
bottomless
pit full of flaming fire and brimstone, into which the wicked are cast
never
to return, whilst the devils are continually stirring up the flames for
the
everlasting torment of the doomed. And this scene used to be described
by
popular divines in the most hideous and shocking manner. People have
recently
modified their ideas concerning future punishment, and the change is
greatly
due to the teachings of the Elders of this Church, and the doctrines
which
have been set forth and published as revealed through the Prophet Joseph
Smith. The controversy that is now being conducted by leading
theological
minds upon the subject of probations, has been brought about through the
effects upon the public mind of the preaching of the Elders of the
doctrine
revealed in the very beginning of the Church. You will find in the
Doctrine
and Covenants that God revealed to Joseph Smith as early as March 1830,
that
"eternal punishment is God's punishment." Because God is an eternal
being. His
laws are eternal, and there are penalties attached to all of them. But
it does
not follow that because a person may be banished into the eternal
punishment
it is intended that he shall stay there eternally. Journal of Discourses
Vol.
24, p. 82f

ORSON PRATT
 * Orson Pratt said: "And thus, all the different portions of the
earth have
been and will be disposed of to the lawful heirs; while those who
cannot
prove their heirship to be legal, of who cannot prove that they
have
received any portion of the earth by promise, will be cast out into
some
other kingdom or world, where, if they ever get an inheritance,
they will
have to earn it by keeping the law of meekness during another
probation."
(Orson Pratt, JOURNAL OF DISCOURSES, 1:332-333)

* Orson Pratt said: "I heard brother Young say that Jesus had a body
of
flesh and bones, before he came (to earth and) he was born of the
Virgin
Mary, it was so contrary to every revelation given." (Minutes of
meeting
on April 5, 1860, BY PAPERS)

Parley P. Pratt

* "Lift up your head and rejoice; for behold! it is well with my

servants
Joseph and Hyrum. My servant Joseph still holds the keys of my
kingdom in
this dispensation, and he shall stand in due time on the earth, in
the
flesh, and fulfill that to which he is appointed...(AUTOBIOGRAPHY
OF
PARLEY P, PRATT'S. P. 294, 1985 edition)

JOSEPH L. ROBINSON

* Speaking of our probation here on earth, Joseph Lee Robinson

recorded the
comments of Joseph in his journal as follows: "We also heard him
(Joseph)
say that God had revealed unto him that any man who ever committed
adultery in either of his probations that that man could never be
raised
to the highest exaltation in the celestial glory and that he
(Joseph)
felt anxious with regard to himself and he inquired of the Lord and
the
Lord told him that he, Joseph, had never committed adultery (see
D&C
132:41). This saying of the Prophet astonished me very much. It
opened up
to me a very wide field of reflection. The idea that we had passed
through probation prior to this and that we must have been married
and
given in marriage in those probations or there would be no
propriety in
 making such an assertion and that there were several exaltations in
the
Celestial Kingdom of our God, the highest we supposed to be the
Godhead
and we conclude that there are several grades of exaltations in the
servants to the Gods. Be this as it may, this is what he said. (The
Journal of Joseph Lee Robinson, pg.12) Here it is revealed that we
have
multiple probations in which we have similar trials to go through
in our
course of eternal progression.

D. MICHAEL QUINN

* By the time of his death in 1844, Joseph Smith had also reversed
his
prior rejection of the Cabala's doctrine of "transmigration of the
souls." Two of the women Smith secretly married as plural wives in
the
1840s said that he privately affirmed reincarnation. Apostle
Lorenzo Snow
said that "his sister, the late Eliza R. Snow Smith, was a firm
believer
in the principle of reincarnation and that she claimed to have
received
it from Joseph the Prophet, her husband." Prescendia Huntington
Buell
(later Kimball) also affirmed her belief in "plural probations,"
referring to a statement "in confirmation" by her polyandrous
husband
Joseph Smiths.* In the 1840s their polygamous relationship to the
Mormon
prophet was as secret as his conversion to reincarnation. The
year 1843
was probably when the Mormon prophet reconsidered his position on
reincarnation. In June Neibaur's article was about the "very
singular
notions of the Jews, with regard to their resurrection," which was
the
term Neibaur used repeatedly and quoted his cabalistic sources as
using.
However, in one instance, the first of Neibaur's two articles said
this
concept was "called by them Gilgool." This was an English phonetic
spelling of "Gilgul (Heb.), transmigration of souls,
metempsychosis.
Kabbalistic doctrine (fr. 12th c.) that souls go through several
bodies."519 Since January 1843 Joseph Smith had noted that his
"German
Lesson" lasted as long as an hour-and-a-half, and his diary later
mentioned that Neibaur was his personal instructor in both German
and
Hebrew. Neibaur's verified knowledge of the Cabala's doctrine of
transmigration of the soul in 1843 provides one explanation for the
Mormon prophet's conversion to the reincarnation doctrine he had
previously condemned. Smith's apparent textual indebtedness to the
books
 by Eisenmenger and Allen also demonstrates that he had access to
their
extensive discussions of the Cabala's doctrine of transmigration of
souls. Whether or not Brigham Young knew that the founding prophet
had
confided a belief in reincarnation, Smith's apostolic successor
publicly
condemned the doctrine of transmigration. In 1852 Young observed:
"It
has been, and is now, believed by numerous individuals, that the
brute
creation[s], by increase in knowledge and wisdom, change their
physical
or bodily organization, through numerous states of existence, so
that the
minutest insect, in the lapse of time, can take to itself the human
form,
and vice versa." Young declared: "This is one of the most
inconsistent
ideas that could be possibly entertained in the mind of man; it is
called
the transmigration of souls. In refutation, a year later [1853]
Apostle
Orson Pratt used the term "transmigration" to describe the very
process
Young had denounced. In his periodical The Seer, Pratt wrote:
"there was
an endless duration, and each particle of our spirits had an
eternal
existence, and was in possession of eternal capacities. ... A
transmigration of the same particles of spirits from a lower to a
higher
organization, is demonstrated from the fact that the same particles
exist in a diffused scattered state, mingled with other matter;
next,
they exist in a united form, growing out of the earth in the shape
of
grass, herbs, and trees; and after this, these vegetables become
food for
celestial animals, and are organized into their offspring, and thus
form
the spirits of animals. Here, then, is apparently a transmigration
of the
same particles of spirit from an inferior to a superior
organization,
wherein their condition is improved, and their sphere of action
enlarged.
Who shall set any bounds to this upward tendency of spirit? Who
shall
prescribe limits to its progression? If it abide the laws and
conditions
of its several states of existence, who shall say that it will not
progress until it shall gain the very summit of perfection, and
exist in
all the glorious beauty of the image of God?" (emphasis added).523
Brigham Young and his counselors notified all Mormons that such
ideas "as
 advanced by brother Pratt in an article in the Seer, entitled
'Pre-existence of man,' and in his treatise entitled 'Great First
Cause,'
are plausibly presented. But to the whole subject we will answer in
the
words of the Apostle Joseph Smith, on a similar occasion. ... 'It
is not
true'. (D. Michael Quinn, EARLY MORMONISM AND THE MAGIC WORLD
VIEW, p.
302 Signature Books. Salt Lake City, Utah 1998)

JOSEPH SMITH

* On Sunday, May 21, 1843, Joseph Smith said that our organization
which
will "prepare us for the eternal worlds" had not yet been revealed
by
him: "The design of the great God in sending us into this world,
and
organizing us to prepare us for the eternal worlds, I shall keep in
my
own bosom at present." (HC 5:403)

* "And I heard a voice from heaven saying blessed are the dead who
die in
the Lord for from henceforth they do rest from their labors and
their
works do follow them-They rest from their labors for a long time
and yet
their work is held in reserve for them, that they are permitted to
do the
same works after they receive a resurrection for their bodies, but
we
shall leave this subject of the Terrestrial bodies for another time
in
order to treat upon them more fully."(Ehat, WORDS OF JOSEPH SMITH,
p. 42)

* "I resumed conversation with Matthias, and desired him to enlighten

my
mind more on his views respecting the resurrection. He said that he
possessed the spirit of his fathers, that he was a literal
descendant of
Matthias, the Apostle, who was chosen in the place of Judas that
fell;
that his spirit was resurrected in him; and that this was the way
or
scheme of eternal life this transmigration of soul or spirit from
father
to son. I told him that his doctrine was of the devil, that he was
in
reality in possession of a wicked and depraved spirit, although he
professed to be the Spirit of truth itself; and he said also that
he
possessed the soul of Christ" (TEACHINGS OF THE PROPHET JOSEPH
SMITH,
Section Two 1834 37, p. 105).
 * "Here, then, is eternal life-to know the only wise and true God;
and you
have got to learn how to be Gods yourself the same as all Gods
have
done before you, namely, by going from one small degree to another,
and
from a small capacity to a great one, from grace to grace, from
exaltation to exaltation, until you attain to the resurrection of
the
dead." "When you climb up a ladder, you must begin at the bottom,
and
ascend step by step, until you arrive at the top; and so it is with
the
principles of the gospel you must begin with the first, and go on
until
you learn all the principles of exaltation. But it will be a great
while
after you have passed through the veil before you will have learned
them.
It is not all to be comprehended in this world; it will be a great
work
to learn our salvation and exaltation even beyond the grave. I
suppose I
am not allowed to go into an investigation of anything that is not
contained in the Bible. If I do, I think there are so many over-
wise men
here, that they would cry "treason" and put me to death." (TPJS p.
347)

* "I advise all to go on to perfection, and search deeper and deeper

into
the mysteries of Godliness." (Joseph Smith, TPJS, 364.)

ELIZA R. SNOW

* "8 June 1889: During our talks he (Lorenzo Snow) told me that his
sister,
the late Eliza R. Snow Smith was a firm believer in the principle
of
reincarnation and that she claimed to have received it from Joseph
the
Prophet, her husband. He said he saw nothing unreasonable in it,
and
could believe it, if it came to him from the Lord or his oracle."
(DIARY
OF ORSON F. WHITNEY, 8 June 1889)

* By the time of his death in 1844, Joseph Smith had also reversed
his
prior rejection of the Cabala's doctrine of "transmigration of the
souls." Two of the women Smith secretly married as plural wives in
the
1840s said that he privately affirmed reincarnation. Apostle
Lorenzo Snow
said that "his sister, the late Eliza R. Snow Smith, was a firm
believer
 in the principle of reincarnation and that she claimed to have
received
it from Joseph the Prophet, her husband." Prescendia Huntington
Buell
(later Kimball) also affirmed her belief in "plural probations,"
referring to a statement "in confirmation" by her polyandrous
husband
Joseph Smiths.* In the 1840s their polygamous relationship to the
Mormon
prophet was as secret as his conversion to reincarnation. (D.
Michael
Quinn, EARLY MORMONISM AND THE MAGIC WORLD VIEW, Signature Books,
Salt
Lake City, Utah 1998)

* MORTAL AND IMMORTAL ELEMENTS OF THE HUMAN BODY.

