“Thou Shalt…Offer Up Thy Sacraments upon My Holy Day” D&C 87-92

Keywords

early missionary work, Joseph Smith revelations, Missouri church expansion

Abstract

From June 3 to June 6, 1831 ((This conference had been convened based on revelation given to Joseph Smith in February 1831 and is now found in Section 44 of the Doctrine & Covenants.)) the fourth conference of the Church was held in a log school house on the property of Isaac Morely in Kirtland, Ohio.  Right after this conference Joseph Smith received a revelation ((This revelation is found in Section 52 of the Doctrine & Covenants.)) to send forth missionaries throughout the Western States (what was then the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Missouri) preaching the gospel and building up congregations unto the Lord.  The elders were assigned to labor in pairs as they journeyed to “the borders of the Lamanites” on the western end of Missouri. ((The land of Missouri marked the furthest western border of the United States at that time.  What lay beyond was the Indian territory which had been the site of the first organized mission of the Church during the winter of 1831.  Parley P. Pratt, Ziba Peterson, Oliver Cowdery and Peter Whitmer were the four missionaries so designated by revelation (D&C 30 & 32) to preach the gospel among the Lamanites.  For a fascinating account of their journey and success see The Autobiography of Parley P. Pratt, Revised and Enhanced Edition, edited by Scot Facer Proctor & Maurine Jensen Proctor (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2000), chapters 6-8.)) By revelation, the Lord indicated that the elders were to hold a conference once they arrived in the land of Missouri.

Original Publication Citation

“Thou Shalt…Offer Up Thy Sacraments upon My Holy Day: D&C 87-92.” Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship. 2014.

Document Type

Peer-Reviewed Article

Publication Date

2014

Publisher

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

Language

English

College

Marriott School of Business

Department

Marketing

University Standing at Time of Publication

Associate Professor

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