Joseph Smith

Joseph Smith, Jr.

Joseph Smith, Jr. (December 23, 1805 – June 27, 1844) was an American religious leader. He started the Latter Day Saint movement (also called Mormonism). Latter Day Saints think that Smith was a prophet.

Book of Mormon

According to Joseph Smith's own story, when he was 17 years old, he was visited by an angel named Moroni . Moroni told him about a really old book written upon Golden Plates. It was buried in a hill. A few years later, Joseph says that he received those plates and translated them into the book that today is call The Book of Mormon. He instructed a man named Martin Harris to write down the words that he read out of his hat. He claimed that he would put seer stones into the hat with the golden plates and the letters would pop out at him and change to English. Harris took home the pages and told his wife all about what had happened. His wife did not believe him and told him to test Joseph the next day. Marvin went to Joseph the next day and said he had lost the pages but would be willing to recopy them. This way if Joseph was lying, the new book would be different. Joseph said he needed to pray alone. When he returned he informed Marvin that God was very angry at him and would never let him translate from that plate again. Instead he had to translate from another plate which nobody but Joseph was allowed to see. Joseph claimed that this one had the same story but was worded different. From this translation, the Book of Mormon was written.

Mormon Church

On April 6, 1830, he started The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is often called the Mormon Church. Joseph Smith said that God wanted him to be a prophet and teach other people the things that he learned from God. Millions of people joined this church, which still exists today.

Joseph Smith taught some things that some people did not like. He said that other churches were only partly true. He also said that men could have more than one wife.

Death

On June 7, 1844, some people who were upset with Smith published a newspaper in Nauvoo, Illinois called the Nauvoo Expositor This newspaper was filled with bad things being said about Smith, such as how some men claimed that Smith tried to take their wives. Smith had the printing press that made the newspaper destroyed, and had the city declare martial law. Smith was arrested for trying to start a riot, and was put in jail in Carthage, Illinois as he waited for his trial to start. On June 27, a group of angry men entered the jail and killed Smith and his brother, Hyrum.