Joseph Smith Research Paper

Joseph Smith Jr., born to Joseph and Lacy Mack Smith, started The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or LDS Church. Joseph Smith was born of December 23 of 1805. When Joseph Smith was a young teenager, he was questioning what church he should join. He came across James 1:5 in the Bible, which says, “if any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you”. One day, Joseph Smith went into the woods to pray for guidance on which church he should join. That is when Smith had his first vision. He was first visited by who he claimed to be Jesus Christ and God. They told Joseph Smith not to join any of the churches (PBS.org). According to Mormonism 101 written by Bill

It was not until 1827, when Joseph Smith discovered the gold plates. To translate these gold plates, Joseph Smith would use the urim and thrum to translate the plates. The urim and thrum were instruments prepared by God to translate the gold plates. Joseph Smith had three witnesses in his translating of gold plates. No one other than Joseph Smith was allowed to actually see the plates. Smith’s first witness was Oliver Cowdery, who would write down what Joseph Smith translated. His second witness was Martin Harris, who funded Joseph Smith. His last witness was David Whitmer, who provided Joseph Smith with a place to translate the plates (History.com).

In March of 1830, the translation of the gold plates was published to what we know now as the “Book of Mormon”. It was later on that same year, on April 6, when Joseph Smith officially started The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. On June 27, 1844 Joseph Smith, along with his brother Hyrum, was murdered. Soon after Brigham Young, Joseph Smith’s successor steps up and takes leadership of the church. Young took on a journey out west to find “religious freedom” (History.com). Young settled in Salt Lake, Utah were the LDS church has grown