* * *

A PHILOSOPHICAL OBJECTION

TO THE RESURRECTION, REMOVED

* * *

BY MISS ELIZA R. SNOW.

The subject of the resurrection of the dead, although of inexpressible

interest to all of the human family, is very little understood by man in
the
flesh, and will not be explained until he who holds the keys pertaining
to it
for this dispensation, shall develop its principles.

Although we cannot penetrate the cloud of obscurity which envelops this

subject; knowing, as we do, that death is certain, it is natural that we
should inquire in the depths of our souls, What and where is our future?
Shall
the spirit and body again be united? Who, that does not altogether
ignore the
idea of a resurrection of the body, but experiences at times, a
bewilderment
of thought concerning it?

Realizing that, in accordance with established laws of nature, the

substances
which now compose these bodies of ours, will, after death, become
identified
parts of innumerable other human bodies, also be incorporated into the
bodies
of beasts, insects, fowls &c. and through them bequeathed to others; the
question naturally arises, "How can they be again restored to us? And,
if
restored to us, from what source will the deficiency be supplied to
other
bodies?"

This is a problem which neither the rules of science nor the wisdom of
man,
unaided by revelation, can solve--a problem which infidelity very
plausibly
applies as a settled refutation to the doctrine of the resurrection--one
in
which the worldly wise philosopher finds a palpable inconsistency, and
one
which in the face of sound reason amounts to the impossibility of a
reorganization of a human body: for what reflecting mind does not see
that the
laws of nature which apply to the decomposition of the elements which
constitute the living body, preclude a possibility of the same material
being
restored, at one and the same time, to all bodies of which it has
comprised
component parts in millions of instances, at different times; and,
believing
God to be a consistent Being, and acting in accordance with eternal,
unchanging laws, and admitting that these laws are harmonious--that the
higher
operate in consonance with, and are never antagonistic to those of a
lower
order, is it a matter of surprise that thinking people of a highly
intelligent
class, in many instances, yield to infidelity and adopt the humiliating
conclusion that the resurrection is only a phantom of the brain: while
others,
with little or no reflection, content themselves by admitting that,
"with God
all things are possible," without questioning in what manner, or by what
means
the result will be effected.

His communications to, and the dealings of God with man, so far as they
are
made known to us, are characterized as those of an intelligent Being
conversing and dealing with intelligent beings of the same order, but in
a
vastly lower state of development.

In His works, order is every where strikingly apparent, and we find law,
or
rather codes of law regulating and governing, not only every department
of
life, but also every grade and variety of matter. From the smallest
speck that
glitters and dances in the bright sunshine, to the glowing galaxy above
us,
representing system on system of worlds in the mighty distance, order is
everywhere manifest. Each department, whether of life or inanimate
matter, is
governed by laws particularly adapted to the peculiarities of its own
identity, and in regular gradation from the smallest atom and the most
diminutive animalcule to the highest intelligences above; and all,
whether
assigned to different localities or intermingling in countless
varieties--all
operating in harmony, and not interfering with, or trespassing on each
other.

Just so far as those laws are developed to our understandings we

pronounce
them natural principles; and what, with us constitutes a miracle, is
nothing
more nor less than our ignorance of the process or law by which the
result is
produced: for instance, when our Savior in Cana of Galilee, changed
water into
wine, it is evident that he manufactured the wine through the agency of
chemical laws of a higher order than those taught in the schools, hence
the
people were filled with astonishment, for to them, the performance was a
miracle, they probably being as ignorant of the laws through which the
result
was obtained, as we now are concerning the resurrection of the dead.

In relation to the objections urged against the reorganizing of the

human
body, we are in possession of a very important and beautiful principle
which
pours a flood of light into the mind--obviates a heretofore
insurmountable
difficulty, and disarms infidelity of its strongest plea against the
resurrection, and puts impossibility to silence.

By this we are instructed that the resurrection of the body is

independent of
all gross, divisible and transferable matter, and this removes every
rational
objection against the reunion of body and spirit, based on the
incontrovertible laws of nature pertaining to the decomposition of the
body,
and the subsequent transformations and reproductions of the material of
which
it was composed. These are substances borrowed for this probationary
use--to
subserve the necessities of this mortal existence--to render us tangible
to
gross tangibility, and for which, after death, our bodies will have no
further
use.

As soon as the spirit leaves the body, and frequently before, nature's
great
work of decomposition commences, and continues till every particle of
gross,
volatile matter is disengaged and natural laws of affinity passes into
other
forms, combining with other substances through an affinitude of changes;
and
co-operating in an endless variety of reproductions: as, for instance,
the
grass that grows over the grave incorporates a portion of the gross
substance
escaping from the decaying body beneath: the cow, the sheep and the
goose
devour the grass which, through the natural laws of nourishment produces
flesh--people eat the flesh of the cow, sheep and goose, and thus we may
trace
the same identical matter, perhaps divided and sub-divided into
infinitesimal
particles and passing into every form of human, brutal, insect,
vegetable and
atmospheric existence--going onward from generation to generation.

But thanks to God for the key which solves the mystery. Every organized
human
body, independent of the spirit, (which is a separate organization) is
composed of two distinct classes or grades of matter, and in such mutual
combination as to subserve the purposes of this lower existence. One is
gross,
volatile--subject to change and decay through a precarious union of
earth,
air, fire and water--tangible to mortal sight and touch, and subject to
all
the laws of decomposition. The other is pure, invisible, intangible and
capable of resisting every law of infraction or dissolubility. This,
when the
spirit leaves the body, remains INTACT--never being incorporated with
other
bodies or substances. This is the precious material that will be
resurrected
in perfect form, and compose the immortal tabernacle of the immortal
spirit.

It is well understood that resurrected beings are invisible to these

gross
organs of sight except when they are quickened by immortal vision--that
if the
dead were brought forth within viewing distance of us, we should not see
them.
Why not? The resurrected body being composed of this pure material, can
only
be seen by organs of sight formed of the same pure matter, unclogged
with
gross substances.

While the gross portion is disorganizing and reorganizing, being

perpetually
changing and in motion--while the disembodied spirit is associating in
the
world above; the pure substance, the precious germ of an immortal
tabernacle,
the jewel's casket, quietly sleeps in the bosom of mother Earth,
awaiting the
eternal mandate, which, in accordance with the higher code, the
celestial law,
shall reunite it with the joyous spirit filled with eternal
intelligence, no
more to be separated.

The Earth also, combines in its present organization, both of the above
mentioned classes of elements; and, as well as man, will yet experience
a
process of purification before it can become the habitation and
everlasting
inheritance of resurrected, immortal, embodied intelligences. "The
elements
shall melt with fervent heat." After having passed the purifying ordeal
of
fire, and having been cleansed from all combustible and volatile
properties,
the earth will pass from its present orbit, to the position among the
creations of God, from which it has fallen in consequence of man's
transgression; and then will that prediction of our Savior be fully
realized--"The meek shall inherit the earth."

Woman's Exponent 2:99

December 1, 1873

* * *

HELEN MAR KIMBALL WHITNEY (1828-1896)

Autobiography (c. 1839-1846)

"Life Incidents," Woman's Exponent 9-10 (1880-1882) and "Scenes and

Incidents in Nauvoo," WOMAN'S EXPONENT 11 (1882-83)

LIFE INCIDENTS

By Helen Mar Kimball Whitney

How gross is the darkness that covers the minds of the people who are
fighting
against the principles of salvation. No one actuated by the spirit of
God
would do this or speak against his servants, but would be attended by
the Holy
Ghost, which would give them faith and reveal to them the power of God
unto
salvation; but which without faith, is impossible. We read that "the
just
shall live by faith," and that "faith without works is dead." We can
understand the things of God only by the spirit and power of God. The
revelations of Joseph Smith can never save others, unless they receive
revelation from heaven of their truth, and they must seek for it in
order to
obtain it. Those who are too careless and slothful to read or to "search
and
believe in me, not in man," as Jesus said for, "who leans on him leans
on a
broken reed," will be left as many others have to stumble even at
noonday. The
sorrows and privations and all the persecutions endured by the Saints of
God
are light, when compared with the punishment of a guilty conscience and
this
is the punishment that awaits, not only those who persecute his people,
but
the ones who are too indolent to make inquiries for themselves, or to
forego
the momentary and fleeting pleasures of today, in the vain hope of
gaining a
little worldly pomp and praise. Here, we are as strangers in a strange
land,
and those who are too proud or obstinate to look up and read the
directions so
plainly written upon the guide board, which has been set by a Father's
loving
hand, that his children may not miss the track and be lost in the
darkness, or
refuse to listen to his servants who are crying, "Come out of her my
people,
and be not partakers of her sins, that ye receive not of her plagues,"
because
He in his wisdom has chosen the meek of the earth who will do his
bidding,
being poor and unpopular in the world, renounce them as impostors,
persecute
and destroy them, WILL SEE THEIR MISTAKE WHEN TOO LATE TO RETRACE THEIR
STEPS
AND WILL HAVE TO PASS THROUGH ANOTHER PROBATION.

ORSON F. WHITNEY

"3 June 1889: This evening I heard that Pres. Woodruff, in a

meeting at
Manti, a few days ago, publicly declared that the doctrine of
reincarnation, that is one spirit having several bodies, to be
false;
that he was Wilford Woodruff and no one else, &c &c. Alright, bro.
Woodruff, if you really said it, it is between you and the Lord. I
believe it to be a true doctrine, & have for the last (word cut out
of
entry) years." (DIARY OF ORSON F. WHITNEY, 3 June 1889, Church
Archives)

BRIGHAM YOUNG

* "Brother Willard Richards and I wrote a lengthy article on Election

and
Reprobation for the Millennial Star." ('THE JOURNAL OF BRIGHAM
YOUNG',
Friday, January 1, 1841)
 * "I preached at the Music Hall twice, on Election and Reprobation."
('THE
JOURNAL OF BRIGHAM YOUNG', Sunday, January 24, 1841)

* [1846 Nauvoo Temple Endowment] Lucifer: Well Adam, you have a new
world.
Adam: A new world? Lucifer: Yes, a new world, patterned after the
old one
where we used to live.

