The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, has been around for almost two centuries. It has ebbed and fluctuated in such a predictably adaptive manner throughout it's relatively short life in the religious realm. This Church has a very sordid past, which it does a very good job of teaching for itself, whether the history is slanted or not, is yours to decide. Join me on a journey through the history of the LDS Church through the eyes of the people that were actually there. We will learn about the founding members, where the practices came from, where the Book of Mormon (Mormon Bible) came from, and most importantly, we will examine Joseph Smith in every aspect possibly available to us today.
On this episode, we begin with a letter Emma Smith wrote to Governor Thomas Carlin reasoning and pleading for exoneration of her husband. Then we get into the complicated and controversial nature of a letter Joseph Smith wrote to his old friends, the Whitney family. We discuss the polygamous marriage of Sarah Ann Whitney to Joseph Smith in July 1842 and how it provides context for the letter to the entire Whitney family.