Recommendation for Orson Hyde, 6 April 1840
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Source Note
JS, Recommendation, for , [], Hancock Co., IL, 6 Apr. 1840. Featured version published in Times and Seasons, Apr. 1840, 86–87. For more complete source information, see the source note for Letter to Isaac Galland, 22 Mar. 1839.
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Historical Introduction
In connection with an early April 1840 general of the in , Illinois, JS and prepared a recommendation for on 6 April 1840. Pursuant to a blessing Hyde received from JS around 1832 or 1833, as well as to a March 1840 vision of his own, Hyde informed the April conference that he intended to “visit the Jews in , , , and then . . . Constantinople and the Holy Land.” The conference gave him this recommendation, likely prepared in the evening after the conference adjourned for the day.The recommendation reflected concepts of early Jewish Zionism, which was gaining strength in the and Europe. By the nineteenth century, social, economic, and political factors had caused Jewish communities to disperse throughout the world, with prominent diaspora groups relocating throughout the Near East, Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas. Noting the dispersed condition of the Jewish populace, prominent Jewish leaders in Europe and the United States began pushing for the community to gather to a single location. The suggested gathering places included Palestine, but leaders also recommended other sites. For instance, American Jew Mordecai Noah suggested Grand Island, New York (near ), as a temporary gathering spot until circumstances allowed a return to . Various governments and millenarian Christians likewise advocated the Jewish resettlement of Palestine. Great Britain established a consulate in Jerusalem in 1838 to assist Palestinian Jews, and several British churches made “the cause of Israel” a part of their religious efforts. Numerous American Christians supported a proto-Zionist gathering of the Jews, viewing the event as an essential precursor to Christ’s return.Enthusiasm to return to Egyptian-controlled Palestine increased throughout the 1830s, when the Egyptian leader Muhammad (Mehmet) Ali Pasha began encouraging European Jews to settle in and made provisions for the establishment of European consulates in the city. Growing anti-Semitism in Europe, as well as expectations of the Messiah’s appearance, motivated a small number of Jews to relocate to Palestine during the 1830s. Although prominent, such movements did not represent mainstream Jewish sentiments during the period. The vast majority of the world’s Jews opted either to remain in their native countries or to immigrate to the major metropolitan centers of Europe and the . ’s mission therefore occurred in the context of a growing movement on the part of both Jews and Christians to restore the Jews to their ancestral homeland.Believing that the Jewish gathering was a sign of the approaching Millennium, Latter-day Saints kept apprised of efforts to gather the Jews to Palestine, occasionally mentioning such broader movements in the church newspaper Times and Seasons. This interest stemmed from declarations in the Book of Mormon and in several early revelations about “the restoration of the Jews” and their return to in the last days. Like other Christians, early Latter-day Saints saw the Jews’ return to Jerusalem as a necessary harbinger of Christ’s second coming and the beginning of the Millennium. An 1836 newspaper article in the Ohio Free Press highlighted the importance of this idea. Attempting to summarize the core doctrines and beliefs of church members, the article noted the Latter-day Saint belief that the Jews would “be gathered from all parts of the world, into the ancient land of promise” prior to the Second Coming. By the late 1830s, some Saints believed that the time had come for the Jews’ return to Palestine. For example, while incarcerated at , Missouri, in 1838 and 1839, wrote, “We are authorized to say to all people, that the time is at hand for the restoration of the Jews and all the remnants of Israel to their own land, for the rebuilding of , . . . and when the remnant has re-turned and Jerusalem is rebuilt, behold the Messiah will come with all his Saints.”Like , believed in the importance of these events, and several of his early experiences convinced him that he should play a role in the prophesied Jewish gathering to Palestine. Shortly after Hyde joined the church, JS blessed Hyde that he would “yet go to the city of ” and “greatly facilitate” the gathering of the Jews. That promise was reinforced when Hyde was an apostle in 1835. Echoing early revelations that made the latter-day apostles responsible for the gathering, Hyde’s ordination blessing predicted that he would minister “both to Jew & Gentile” in “all nations, [and] kingdoms.” Finally, Hyde’s March 1840 vision specifically directed him to visit , , Constantinople, and , each a major center of Jewish gathering and thought in 1840. When Hyde addressed the April 1840 conference, he did so with the conviction that this mission to Jerusalem would assist with the prophesied gathering of the Jews and therefore was a vital part of his apostolic calling. To aid in his mission, Hyde was directed to carry with him “proper credentials” from the Saints and from the governor of . This recommendation encapsulated Hyde’s credentials from the church.Unlike other letters of recommendation or produced for outgoing missionaries—which typically stated the missionary’s authority and declared that the missionary was in good standing with the church—the recommendation for explained at length Hyde’s mission and why it was theologically justified. Addressed to “all people unto whom these presents shall come,” the recommendation proclaimed that the time had come for the Jews to return to to prepare for the Messiah’s coming and explained that Hyde would serve as a kind of ambassador to gather facts about the Jewish community and develop relationships with Jewish leaders in Europe and the Near East. He would then publish his observations of Jerusalem and contemporary Judaism for the broader American public.The original recommendation prepared by JS and is not extant. It was published in the Times and Seasons with an accompanying note from stating that had also been “duly appointed by said conference to accompany me in this mission; and to receive the same credentials.” Hyde apparently carried a copy of the recommendation with him on his mission. Hyde also received letters of recommendation from governor and Illinois secretary of state Alexander Pope Field before departing the state. Prior to going to Europe, Hyde drew upon these recommendations to solicit financial assistance from “professing christians” who felt “a deep anxiety for the fulfillment of the prophecies in the restoration of the Jews to the land of their fathers.” He also used the recommendations during his mission in his generally unsuccessful attempts to secure audiences with prominent government and Jewish leaders.