* Brigham Young laid hands on Heber C. Kimball and "Ordained him to

the
Godhead, and that he would act as the Savior to a world or worlds."
-
This was part of a long prayer. Promised wives, seed without
number, be
full partaker with Abraham, Isaac., and Jacob. The Godhead was a
different blessing from Godhood. (Some received only Godhood.)
Heber C.
Kimball then did the same to Brigham Young, i.e., ordained him to
The
Godhead. They in turn did it by proxy for Joseph and Hyrum Smith.
Other
saints (W.W. Phelps) were blessed to act in Trinities (or
Presidencies of
worlds). (NAUVOO TEMPLE RECORD, January 1846)

* [Transmigration is] one of the most inconsistent ideas that could

be
possibly entertained in the mind of man." (JOURNAL OF DISCOURSES
1:92-3)

* "Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he wrought a

work
on the wheels. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in
the
hands of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed
good
to the potter to make it." The clay that marred in the potter's
hands was
thrown back into the unprepared portion, to be prepared over again.
So it
will be with every wicked man and woman, and every wicked nation,
kingdom, and government upon earth, sooner or later; they will be
thrown
back to the native element from which they originated, to be worked
over
again, and be prepared to enjoy some sort of a kingdom." (Brigham
Young,
JOURNAL OF DISCOURSES, 2:121f)

* "If you suffer the opposite of this to take possession of your

tabernacles, it will hurt you, and all that is associated with you,
and
blast, and strike with mildew, until your tabernacle, which was
created
 to continue throughout an endless duration, will be decomposed, and
go
back to its native elements, to be ground over again like the
refractory
clay that has spoiled in the hand of the potter, it must be worked
over
again until it shall become passive, and yield to the potter's
wish."
(Brigham Young, JOURNAL OF DISCOURSES, 2: 129f)

* Oct 16, 1859. Many of you, no doubt, have concluded that the
doctrine of
election and reprobation is true, and you do so with propriety, for
it is
true; it is a scriptural doctrine ... Mankind are here because they
are
the offspring of parents who were first brought here from another
planet,
and power was given them to propagate their species, and they were
commanded to multiply and replenish the earth. (JOURNAL OF
DISCOURSES,
Vol 7, p 282-290)

* Orson Pratt said: "I heard brother Young say that Jesus had a body
of
flesh and bones, before he came (to earth and) he was born of the
Virgin
Mary, it was so contrary to every revelation given." (Minutes of
meeting
on April 5, 1860, BY PAPERS)

* * *

These following quotes need to be compared and added or deleted

Joseph Smith and Reincarnation

1. Introduction
2. Joseph Smith
3. Eliza R. Snow
4. Brigham Young
5. Joseph E. Taylor
6. Heber C. Kimball
7. Joseph Lee Robinson
8. Orson Pratt
9. Charles W. Penrose
10. The Demise of Multiple Mortal Probations
11. Previous Lives & Wives of Joseph Smith
12. Previous Wives of Joseph Smith
13. Future Lives of Joseph Smith

There is no standard definition for reincarnation which has universal

acceptance in all cultures. However, from the standpoint of the sayings
of
Jesus, the revelations of Joseph Smith, and the modern psychological
concept
of dissociation, the following seems to make sense. Each soul was
initially
part of one God and became dissociated from this one God prior to being
incarnated. The process of dissociation of souls from God is similar to
someone whose single overt personality is split into multiple covert
personalities. Like the multiple covert personalities residing in the
man at
Gardenes and cast out by Jesus into 2000 swine, each of the multiple
covert
personalities is able to further dissociate from God by taking up
residence in
separate physical bodies. Because each dissociated personality is a
part of
the one God, each dissociated personality is a god, although unknown to
itself
and others.

Because at the root of each dissociation is an emotional trauma, and

because
each dissociated personality is made less intelligent by separation from
the
one God, the purpose of incarnation is both for experience and
reintegration.
However, because each dissociated soul is given its free agency, the
duration
of a single incarnation is too short to guaranteed the restoration of
all
separated personalities. Since in the beginning, every dissociated
personality is a part of God, in the end, every personality will
eventually
reassociate within the one God. The implication is that no soul will be
lost
permanently because each soul is a part of God, infinite and eternal.
Thus,
no soul could possibly be permanently estranged from its source.

Reincarnation means to "come again in the flesh" Each incarnation is

called a
"day" because work can only be performed while in the flesh. Thus, the
time
between incarnations is called "night" because no work can be performed.
The
process of reincarnation, continual rebirths in human bodies also called
going
in and out, continues until the soul has reached a state of perfection
called
the resurrection of the dead. The resurrection of the dead is the
merging of
the dissociated personality into the one God, its source.

INTRODUCTION

One will not find the word "reincarnation" in Websters 1828 dictionary.
According to the Electronic edition of the Merriam-Webster's Collegiate
Dictionary, the noun reincarnation was not included until 1858.[i] This
means
that we should not expect to find the word reincarnation spoken by Jesus
or
his apostles or in the revelations and teachings of Joseph Smith. In
fact, we
would not expect the use of the word reincarnation until some time after
Joseph Smith. Therefore, if we find the doctrine of reincarnation in
the
scriptures, in the words of Christ or his apostles or in the revelations
and
teachings of Joseph Smith, we would find it described by other terms and
phrases.

* * *

Reincarnation explains why Joseph Smith was able to see God before he
received
the priesthood in this mortal life. Joseph Smith's vivid descriptions
of
people and life in ancient America given before he received the Book of
Mormon
is very suggestive that he had memories of an actual past mortal life.
These
memories seem to have been forgotten until latter in his life when there
is
considerable evidence that Joseph Smith privately taught reincarnation
to a
select number of members living in Nauvoo including Eliza R. Snow and
Brigham
Young. This doctrine was later publicly taught from the pulpit by
Brigham
Young, Joseph E. Taylor, Heber C. Kimball, and Orson Pratt. Adam was
said to
have been a Savior on another world; Jesus Christ had a body of flesh
and
bones before being conceived by Mary, leaders of the Church were
ordained to
be reincarnated in special circumstances in future worlds, and for those
in
the arrears, reincarnation would occur until the spirit was perfected.

Joseph L. Robinson and Charles W. Penrose claimed that Joseph Smith was
the
source of reincarnation doctrine. President Lorenzo Snow had no problem
with
the idea of reincarnation believing it to have come from Joseph Smith.
However, reincarnation never gained wide acceptance among Church members
or
other General Authorities. George Q. Cannon, while acknowledging that
Brigham
Young taught reincarnation felt that it should not be openly taught and
President Wilford Woodruff was adamantly opposed to reincarnation.
Today,
most Church members are unaware that reincarnation was ever taught in
the
Church as a viable doctrine or that it forms the basis from which the
Churches
current teaching on pre-existence and eternal progression evolved.
Denials by
the Church apologists that Joseph Smith believed or taught reincarnation
are
not unlike Church apologist denials that Brigham Young didn't teach
Adam-God.

JOSEPH SMITH

The question is frequently asked, "How could Joseph Smith see God before
receiving the priesthood?" The question is based on D&C 84:21-22 which
reads,

And this greater priesthood administereth the gospel and holdeth

the key
of the mysteries of the kingdom, even the key of the knowledge of
God.
Therefore, in the ordinances thereof, the power of godliness is
manifest.
And without the ordinances thereof, and the authority of the
priesthood,
the power of godliness is not manifest unto men in the flesh; For
without
this no man can see the face of God, even the Father, and live.
(D&C
84:21-22)

Form this verse, it is apparent that the greater priesthood is

absolutely
required before a man can see the face of God and live. President
Joseph
Fielding Smith suggested that Joseph Smith was a special case.

"We cannot tie the hands of the Lord ... The Father and the Son
appeared
to the Prophet Joseph Smith before the Church was organized and the
priesthood restored to the earth. Under those conditions the Lord
could
appear to one who sought for light as he did in the case of Joseph
Smith.
Now that the Church is organized, and the power of the priesthood
is
here, no one can see the face of God, even the Father, without the
blessings of the gospel and the authority of the priesthood"
(DOCTRINES
OF SALVATION, 1:4).

Making Joseph Smith a special case implies that God is a respecter of

persons
and for this reason is this explanation seem unsatisfactory. More
consistent
with an unchangeable God is Joseph Smith's own explanation for his
seeing God
before receiving the priesthood during this mortal estate.
 "Every man who has a calling to minister to the inhabitants of the
world
was ordained to that very purpose in the Grand Council of heaven
before
this world was. I suppose that I was ordained to this very office
in that
Grand Council" (TEACHINGS OF THE PROPHET JOSEPH SMITH, p. 365).

However, if Joseph Smith's ordination to the priesthood occurred without

having a mortal body, then the gospel plan for him and the rest of us is
different. However, if Joseph Smith had a previous mortal probation in
which
he obtained this priesthood by the laying on of hands by one in
authority,
there would be no reason why he could not see God at the age of 14
during this
probation because he already possessed the higher priesthood in a
previous
mortal probation.

In a revelation given in Harmony, Pennsylvania, July 1830 we read that

Joseph
was

"called and chosen to write the Book of Mormon, and to my ministry;

and I
have lifted thee up out of thine afflictions, and have counseled
thee,
that thou hast been delivered from all thine enemies, and thou hast
been
delivered from the powers of Satan and from darkness!" (HISTORY OF
THE
CHURCH 1:101-3.)

Why was Joseph Smith called and chosen to write the Book of Mormon and
from
what enemies was Joseph Smith delivered? It is interesting that even
before
Joseph Smith dictated the Book of Mormon, he had seemly vivid memories
of life
in ancient America. When describing his unusual traits as a young boy,
Joseph's mother, Lucy Mack Smith wrote that it seemed that Joseph Smith
had
spent his whole life with the ancient American inhabitants.

"During our evening conversations, Joseph would occasionally give

us the
most amusing recitals that could be imagined. He could describe the
ancient inhabitants of this continent, their dress, mode of
traveling,
and animals upon which they rode; their cities; their buildings
with
every particular; their mode of warfare; and also their religious
worship. This he would do with as much ease, seemingly, as if he
had
spent his whole life with them." (Lucy Smith Biographical Sketches;
Pg
 85.)

In other words, Lucy Smith, tells that us Joseph had a fervent interest
in and
knowledge of the ancient Indians before he received the plates from
which he
'translated' the Book of Mormon. How could this be? Eldred G. Smith
citing
the above biographical sketch by Lucy Mack Smith suggested that the
information came second hand from Moroni or other revelations.

This [knowledge of the ancient Indians] was before he received the

plates. He must have received this by revelation, for he knew the
whole
story of the content of the record that is now the Book of Mormon.
He had
had five long visits with Moroni, and his mother says he received
many
revelations. (Elder Eldred G. Smith, CONFERENCE REPORT, October
1967,
Afternoon Meeting 83.)

However, Joseph did not recite his knowledge of the content of the Book
of
Mormon as thought it was second hand information either by lecture or
vision.
Instead, he recited the information "as if he had spent his whole life
with
them" suggesting first person knowledge and experience.

