Today in Mormon History - May 24

[TodayInMormonHistory]

On this day in Mormon History
http://TodayInMormonHistory.com/

-- 190 years ago today - May 24, 1836 --

Patriarchal Blessing of Abner Scovel given by Joseph Smith, Sr. ... The Lord will bless thee on thy journey to the land of Zion. Thou must respect the sabbath on thy way by calling together thy family for prayer and by supplicating the throne of grace for blessings. Thou wilt assist in the redemption of Zion and succeed if thou art faithful. ... In passing from place to place no winds nor waves shall stop thee. Thou shalt stand on mount Zion with the one hundred and forty four thousand (1)
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[Wilford Woodruff]
"Travled to Mr Joseph Ash & found the family shaken in their faith three of which were members of the Church. They were shaken by the conduct of Br John Jackson Who was a Teacher in the church but had denied the faith & now become hostile. From thence to Br Petty. From thence to John Jacksons house. He was absent. Found his wife Sister Jackson turning from the faith & desireing to leeve the church. Walked from thence to Br Howard Williams. He had lost faith & desired to leav the church. His wife Sister Williams Also Sister Nancy Wood both were unbelieving & a prospect of their leaving the church & this by the influence of John Jackson."

"We then returned to Mr Jacksons. Had an interview with him. He denied all his former faith & pretentions. He raged much. Was filled with the spirit of anger wrath <and the destroyer>. He rejected our testimony <and denied the revelations of Christ>."

"We left his house at 10 oclock at night & went to a stream of Pure water & clensed our hands & feet & testified against him that our garments might be clear of his blood. We then walked to Br Petty's & spent the night." (2)
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-- 185 years ago today - May 24, 1841 --

The First Presidency calls on all Saints to gather to Hancock County, Ill., or Lee County, Iowa. All stakes outside these areas are discontinued. (3)
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-- 150 years ago today - May 24, 1876 --

Patriarchal Blessing of James Henry Martineau given by Henry Lunt ... Thou wilt live to see the face of thy Savior, and the holy angels will administer unto thee, and will reveal to thee the genealogy of many of thy forefathers, which to thee are unknown. Thou shalt live until thou art satisfied with life, and inasmuch as thou wilt exercise faith thou shalt not taste of death, but be quickened and changed in the twinkling of an eye, and caught up to meet our Savior when he shall come in his glory. ... Thy guardian angels have charge concerning thee. ... (4)
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-- 140 years ago today - May 24th, 1886 --
[Lorenzo Snow to Governer West]
"Utah Penitentiary

May 24, 1886 To His Excellency Caleb W. West

.... We conscientiously believe in the doctrine of plural marriage, and have practiced it from a firm conviction of its being a divine requirement.

Of the forty nine Elders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints now imprisoned in this Penitentiary for alleged violations of the Edmunds law all but four had plural wives from its passage to thirty five years prior to its passage. We were united to our wives for time and eternity by the most sacred covenants, and in many instances numerous children have been born as a result of our union, who are endeared to us by the strongest parental ties.

... Had you offered us unconditional amnesty, it would have been gladly accepted, but dearly as we prize the great boon of liberty, we cannot afford to obtain it by proving untrue to our conscience, our religion, and our God....

As witness our hands,

Lorenzo Snow" (5)
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-- 120 years ago today - May 24, 1906 --
[Carl Badger]
"The Senator [i.e., Reed Smoot] says he thinks nothing was said about the reasons for the resignations of T. & C. [John W. Taylor and Matthias F. Cowley] because it was hoped some day to forgive them and take them back into the quorum." (6)
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A Deseret Evening News editorial argues against the frequent requests to remove section 132 from the D&C. This indicates how deeply post-Manifesto polygamy has alienated church members who often refer to themselves as "modern Mormons." (7)
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-- 100 years ago today - May 24, 1926 --
[Heber J. Grant]
"Bishop Nicholas G. Smith called and we had a conversation with him regarding a brother in South Africa who claims he has no negro blood in his veins wishes the priesthood. Brother Smith feels sure that this man is a negro. We concluded to wait for the return of Brother Sessions, the present president of the South African Mission, who is on his way home, before rendering a decision." (8)
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-- 65 years ago today - May 24, 1961 --

[Ernest Wilkinson] "Presided at devotional, at which I introduced Elder Ezra Taft Benson. He gave a fine talk. It is apparent, however, it is very difficult for him to divorce himself from the active politics in which he has been engaged, and get into his work again as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve. While I agreed with every word that he said, I suspect there were some Democrats who did not, and he took one-third of his time talking on current political problems." (9)
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1 - Patriarchal Blessing Book 1:56, quoted in Early Patriarchal Blessings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Joseph Smith Sr. (Author), H. Michael Marquardt (Editor), http://amzn.to/rCBHVe
2 - Wilford Woodruff's Journal: 1833-1898 Typescript, Volumes 1-9, Edited by Scott G. Kenney, Signature Books 1993, http://amzn.to/newmormonstudies
3 - Conkling, Christopher J., Joseph Smith Chronology
4 - Patriarchal Blessings
5 - Abraham H. Cannon Journal Excerpts, http://www.amazon.com/Apostles-Record-Journals-Abraham-1889-1896/dp/B000MFD1K4
6 - Carl A. Badger, Diary, as quoted in Minutes of the Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1835-1951, Electronic Edition, 2015
7 - The Mormon Hierarchy - Extensions of Power by D. Michael Quinn, [New Mormon History database (http://bit.ly/NMHdatabase)]
8 - The Diaries of Heber J. Grant, 1880-1945, Abridged, Digital Edition Salt Lake City, Utah, 2015
9 - Ernest L. Wilkinson diary as referenced in Gregory A. Prince and Wm. Robert Write, David O. McKay and the Rise of Modern Mormonism. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press (2005)