In a fascinating and groundbreaking book, Children's Past Lives, author

Carol
Bowman reveals overwhelming evidence of past life memories in children.
Not
only are such experiences real, according to Bowman they are far more
common
than most people realize. Bowman's extraordinary investigation was
sparked
when her young son, Chase, described his own past-life death on a Civil
War
battlefield--an account so accurate it was authenticated by an expert
historian. Bowman has compiled dozens of cases explaining how very young
children have remember their past lives, spontaneously and naturally.
What is
interesting about Bowman's study is that children who relate past life
memories are often confronted by parents who are either amused or
outright
hostile.

It is very likely that Lucky Mack Smith never considered that her son
may have
been having past life memories since most Christians do not believe that
past
life memories are even possible. If they do hear such descriptions from
their
child, they usually worry that it's too weird, don't know how to respond
to
their child, and are afraid to mention it to anyone outside the family.
Because of this, most children stop talking about these memories as they
grow
older and often forget entirely unless reminded at a later time.

In November 1835, at the age of 31, Joseph Smith came into contact with
the
doctrine of transmigration of the soul through the visit of a man who
called
himself "Joshua, the Jewish Minister". Joseph Smith initially felt
that
Joshua made some "excellent remarks". Later however, Joseph became
suspicious and discovered that he was Robert Matthias of New York who
had been
tried for "murder, manslaughter, contempt of court, whipping his
daughter,
etc." Despite this Joseph Smith asked him "his views respecting the
resurrection" to which Matthias responded that:

"he [Matthias] possessed the spirit of his fathers, that he was a

literal
descendant of Matthias, the Apostle, who was chosen in the place of
Judas
that fell; that his spirit was resurrected in him; and that this
was the
way or scheme of eternal life this the transmigration of the soul
or
spirit from father to son.

To this Joseph Smith said:

"I told him that his doctrine [transmigration of the soul] was of
the
devil, that he was in reality in possession of a wicked and
depraved
spirit." DHC 2:304-307

Brigham Young reflecting Joseph Smith's belief would later call

transmigration
of the soul:

"one of the most inconsistent ideas that could be possibly

entertained in
the mind of man." (Journal of Discourses 1:92-3)

The idea of transmigration of the soul is somewhat distinct from the

idea of
reincarnation later taught to Brigham Young and Eliza R. Snow by Joseph
Smith
and later taught by Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball from the pulpit
in the
Salt Lake Tabernacle. Apparently transmigration of the soul into a body
already occupied by another spirit causes problems such as when Jesus
caused
the transmigration of 2000 souls into the swine which then ran off a
cliff and
were drowned in the sea.
It is suggested that this incident shows that Joseph Smith rejected
reincarnation. However, what Joseph Smith rejected was transmigration
of the
soul, not reincarnation as would later be taught by himself and others.
And
even if Joseph Smith did reject reincarnation in 1835, it is possible
that he
had forgotten his youthful past life memories and would not remember his
previous mortal probations until later. This is a common experience in
children who recite past lives to their parents and then in later years
forget
what they had experienced. Finally, there is much evidence to suggest
that
Joseph Smith's theology was evolutionary and it is possible that Joseph
Smith
did not learn of reincarnation until later.

Considering the fact that several of Joseph Smith's closest associates

claimed
that he taught them the doctrine of multiple probations, we must ask why
didn't Joseph Smith teach the doctrine publicly? Joseph Smith gave the
following answers,

Said Joseph, "Our lives have already become jeopardized by

revealing the
wicked and bloodthirsty purposes of our enemies; and for the future
we
must cease to do so. All we have said about them is truth, but it
is not
always wise to relate all the truth. Even Jesus, the Son of God had
to
refrain from doing so, and had to restrain his feelings many times
for
the safety of himself and his followers, and had to conceal the
righteous
purposes of his heart in relation to many things pertaining to his
Father's kingdom. (DISCOURSES OF THE PROPHET JOSEPH SMITH, compiled
by
Alma P. Burton [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1977], 302.)

What is the meaning of the parable of the Ten Talents? Also the
conversation with Nicodemus, "Except a man be born of water and of
the
spirit?" were questions put to me which I shall not answer at
present.
Joseph Smith, History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints,
7 vols., introduction and notes by B. H. Roberts [Salt Lake City:
The
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1932-1951], 5: 325.)
[Note: These scriptures which Joseph Smith refused to discussed are
believed by many to be important biblical evidence for
reincarnation]

"The design of the great God in sending us into this world, and
 organizing us to prepare us for the eternal worlds, I SHALL KEEP IN
MY
OWN BOSOM at present." DHC 5:403

However, Joseph Smith did hint at multiple probations publicly by

explaining
that the resurrection from the dead would come only after progression
from one
small degree to another, an exercise that would take a long while after
leaving this mortal probation.

Here, then, is eternal life to know the only wise and true God; and
you
have got to learn how to be Gods yourselves, and to be kings and
priests
to God, the same as all Gods have done before you, fn namely, by
going

from one small degree to another, and from a small capacity to a

great
one; from grace to grace, from exaltation to exaltation, until you
attain
to the resurrection of the dead, and are able to dwell in
everlasting
burnings, and to sit in glory, as do those who sit enthroned in
everlasting power... When you climb up a ladder, you must begin at
the
bottom, and ascend step by step, until you arrive at the top; and
so it
is with the principles of the Gospel you must begin with the first,
and
go on until you learn all the principles of exaltation. But it will
be a
great while after you have passed through the veil before you will
have
learned them. It is not all to be comprehended in this world; it
will be
a great work to learn our salvation and exaltation even beyond the
grave.
I suppose I am not allowed to go into an investigation of anything
that
is not contained in the Bible. [April 1844 Teachings of the Prophet
Joseph Smith, p. 347, 348]

There is evidence that Joseph Smith would have liked to have taught
multiple
mortal probations more openly and in fact would have liked to have
spoken of
his own reincarnation. To the Quorum of Twelve Apostles, Joseph Smith
once
said:

"Would to God, brethren, I could tell you who I am! Would to God I
could
tell you what I know! But you would call it blasphemy and want to
take my
life." (Life of Heber C. Kimball; Page 333)
On Sunday, April 7, 1844, just two months before his martyrdom he gave
one of
his strongest public hints to the fact that he had previous lives he
could not
reveal. This was his finest hour as he addressed twenty thousand Saints
on the
character of God at the funeral of King Follett. At the end of this, one
of
his last sermons on the earth, he said:

"No man knows my history. I cannot tell it. I shall never

undertake it.
I don't blame anyone for not believing my history. If I had not
experienced what I have, I would have not believed it myself...When
I am
called by the trump of the archangel and weighed in the balance,
you will
all know me then. I add no more. God bless you all. Amen"
[DOCUMENTARY
HISTORY OF THE CHURCH; Vol 6: Page 317]

Of the doctrines that Joseph Smith taught privately and later taught
publicly
only reincarnation would apply to a history of Joseph Smith that no man
could
know and an identity of Joseph Smith that some would call blasphemous.

ELIZA R. SNOW

Probably Joseph Smith's most intimate associate, other than his brother
Hyrum,
was his plural wife Eliza R. Snow. Eliza R. Snow was married to the
Prophet
Joseph Smith on June 29, 1842. From her diary we read,

"I was sealed to the prophet, Joseph Smith, for time and eternity
in
accordance with the celestial law of marriage which God had
revealed...
This, one of the most important events of my life, I have never had
cause
to regret." (Eliza R. Snow's Nauvoo Journal Edited by Maureen
Ursenbach,
BYU Studies, vol. 15 (1974-1975), Number 4 - Summer 1975)

Throughout her life Eliza referred to beloved husband Joseph Smith as

her
first and only love and

"the choice of my heart and the crown of my life". (Eliza R. Snow,

"Past
and Present," Woman's Exponent 15 (August 1, 1886): 37).

When Joseph Smith was martyred in June of 1844, Eliza was so overcome by
grief
that she could not eat or sleep and pled with the Lord to allow her to
die.
While she was thus grieving, Joseph appeared to her in a vision and told
her
that her mission on earth was not yet completed. She was subsequently
sealed
to Brigham Young in 1844. Brigham highly respected Eliza's intellect
and
valued her opinion and she always sat on his right side at the dinner
table
and during family prayer. Eliza's brother, Lorenzo Snow became the
fifth
President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints serving
from 1898
until his death in 1901. Eliza died on December 5, 1887 and was buried
on a
hillside near the Lion House in President Brigham Young's private
cemetery.

Eliza R. Snow Smith was an stanch advocate of the Adam-God doctrine and
a firm
believer in reincarnation claiming that she learned both principles from
her
first husband the prophet Joseph Smith. In 1889, Orson F. Whitney
recorded a
conversation he had with Lorenzo Snow on the topic or reincarnation.

During our talks he [Lorenzo Snow] told me that his sister, the
late
Eliza R. Snow Smith was a firm believer in the principle of
reincarnation
and that she claimed to have received it from Joseph the Prophet,
her
husband. He [Lorenzo Snow] said he saw nothing unreasonable in it,
and
could believe it, if it came to him from the Lord or his oracle."
[Orson
F. Whitney Diary, 8 June 1889, LDS Archives]

Eliza R. Snows brother, President Lorenzo Snow also seems to have

accepted the
doctrine of reincarnation although he never publicly advocated it.

Some believe that Eliza R. Snow didn't believe in reincarnation.

Instead,
Orson Whitney's statement is believed to be "fourth hand" and made
several
years after the reported conversation took place. However, in
historical
context, the statement seems authentic. In other words, Eliza R. Snow
also
claimed that Joseph Smith taught Adam-God a doctrine closely associated
with
reincarnation. Further, Orson Whitney reports that Lorenzo Snow said he
saw
nothing unreasonable in it and could believe it if had been revealed to
Joseph
Smith.

BRIGHAM YOUNG

Next to his Brother Hyrum, Brigham Young was Joseph Smith's closest
ally.
Wilford Woodruff wrote of Brigham Young

I would again ask, has Elder Brigham Young ... ever deserted
Joseph,
Hyrum, his brethren, or the cause, in one instance, since the
foundation
of this church? No, never, in one instance. He has always been
ready to
go and come at the bidding of the Lord. He has not said go; but he
has
always said come. He has set the example and led the way, until he
has
traversed sea and land, at home and abroad, native and foreign
countries,
until he has borne off the keys of the kingdom of God in connection
with
the Twelve, with honor and dignity, since they were committed to
his
charge. He has followed President Smith's footsteps closely for the
last
twelve years of his life, and especially the last five years... He
has
not only had much experience with President Smith, but he has
proved
himself true and faithful in all things committed to his charge,
until he
was called to hold the keys of the kingdom of God in all the world,
in
connection with the Twelve: was the first to receive his endowment,
from
under the hands of the Prophet and Patriarch, who have leaned upon
him in
connection with the Twelve, for years, to bear off this kingdom in
all
the world, in connection with the Twelve: was the first to receive
his
endowment, from under the hands of the Prophet and Patriarch, who
have
leaned upon him in connection with the Twelve, for years, to bear
off
this kingdom in all the world. (TIMES AND SEASONS, vol. 5 (January
1844-January 1, 1845), No. 20. Nauvoo, Illinois, Nov. 2, 1844.
Whole No.
103 699 - 700.)

No doubt, Brigham Young was privy to all of doctrines that Joseph Smith
secretly taught just prior to his death. Brigham Young in company with
Heber
C. Kimball and a few others were introduced to the secret teachings of
Joseph
Smith on Wednesday, May 4th 1842.
 Wednesday, 4. I spent the day in the upper part of the store, that
is in
my private office (so called because in that room I keep my sacred
writings, translate ancient records, and receive revelations) and
in my
general business office, or lodge room (that is where the Masonic
fraternity meet occasionally, for want of a better place) in
council with
General James Adams, of Springfield, Patriarch Hyrum Smith, Bishops
Newel
K. Whitney and George Miller, and President Brigham Young and
Elders
Heber C. Kimball and Willard Richards, instructing them in the
principles
and order of the Priesthood, attending to washings, anointings,
endowments and the communication of keys pertaining to the Aaronic
Priesthood, and so on to the highest order of the Melchisedek
Priesthood,
setting forth the order pertaining to the Ancient of Days, and all
those
plans and principles by which any one is enabled to secure the
fullness
of those blessings which have been prepared for the Church of the
First
Born, and come up and abide in the presence of the Eloheim in the
eternal
worlds. In this council was instituted the ancient order of things
for
the first time in these last days. And the communications I made to
this
council were of things spiritual, and to be received only by the I
spiritual minded: and there was nothing made known to these men but
what
will be made known to all the Saints of the last days, so soon as
they
are prepared to receive, and a proper place is prepared to
communicate
them, even to the weakest of the Saints; therefore let the Saints
be
diligent in building the Temple.... (Joseph Smith, HISTORY OF THE
CHURCH
OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS, 7 vols., introduction and
notes by
B. H. Roberts [Salt Lake City: The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day
Saints, 1932-1951], 5: 1 - 2.)

Brigham Young was faithful in echoing what Joseph Smith had taught and
didn't
consider himself an innovator. Joseph Smith taught,

... you have got to learn how to be Gods yourselves, and to be

kings and
priests to God, the same as all Gods have done before you, namely,
by
 going from one small degree to another, and from a small capacity
to a
great one; from grace to grace, from exaltation to exaltation ...
But it
will be a great while after you have passed through the veil before
you
will have learned them. (See below)

Brigham Young taught,

"[Those consigned to the terrestrial and telestial kingdoms will]

eventually have the privilege of proving themselves worthy and
advancing
to a celestial kingdom. But it would be a slow progress." (Aug 5,
1855
Quinn, Mormon Hierarchy. I, 752)

Thus it is likely that Brigham Young faithfully reflected what he had

been
taught by Joseph Smith regarding reincarnation.

In the presence of Orson Pratt, Brigham Young discussed how Jesus Christ
had a
body of flesh and bones before he was born of Mary.

"I heard brother Young say that Jesus had a body of flesh and
bones,
before he came [to earth and] he was born of the Virgin Mary, it
was so
contrary to every revelation given." [Brigham Young, Minutes of
Meeting
April 5th, 1860, Brigham Young Papers, LDS Archives]

Brigham Young also explained how Adam and Eve were brought from another
planet
to populate this world

Many of you, no doubt, have concluded that the doctrine of election

and
reprobation is true, and you do so with propriety, for it is true;
it is
a scriptural doctrine ... Mankind are here because they are the
offspring
of parents who were first brought here from another planet, and
power was
given them to propagate their species, and they were commanded to
multiply and replenish the earth. (Oct 16, 1859. Journal of
Discourses,
Vol 7, p 282-290)

President Young also indicated that it would be better live the gospel
in this
probation than to live ten thousand years in another existence.

We must live by principle; and if we do, we shall attain to

perfection--
 to being crowned with crowns of glory, immortality, and eternal
lives. I
would rather be purified here than to live ten thousand years to
attain
the same point in another existence. The man that enters into this
order
by the prompting of passion, and not with a view to honor God and
carry
out his purposes, the curse of God will rest upon him, and that
which he
seems to have will be taken from him and given to those that act
according to principle. Remember it. (Journal of Discourses, Vol.
9, pg.
38, Brigham Young)

Brigham Young described the recycling of the physical body.

The principle opposite to that of eternal increase from the

beginning,
leads down to hell; the person decreases, loses his knowledge,
tact,
talent, and ultimately, in a short period of time, is lost; he
returns to
his mother earth, his name is forgotten. But where, Oh! where is
his
spirit? I will not now take the time to follow his destiny; but
here,
strong language <could> be used, for when the Lord Jesus Christ
shall be
revealed, after the termination of the thousand years' rest, he
will
summon the armies of heaven for the conflict, he will come forth in
flaming fire, he will descend to execute the mandates of an
incensed God,
and, amid the thunderings of the wrath of Omnipotence, roll up the
heavens as a scroll, and destroy death, and him that has the power
of it.
The rebellious will be thrown back into their native element, there
to
remain myriads of years before their dust will again be revived,
before
they will be reorganized. (Journal of Discourses: Vol. 1, Brigham
Young
1853/02/27, pg. 118)

Finally, Brigham Young charged by Joseph Smith to formalize the

endowment
incorporated multiple probations into the ceremony. For instance, in
the
Nauvoo Temple Brigham Young laid his hands on Heber C. Kimball and
ordained
him to act as a Savior to a new world.

"[Brigham Young] Ordained him [Heber C. Kimball] to the Godhead,

and that
he would act as the Savior to a world or worlds." (Nauvoo Temple
Records
 for January 1846)

This is part of a long prayer which is summarized as follows:

[Brigham Young] Promised [Heber C. Kimball] wives, seed without

number,
be full partaker with Abraham, Isaac., and Jacob. The Godhead was a
different blessing from Godhood. [Some received only Godhood.]
Heber C.
Kimball then did the same to Brigham Young, i.e., ordained him to
The
Godhead. They in turn did it by proxy for Joseph and Hyrum Smith.
Other
saints [W.W. Phelps] were blessed to act in Trinities [or
Presidencies of
worlds].

Not only did Brigham Young believe that Jesus Christ had a body of flesh
and
bones prior to coming to this earth, he also believed that Adam had a
prior
mortal probation. Brigham Young incorporated his idea into the temple
endowment dialogue.

Lucifer: Well Adam, you have a new world.

Adam: A new world?
Lucifer: Yes, A NEW WORLD, PATTERNED AFTER THE OLD ONE WHERE WE USED TO
LIVE.
Adam: I know nothing of any other world.
Eve: I know these now. Thou art Lucifer, who was cast out of Father's
presence for rebellion.

Joseph E. Taylor

This same theme was echoed by the Apostle Joseph E. Taylor, in a lecture
given
at the Logan Temple, June 2, 1888 where he explained that Adam was a
Savior of
a world in a previous mortal probation.

All that Father Adam did upon this earth, from the time that he
took up
his abode in the Garden of Eden, was done for His posterity's sake
and
the success of His former mission as the Savior of a world, and
afterwards, or now, as the Father of a world only added to the
glory
which he already possessed. If, as the Savior of a world, he had
the
power to lay down his life and take it up again, therefore as the
Father
of a world which is altogether an advanced condition, we
necessarily
conclude that the grave was powerless to hold him after that
mission was
completed. (Des. Weekly, Dec. 29, 1888)
Hugh Nibley made some cryptic comments on this topic in a 1966 Southern
California address on the Dead Sea Scrolls. He he quoted the Apocryphal
notion of a topos or a place for a certain thing to be accomplished:

"before Christ came it was impossible to go from one topos to

another"
[Document quoted by Nibley]

Nibley further explained that a person who is sent to take charge of a

world
is called a Jeu. As Jeu's become Fathers in time they appoint Jeu's for
other
worlds who will in time become Fathers.

HEBER C. KIMBALL

Kimball Diary, 6, 7 June 1844. Beginning in 1842, selected some of

those
men and women closest to him to meet in a quorum or group where he
introduced temple ordinances and taught the order of prayer. This
group
served as a preparation for broader temple work, and after the
completion
of the Nauvoo Temple, as more members received endowments, this
limited
participation was expanded into a number of prayer circles. Such
groups
meeting in early Utah proved spiritually rewarding and provided
close
bonds of fellowship. During Joseph's lifetime, this select group
met
periodically to pray and receive instruction form the Prophet.
Those like
Heber C. Kimball, who had received those ordinances, had the right
to
call upon the Lord following the pattern that taught them. This
Heber
did. Participants in this group enjoyed a special feeling of power
and
access to. Meeting together they felt they could call down the
blessings
of heaven with authority. In this spirit it was suggested that the
quorum
meet to pray for a change in the weather, as Vilate recorded in her
first
letter. For further comments on prayer circles, D. Michael Quinn,
"Latter-day Saint Prayer Circles," Brigham Young University Studies
19
(Fall 1978):79-105. The Historians Corner, BYU Studies, vol. 19
(1978-1979), Number 2 - Winter 1979 .)

Heber C. Kimball, first counselor to Brigham Young, once remarked to

Wilford
Woodruff:

I believe in multiple probations. (Wilford Woodruff Journal)

Heber C. Kimball preached on September 27, 1857 that

If I do not live my religion, but turn away from the principles of

light
and life, my spirit will die ... Some men enquire, "Why?" Simply
because
they have dishonoured the spirit and bodies that God gave them;
therefore
God will make a desolation of those bodies and spirits, and he will
throw
them back into the earth; that is, that portion that belongs to the
earth
will go back there. And so it will be with our spirits: they will
go
back into the elements or space that they once occupied before they
came
here. (Sept 27, 1857. Journal of Discourses Vol. 5, p.271-277)

In a talk from the stand of the tabernacle in the presence of President

Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball explained how Joseph Smith taught that
we are
conducted from one probation to another probation upon this earth - that
is
from one dispensation to another.

Joseph always told us that we would have to pass by sentinels that

are
placed between us and our Father and God. Then, of course, we are
conducted along from this probation to other probations, or from
one
dispensation to another, by those who conducted those
dispensations.
(Journal of Discourses Vol. 6, p. 63)

Again in a talk from the stand of the tabernacle in the presence of

President
Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball explained that that we cannot obtain a
resurrected body until we train our spirits while in the mortal body in
this
probation (estate) or another.

If you do not cultivate yourselves, and cultivate your spirits in

this
state of existence, it is just as true as there is a God that
liveth, you
will have to go into another state of existence, and bring your
spirits
into subjection there. Now you may reflect upon it, you never will
obtain
your resurrected bodies, until you bring your spirits into
subjection. I
am not talking to this earthly house of mine, neither am I talking
to
your bodies, but I am speaking to your spirits. I am not talking
as to
people who are not in the house. Are not your spirits in the house?
Are
 not your bodies your houses, your tabernacles or temples, and
places for
your spirits? Look at it; reflect upon it. If you keep your spirits
trained according to the wisdom and fear of God, you will attain to
the
salvation of both body and spirit. I ask, then, if it is your
spirits
that must be brought into subjection? It is; and if you do not do
that in
these bodies, you will have to go into another estate to do it.
You have
got to train yourselves according to the law of God, or you will
never
obtain your resurrected bodies. Mark it! (Journal of Discourses:
Vol. 1,
Heber C. Kimball 1852/11/14, pg. 356)

Heber C. Kimball compared a mortal probation to "day" and suggested that

one
mortal probation follows another in the same way that one day follows
another.

What I do not to-day, when the sun goes down, I lay down to sleep,
which
is typical of death; and in the morning I rise and commence my work
where
I left it yesterday. That course is typical of the probations we
take.
But suppose that I do not improve my time today, I wake up tomorrow
and
find myself in the rear; and then, if I do not improve upon that
day, and
again lay down to sleep, on awaking, I find myself still in the
rear.
This day's work is typical of this probation, and the sleep of
every
night is typical of death, and rising in the morning is typical of
the
resurrection. [Telestial, Terrestrial, or Celestial, depending on
what
you earned.] They are days' labors, and it is for us to be faithful
today, tomorrow, and every day. (Journal of Discourses: Vol. 4,
Heber C.
Kimball, 1857/05/3, pg. 329)

I improved yesterday: I worked and made all the improvements I

could, and
did the best I could; but it came night, and I laid down to take a
nap,
which is typical of death. This morning I have risen up and again
commenced my labors; and I am going to improve today, and do better
than
I did yesterday. But in comes another night of sleep; I lay down,
which
is typical of death; and I rise in the morning, which is typical of
the
 resurrection, and I renew my labors. I have to begin where I left
off;
but you cannot realize but that you have to take one jump away
ahead,
when you come to leave your bodies and go into the spirit world.
That is
not so, for you will have to commence to hoe your row where you
left off.
(Journal of Discourses, Vol. 4, pg. 336, Heber C. Kimball)

Heber C. Kimball also discusses the law of restoration which states that
those
who shed innocent blood will be required to enter again into a mortal
existence.

"Will any man ever be redeemed upon any other principle than what
we are
redeemed upon? No. Men must abide the same law, or God Almighty
will
never redeem them. If they violate that law, they bring damnation
upon
themselves, and must suffer the consequences of it. Still, I
believe the
greater part of the inhabitants of the earth will be redeemed; yea,
all
will be finally redeemed, except those who have sinned against the
Holy
Ghost or shed innocent blood; and they never can be redeemed until
that
debt is paid. And I do not know any way for them to pay it, unless
they
are brought back again to a mortal existence, and pay the debt
where they
contracted it. God will make every man pay off the debt he
contracts; for
a restoration must take place, which has been spoken of by the
mouth of
all the holy Prophets since the world began. God will make every
man pay
off the debt he contracts; for a restoration must take place, which
has
been spoken of by the mouth of all the holy Prophets since the
world
began." (Journal of Discourses: Vol. 6, Heber C. Kimball, pg. 67)

Compare the necessity of returning to a mortal probation for murder with

the
requirement to return to a mortal probation for adultery as articulated
by
Joseph Smith to Joseph Robinson.

JOSEPH LEE ROBINSON

Joseph Lee Robinson recorded in his journal that Joseph Smith once
pondered
whether he may have committed adultery in a previous mortal probation.
 We also heard him [Joseph] say that God had revealed unto him that
any
man who ever committed adultery in either of his probations that
that man
could never be raised to the highest exaltation in the celestial
glory
and that he [Joseph] felt anxious with regard to himself and he
inquired
of the Lord and the Lord told him that he, Joseph, had never
committed
adultery. This saying of the Prophet astonished me very much. It
opened
up to me a very wide field of reflection. The idea that we had
passed
through probation prior to this and that we must have been married
and
given in marriage in those probations or there would be no
propriety in
making such an assertion and that there were several exaltations in
the
Celestial Kingdom of our God, the highest we supposed to be the
Godhead
and we conclude that there are several grades of exaltations in the
servants to the Gods. Be this as it may, this is what he said.
(History
of Joseph Lee Robinson, pg. 12, in Special Collections at the
Harold B.
Lee Library at Brigham Young University)

It has been suggested that Joseph Lee Robinson misunderstood Joseph

Smith when
he said "either of his probations" and what Joseph really said was "this
probation". If Joseph Lee Robinson was the only associate of Joseph
Smith
making the claim that Joseph Smith believed in reincarnation, this
argument
would have some validity. However, Joseph Lee Robinson is only one of
several
who make this claim. Therefore, it is unlikely that he misunderstood
Joseph.

ORSON PRATT

Orson Pratt proposes that if a soul has not proved themselves in this
probation before the winding up scene, that soul may be cast into
another
world and live out another probation.

In the resurrection, the meek of all ages and nations will be

restored to
that portion of the earth previously promised to them. And thus,
all the
different portions of the earth have been and will be disposed of
to the
lawful heirs; while those who cannot prove their heirship to be
legal, or
 who cannot prove that they have received any portion of the earth
by
promise, will be cast out into some other kingdom or world, where,
if
they ever get an inheritance, they will have to earn it by keeping
the
law of meekness during another probation. (October 6, 1853.
Journal of
Discourses Vol 1, p. 332-333)

CHARLES W. PENROSE

Charles W. Penrose defended the doctrine of multiple mortal probations

by
claiming that it was revealed to Joseph Smith.

There are different ideas about hell now-a-days. A few years ago
there
was only the one idea, which was that hell is a great, bottomless
pit
full of flaming fire and brimstone, into which the wicked are cast
never
to return, whilst the devils are continually stirring up the flames
for
the everlasting torment of the doomed. And this scene used to be
described by popular divines in the most hideous and shocking
manner.
People have recently modified their ideas concerning future
punishment,
and the change is greatly due to the teachings of the Elders of
this
Church, and the doctrines which have been set forth and published
as
revealed through the Prophet Joseph Smith. The controversy that is
now
being conducted by leading theological minds upon the subject of
probations, has been brought about through the effects upon the
public
mind of the preaching of the Elders of the doctrine revealed in the
very
beginning of the Church. You will find in the Doctrine and
Covenants
that God revealed to Joseph Smith as early as March 1830, that
"eternal
punishment is God's punishment." Because God is an eternal being.
His
laws are eternal, and there are penalties attached to all of them.
But it
does not follow that because a person may be banished into the
eternal
punishment it is intended that he shall stay there eternally.
(Journal of
Discourses Vol. 24, p. 82f, March 4th, 1883.)

THE DEMISE OF MULTIPLE MORTAL PROBATIONS

The doctrine of multiple probations was never accepted by the general

membership, by all the general authorities or even by all the intimates
of
Joseph Smith.

One of those taught about multiple mortal probations was William Law.
Connecting plural marriage with the Adam-God doctrine and multiple
mortal
probations, Law wrote sarcastically

There (in the Celestial Kingdom) you may shine like mighty Gods,
creating
worlds so fair. At least a world for every wife, that you take with
you
there. (William Law, 7 February 1844, Warsaw Message (Buckeye's
Lament
for More Wives)

On June 5, 1844, William Law and other disaffected members published

their own
paper, writing that in

Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith, and many of the official characters in

the
Church of Jesus Christ...have introduced...doctrines in the Church
such
as: a plurality of Gods above the God of this universe; and His
liability
to fall with all of His creations. (Nauvoo Expositor, June 5, 1844,
Vol
1: No 1, Resolution 2)

The Church currently only admits that Joseph Smith taught polygamy.

Nauvoo newspaper born on 7 June 1844 lived for only one issue, but
it had
far-reaching effects on the Church, culminating in the death of the
Prophet Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum. The Nauvoo Expositor
was the
product of some then recent apostates from the Church at Nauvoo,
who
claimed disenchantment with Joseph Smith's political views, the
practice
of polygamy, and other issues. The Historians Corner, BYU Studies,
vol.
19 (1978-1979), Number 2 - Winter 1979 244.)

Although most members of the Church believe that the Nauvoo Expositor is
a
"pack of lies", the truth is that most if not all of the allegations
made by
Law were later confirmed by Brigham Young. For instance, Brigham Young
declared

It was Joseph's doctrine that Adam was God... God comes to earth
and
partakes of the fruit. Joseph could not reveal what was revealed to
him.
 (Brigham Young Papers, Meeting of Quorum of Twelve, 4 April 1860)

Joseph Smith did not reveal his doctrines in a systematic way. For
instance,
William Clayton who was made privy to polygamy was not aware of the
doctrine
of multiple mortal probation.

"It was finally moved and carried viva voce [by word of mouth],
that the
doctrine of the Resurrection be the subject to commence with, and
the
following Brethren expressed their views in regard to it viz.
Charles
Smith, Jesse Turpin, George Mayer, James Park, David Wilkin, Edward
Stevenson, and Edward Bunker. The views of these Brethren seemed to
vary
materially on the subject, and there was very little or no light
manifested by any one. It appears that the great difference in the
views,
is in regard to what is commonly called the baby resurrection,
which idea
is, that instead of the bodies being raised out of the ground &c.
we
shall again be born of a woman, as we were when we came into this
world.
Brother James Park agreed very strongly in favor of this kind of
doctrine. This was a matter of astonishment to me, as I had never
before
heard of such a doctrine to understand it. (An Intimate Chronicle:
The
Journals Of William Clayton, pp 429-430 edited by George D. Smith)"

Wilford Woodruff also rejected the doctrine of multiple mortal

probations.
Orson F. Whitney who had heard President Snow explain that his sister
Eliza R.
Snow received reincarnation from Joseph Smith wrote how President
Wilford
Woodruff rejected the doctrine and expressed his disappointment.

This evening I heard that Pres. Woodruff, in a meeting at Manti, a

few
days ago, publicly declared that the doctrine of reincarnation,
that is
one spirit having several bodies, to be false; that he was Wilford
Woodruff and no one else, &c &c. Alright, bro. Woodruff, if you
really
said it, it is between you and the Lord. I believe it to be a true
doctrine, & have for the last [word cut out of entry] years."
[Orson F.
Whitney Diary, 6/3/1889, LDS Archives]

After the death of Brigham Young, Wilford Woodruff exclaimed,

Cease troubling yourselves about who God is; who Adam is, who
Christ is,
 who Jehovah is. For heaven's sake, let these things alone... .God
is God.
Christ is Christ. The Holy Ghost is the Holy Ghost... I say this
because
we are troubled every little while with inquiries from Elders
anxious to
know who God is, who Christ is, and who Adam is. (Brian H. Stuy,
ed.,
Collected Discourses, 5 vols. [Burbank, Calif., and Woodland Hills,
Ut.:
B.H.S. Publishing, 1987-1992], 4: .)

A corollary of multiple mortal probations, advancement from one degree

to
another was taught by George Q. Cannon.

There are different degrees of glory. Some attain to a more exalted

glory. They must help those who are lower to rise up to their
plane. Then
there is another degree below them, and they must labor to lift
those who
are lower than they, progressing from one degree of glory to
another,
without end, because there is no end to eternity." (Jan 22,1898 as
found
in Michael Quinn, Mormon Hierarchy, 799-800)

However, after the trial of a Bishop of the Bunkerville ward for

disbelieving
the Adam God doctrine, President Cannon and others had begun to
deemphasize
deep doctrines formerly taught publicly by Brigham Young and others.
George
Q. Cannon gave a talk before the first Sunday School conference entitled
"Things which Should not be Taught in Sunday School." In this talk
Cannon
says he thinks its not wise to advocate Brigham Young's Adam God
Doctrine,
Multiple Probations, and certain other teachings formerly taught from
the
stand. James Talmage presented the last vestige of these teachings in
the 1st
Edition of Articles of Faith in 1899.

Advancement from grade to grade within any kingdom, and from

kingdom to
kingdom, will be provided for." (James Talmage, Articles of Faith,
1st
edition)

This sentence was edited out in the 11th (1919) edition.

As to possible progress from one kingdom to another the scriptures

make
no positive affirmation." (James Talmage, Articles of Faith, 12th
edition)
The current church doctrine that is taught in Sunday School is that man
and
woman have only one probation and that once assigned to a kingdom, no
progress
to higher kingdom can be made. For instance, Elder Bruce R. McConkie's
explains that belief in God's progression is one of seven deadly
heresies.
("The Seven Deadly Heresies (BYU Speeches of the Year (1980): 74-80)

Although the LDS Church currently rejects reincarnation and multiple

mortal
probations, there is considerable evidence that Joseph Smith privately
taught
the doctrine to a select number of members living in Nauvoo who then
publicly
taught it from the pulpit.

PREVIOUS LIVES OF JOSEPH SMITH

JOSEPH, SON OF JACOB

It's quite possible that Joseph Smith's incarnations on the earth began
even
before the days of Adam and continued through each of the dispensations
(see
below). Hyrum Smith declared:

"There were prophets before Adam, and Joseph has the spirit and
power of
all the prophets." (Millenial Star Vol. 23:Pg 406)

Note that Hyrum indicated Joseph came in "the spirit and power" of all
the
prophets. This is exactly the same statement the angel made to
Zacharias
about his future son, John:

And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias (Greek
for
Elijah), to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the
disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people
prepared
for the Lord. (Luke 1:17)

What does it mean to come in the "spirit and power" of a previous

prophet?
Recall that Elijah the prophet was to come before glorification of
Jesus.

"Behold I will send you Elijah the prophet, before the coming of
the
great and dreadful day of the LORD (Hebrew: Jehovah)." (Mal. 4:5)

When Jesus was translated before the disciples, they recognized Jesus as
Jehovah, the God of the Old Testament.
 And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother,
and
bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, And was transfigured
before
them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white
as the
light. (Matthew 17:1-2)

However, if Jesus was Jehovah, the disciples wondered why didn't Elijah
come
first as was written in Malachi.

"And the disciples asked him, saying, 'Why then do the scribes say
that
Elijah must come first?'" (Matthew 17:10)

But Jesus answered that the words of Malachi would be fulfilled and in
fact
had been fulfilled.

'Elijah indeed is to come and will restore all things. But I say
to you
that Elijah has come already, and they did not know him, but did to
him
whatever they wished. So also shall the Son of Man suffer at their
hand.'" (Matthew 17:11-12)

So when did Elijah come? Suddenly the disciples remembered an earlier

statement of Jesus made of John while he was alive.

And as they departed, Jesus began to say unto the multitudes

concerning
John... For this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my
messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee.
Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath
not
risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is
least
in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. And from the days of
John
the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and
the
violent take it by force. For all the prophets and the law
prophesied
until John. And if ye will receive it, this is Elias (Greek for
Elijah),
which was for to come. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
(Matthew 11:7-15; see Mark 9)

However, no one understood (heard) what Jesus was saying because the
disciples
seeing Jesus glorified did not understand that Elijah had come until
Jesus
reminded them. But one reminded the disciples remembered.
 Then the disciples understood that he had spoken of John the
Baptist."
(Matt. 17:10-13)

If we take was Jesus said at face value on two occasions, John the
Baptist was
Elijah. That is, John came among the people with "the spirit and power
of
Elijah". This is a perfect description of reincarnation: the spirit
and
power. This is reincarnation - the reincarnation of the spirit. The
Bible
itself states that John the Baptist possessed the spirit that had
previously
lived in, and as, the man Elijah - not his physical being and memory,
but his
spirit.

Thus, Hyrum Smith's statement that his brother came "in the spirit and
power"
of the prophets suggests that Joseph Smith possessed the same spirit
that had
previously lived in the ancient prophets. Arguing against this
interpretation
is the fact Hyrum said "all" the ancient prophets, unless he meant all
the
dispensation heads of which there is evidence for Joseph sold into Egypt
and
Moses.

Could the spirit of Joseph sold into Egypt be reborn as Joseph the
prophet of
the restoration? Joseph of Egypt prophesied of Joseph Smith:

And thus prophesied Joseph, saying: Behold, that seer will the Lord
bless; and they that seek to destroy him shall be confounded; for
this
promise, which I have obtained of the Lord, of the fruit of my
loins,
shall be fulfilled. Behold, I am sure of the fulfilling of this
promise;
And his name shall be called after me; and it shall be after the
name of
his father. And he shall be like unto me; for the thing, which the
Lord
shall bring forth by his hand, by the power of the Lord shall bring
my
people unto salvation. (2 Nephi 3:14-15.)

Notice that Joseph Smith was to be "like" Joseph of Egypt. This was
noted by
Brigham Young who believed in reincarnation.

"Yet he (Joseph) will lay a plan to speculate as large as ancient

Joseph
did; he will have power to buy up all the rest of the world." (DHC
6:16)
Indeed, Joseph Smith came in the "spirit and power" of Joseph of Egypt.
Was
the Lord identifying Joseph Smith as Joseph of Egypt when he was told
his name
was Joseph?

"Thou art Joseph, and wast chosen to do the work of the Lord." (D&C
3:9)

Why would the Lord tell Joseph Smith he was Joseph Smith? Is it
possible that
the Lord was telling him he was the Joseph, Joseph son of Jacob? Is
that why
Joseph Smith meant when he said, "No man knows my history?"

MOSES

The Book of Mormon tells us that Joseph Smith is the one like Moses
mentioned
in D&C 103:15-16. (See II Nephi 3:6-17) He said his father in a blessing
"anointed my head, and sealed upon me the blessings of Moses, to lead
Israel
in he latter days, even as Moses lead them in the days of old." DHC
2:380
Could Joseph, son of Jacob have been reincarnated as Moses and then as
Joseph
Smith?

Previous Wives of Joseph Smith

Mary Elizabeth Rollins said:

"Joseph said I was his before I came here and he said all the
Devils in
hell should never get me from him." From JOSEPH SMITH, THE FIRST
MORMON
by Donna Hill. Page 351.

No doubt Joseph Smith believed that Eliza R. Snow was a previous wife as
he
also taught her reincarnation as noted above.

Future Lives of Joseph Smith

Many of the brethren were quite surprised that Joseph and Hyrum were
killed
because of certain things the Prophet told them. For instance, he said:

"I prophesy and bear record this morning that all the combined
powers of
earth and hell shall not and cannot overthrow or overcome this boy,
for I
have a promise from the eternal God." (DHC 5:554)

Because God had promised Joseph he would overcome all of his enemies he
was
very confident in expressing it. Joseph Smith exclaimed,
 "I feel like Paul, to glory in tribulation; for to this day has the
God
of my fathers delivered me out of them all, and will deliver me
from
henceforth, for behold, and lo, I shall triumph over all my
enemies, for
the Lord God hath spoken it." (D&C 127:2)

Joseph indicated that this overcoming all of our enemies is essential to

obtain salvation:

"Salvation is nothing more or less than to triumph over all our

enemies
and put them under our feet in this world, and a knowledge to
triumph
over all evil spirits in the world to come, then we are saved."
(DHC
5:387)

According to this then, Joseph was not saved for he did not triumph over
his
enemies "in this world", but they overcame him and took his life. As
noted
above, Brigham Young was one of those who expected greater things of
Joseph:

"Yet he (Joseph) will lay a plan to speculate as large as ancient

Joseph
did; he will have power to buy up all the rest of the world." (DHC
6:16)

Also the Lord said:

"But a small moment and thy voice shall be more terrible in the
midst of
thine enemies than the fierce lion." (D&C 122:4)

Joseph Smith was also promised that he would redeem Zion. (See D&C
105:26-27,37) He said he would be a witness to the whole world and then
the
end would come. DHC 6:363

Joseph's 1834 patriarchal blessing even makes this promise:

"Thou shalt hold the keys of this ministry, even the presidency of
this
church both in time and eternity...Thou shalt stand on Mount Zion
when
the tribes of Jacob come shouting from the North, and with thy
brethren,
the Sons of Ephraim, crown them in the name of Jesus Christ." OUR
LINEAGE
(Salt Lake City: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1933)

We can clearly see then, without quoting further, why the brethren did
not
expect Joseph to be overcome and killed by his enemies. It was even the
Lord's
intention that Joseph and Hyrum escape martyrdom for he said:

"I...will be with thee even unto the end of the world, and through
eternity...Behold, I have seen all your sacrifices, and will
forgive all
your sins; I have seen your sacrifices in obedience to that which I
have
told you. Go, therefore, and I will make a way for your escape, as
I
accepted the offering of Abraham of his son Isaac." (D&C 132:49-50)

Just as the Lord prepared the way for the saving of the physical life of
Isaac
so would the Lord have saved the life of Joseph, and, unknown to most,
God
fulfilled his part of this promise for the Lord did reveal to him a way
to
escape.

When all the forces of evil came crushing down on Joseph and Hyrum and
it
seemed as if there was no way to escape with their lives, the Lord did
give
Joseph a revelation and told him to cross the Missouri and go west.
However,
his friends called him a coward for doing so and upon hearing this from
a
letter sent by his wife he replied "If my life is worth nothing to my
friends
it is worth nothing to me."

This decision was his alone for neither God nor the heavens were allowed
to
interfere. They could only look on realizing the unalterable fate of his
perilous decision. Although either choice required great courage, his
love for
the saints compelled him to return to face martyrdom. The setback of his
premature death was anticipated, however, and all the promises
concerning him
will yet be fulfilled.

Joseph was once asking the Lord concerning the time of the second coming
of
Christ and received the answer:

"Joseph, my son, IF THOU LIVEST UNTIL THOU ART EIGHTY-FIVE YEARS

OLD,
thou shalt see the face of the Son of Man; therefore, let this
suffice,
and trouble me no more on this matter." (D&C 130:15)

This revelation led Joseph to later say:

"I prophesy in the name of the Lord God, and let it be written, the
Son
 of Man will not come in the clouds of heaven till I am eighty-five
years
old." (DHC 5:336)

If he would have lived to age eight-five as hoped he would have prepared

the
way so the Christ could have reappeared and the promise concerning the
building of the temple in Jackson County in his generation (D&C 84:4)
would
have been fulfilled. As it is the promise has been delayed because the
saints
wanted their prophet to prove he was a hero more than they wanted the
words of
eternal life.

All the promises made to Joseph shall be fulfilled for he will overcome
all
his enemies and will yet live in the flesh to the age of eighty-five and
see
the face of the Son of Man. He will not do it in an immortal resurrected
body,
but as a mortal walking among us again. If this is true, then indeed,
as W.W.
Phelps wrote:

"Millions shall know Brother Joseph again." (Praise to the Man.

LDS
Hymnal)

Parley P. Pratt was out of state when he heard of the Prophet's death.
He
couldn't understand why his life was taken before the Lord's promises
concerning Joseph were fulfilled. Wondering how he was going to explain
Joseph's death to the people when he returned to Nauvoo, he prayed:

"O Lord! In the name of Jesus Christ I pray thee, show me what
these
things mean, and what I shall say unto thy people? On a sudden the
Spirit
of God came upon me, and filled my heart with joy and gladness
indescribable; and which the spirit of revelation glowed in my
bosom with
as visible a warmth and gladness as if it were a fire. The Spirit
said
unto me: 'Lift up your head and rejoice; for behold! It is well
with my
servants Joseph and Hyrum. My servant Joseph still holds the keys
of my
kingdom in this dispensation, and he shall stand in due time on the
earth
in the flesh, and fulfill that to which he is appointed."
(Autobiography
of Parley P. Pratt; Page 333.)

In answer to this revelation given to Elder Pratt the average Latter-Day

Saint, without thinking twice, would merely say it has reference to
Joseph
Smith coming again in an immortal resurrected body, but an important
point he
forgets is that an immortal person never does the work of a mortal.
After all,
why did not Moroni translate the plates? It would have been more
convincing
perhaps, but it is the decree of God that man must work out his own
salvation
and resurrected beings do not interfere with that.

The Lord promised Parley P. Pratt that Joseph would again would stand
again on
the earth and fulfill that to which he was appointed. What was he
appointed to
do that he did not accomplish? We shall name nine things and point out
that
they do not fit the works of a resurrected being.

1. Joseph Smith was to achieve salvation by overcoming all of his

enemies on the earth. It would be an unfair advantage with no
victory,
and contrary to the laws of heaven, for a resurrected being of
great
power to fight against mere mortals. If he is to overcome his
enemies he
must return as a mortal and face them on even ground.

2. The Lord indicated that Joseph would live until he was eighty-
five
old. This he could only do as a mortal.

3. Brigham Young said Joseph Smith would be able to buy up the

world as
ancient Joseph did. Again, there would be no reason for a
resurrected
being to do this.

4. Joseph was promised that he would lead his people as Moses.

Moses was
a mortal so Joseph could not be like Moses if he was an immortal -
he
would be like Jehovah who was guiding Moses.

5. Joseph was promised he would be the one to redeem Zion. (See

D&C
105:26-27,37) The one who will do this is referred to as the
"marred"
servant. (See Isa 52:24 and III Nephi 20:44) Does it make sense
that
Joseph Smith would appear to lead the Saints to Zion in a
resurrected
immortal body that is also marred? The prophecy of the marred
servant
would have to concern a mortal man.

6. Joseph was also promised that he would restore all things. We

know
 that all things have not yet been restored. An example is the
golden
plates which were sealed. The Lord told Joseph:

"I am the Lord thy God, and gave unto thee, my servant Joseph,
an
appointment, and RESTORE ALL THINGS. Ask what ye will and it
shall
be given you according to my word...For I have conferred upon
you
the keys and power of the priesthood, wherein I restore all
things,
and make KNOWN UNTO YOU ALL THINGS in due time." (D&C 132:40
& 45)

7. One of the things Joseph was to restore was the fulness of the
record
of John:

"And John saw and bore record of the fulness of my glory, and
the
fulness of John's record is hereafter to be revealed...And it
shall
come to pass, that if you are faithful you shall receive the
fulness
of the record of John." D&C 93:6&18

Joseph Smith was faithful wasn't he? Then where is the fulness of
the
record of John? Obviously this can only be fulfilled in a future
life.

8. Joseph is to reveal all mysteries "until"the Lord comes:

"And I have given unto him the keys of the mystery of those
things
which were from the foundation of the world, AND THE THINGS
WHICH
SHALL COME FROM THIS TIME UNTIL THE TIME OF MY COMING, if he
abide
in me." D&C 35:18 Also see DHC 2:32

9. Joseph Smith is to be the "One Mighty and Strong" and "Set in

order
the house of God".

Let us expand this final point and quote the reference concerning this
Coming
One, for it is the most controversial writing in all the Standard Works,
misunderstood by orthodox and fundamentalist Mormon alike.

"And it shall come to pass that I, the Lord God, will send one
mighty and
strong, holding the scepter of power in his hand, clothed with
light for
a covering, whose mouth shall utter words, eternal words; while
his
 bowels shall be a fountain of truth to set in order the house of
GOd, to
arrange by lot the inheritances of the saints whose names are
found, and
the names of their fathers, and of their children, enrolled in the
book
of the law of God; While that man who was called of God, and
appointed,
that putteth forth his hand to steady the ark of God, shall fall
by the
shaft of death, like as a tree that is smitten by a vivid shaft of
lightening...These things I say not of myself; therefore, as the
Lord
speaketh, he will also fulfil." D&C 85:7-8,10

Some have suggested that Edward Partridge, the first bishop of the
church, was
bungling things up, and the Lord was thinking of sending One Mighty and
Strong
to straighten him out, but Partridge repented and thus the prophesied
person
did not need to come. However, this warning was not to Edward
Partridge.
Oliver Cowdery stated:

"Brother Joseph says that the item in his letter (section 85) that
says
that the man that is called etc. and puts forth his hand to steady
the
arc of God, does not mean that anyone had at the time, but was
given for
a caution to those in high standing to be ware, lest they should
fall by
the shaft of death." (THE REVELATIONS OF JOSEPH SMITH by Lyndon W.
Cook;
Page 179; Published By Deseret Book)

Furthermore, the prophecy pertains to the redemption of Zion which has

not yet
occurred and could not have been fulfilled in Joseph's day. In addition
we
have a second witness to the Coming One in Isaiah:

"Behold, the Lord hath a MIGHTY AND STRONG ONE, which as a tempest
of
hail and a destroying storm, as a flood of mighty waters
overflowing,
shall cast down to the earth with the hand. The crown of pride,
the
drunkards of Ephriam, shall be trodden under foot...The priest and
the
prophet have erred through strong drink (doctrine), they are
swallowed
up of wine, (knowledge); they are out of the way; they err in
vision,
they stumble in judgement." (Isa 28:2-3, 7)
Since the One Mighty and Strong will set the house of God in order, then
that
must mean that it will be out of order. The Prophet said he planned "to
organize the Church in its PROPER ORDER as soon as the (Nauvoo) temple
is
completed." DHC 4:604 Unfortunately, he was killed before the temple
was
completed so he never had a change to set the church in order as he had
hoped,
and no one since that time has claimed to have had any revelation
concerning
the setting in order.

Who is this One Mighty and Strong? Some think it will be Joseph Smith
because
he said the revelation 'often times...maketh my bones to quake..." D&C
85:6.
But a more conclusive proof is found in another revelation which tells
us he
will spend numerous lifetimes setting the church and kingdom in order.

"and this shall be your business and mission ALL YOUR LIVES, to
preside
in council, AND SET IN ORDER ALL THE AFFAIRS OF THIS CHURCH AND
KINGDOM."
D&C 90:16

Some believe that Joseph will come as a resurrected and glorified

personage
because we are told the One Mighty and Strong will be "clothed with
light for
a covering". D&C 85:7 But they do not understand that all men have some
sort
of light for a covering for we are all surrounded with a colorful aura
which
can be seen with sensitive eyes. Also, saints often noticed a light that
surrounded Joseph when he was speaking by inspiration. There were those
who
said his face sometimes glowed as if there were a searchlight in his
head.
Thus Joseph could be a mortal with light for a covering and will also
have the
"scepter of power" which will be a rod like unto that of Moses.

Joseph Smith was aware that this was not his last life on the earth for
in
speaking to the Nauvoo Legion he said, June 22, 1844 he said:

"You have faithfully performed your duty, in preserving the lives

of the
people as well as mine. You shall be called the first Elders of
this
church...And your mission will be to the nations of the earth to
preach
the gospel, and you will gather many people to the fastness of the
Rocky
Mountains, and many of those who will come in under your ministry
 because of their learning will seek for position and they will
gain
eminence over you, and you will walk in low places unnoticed. Yet
you
will know all that transpires in your midst. Those who are your
friends
are my friends and I promise you when I come again I will lead you
forth, so that where I am you shall be with me." (LIFE STORY OF
WANDLES
MACE, By Himself; Pages 131-132)

The last discourse that Joseph Smith delivered in Nauvoo on the top of a
frame
building close to the Nauvoo house. Joseph Smith was killed five days
later
in the Carthage jail on Tuesday, June 27, 1844.

Like Elijah came as John the Baptist, the evidence suggests that Joseph
Smith
will come again, as he said, to complete his mission.

[i]

Main Entry: reúinúcarúnaútion

Pronunciation: "rE-(")in-(")k„r-'nA-sh&n
Function: noun
Date: 1858
1 a : the action of reincarnating : the state of being reincarnated b :
rebirth in new bodies or forms of life; especially : a rebirth of a soul
in a
new human body
2 : a fresh embodiment

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