Footnotes
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3
Haim Hillel Ben-Sasson, “History,” and Haïm Z’ew Hirshchberg, “Israel, Land of: History,” in Encyclopaedia Judaica, 9:239; 10:178.
Encyclopedia Judaica. 16 vols. New York: Macmillan, 1971–1972.
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4
Rock, Haven of Liberty, 223; Rovner, In the Shadow of Zion, 15–16, 37. Although they did not always agree with his opinions, Latter-day Saints occasionally discussed Noah and reprinted articles from his newspaper, the New York Star, in the Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate and the Times and Seasons. (William W. Phelps, “Thou Shalt Not Lie,” LDS Messenger and Advocate, Dec. 1835, 2:230–233; “The Book of Jasher,” Times and Seasons, June 1840, 1:127.)
Rock, Howard B. Haven of Liberty: New York Jews in the New World, 1654–1865. New York: New York University Press, 2012.
Rovner, Adam. In the Shadow of Zion: Promised Lands before Israel. New York: New York University Press, 2014.
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.
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5
See Bonar and M’Cheyne, Narrative of a Mission of Inquiry to the Jews, 149, 163, 520; and Ayerst, Jews of the Nineteenth Century, 212–213.
Bonar, Andrew A., and Robert Murray M’Cheyne. A Narrative of a Mission of Inquiry to the Jews from the Church of Scotland in 1839. Philadelphia: Presbyterian Board of Publication, 1845.
Ayerst, W. The Jews of the Nineteenth Century: A Collection of Essays, Reviews, and Historical Notices Originally Published in the “Jewish Intelligence.” London: B. Wertheim, 1848.
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6
See, for example, “Restoration of the Jews,” Christian Observer, 10 Sept. 1840, 145; “Missionary to the Jews,” New York Evangelist, 24 July 1830, 67; and “The Jews—the Prophecies—Palestine,” Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily Courier, 22 May 1839, [2].
Christian Observer. Philadelphia. 1840–1861.
New York Evangelist. New York City. 1830–1831.
Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily Courier. Philadelphia. 1834–1841.
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7
Halper, “On the Way: The Transition of Jerusalem from a Ritual to Colonial City,” 11–12. Palestine was technically part of the Ottoman Empire during the 1830s but was governed by Egypt’s ruler, Muhammad (Mehmet) Ali Pasha, the semiautonomous monarch of Egypt.
Halper, Jeff. “On the Way: The Transition of Jerusalem from a Ritual to Colonial City (1800–1917).” Urban Anthropology 13, no. 1 (Spring 1984): 1–32.
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8
Bonar and M’Cheyne, Narrative of a Mission of Inquiry to the Jews, 164–165.
Bonar, Andrew A., and Robert Murray M’Cheyne. A Narrative of a Mission of Inquiry to the Jews from the Church of Scotland in 1839. Philadelphia: Presbyterian Board of Publication, 1845.
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9
Sachar, History of the Jews, 249–250; Diner, Time for Gathering, 56–57.
Sachar, Abram Leon. A History of the Jews. 2nd ed. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1946.
Diner, Hasia R. A Time for Gathering: The Second Migration, 1820–1880. The Jewish People in America 2. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1992.
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10
That such information was circulating around the United States, including in Commerce, is evident from the July 1840 issue of the Times and Seasons, which reprinted an article about “a very extraordinary ‘Circular,’ issued by the Jews now residing at Jerusalem, and addressed to all the descendants of Abraham to the uttermost ends of the earth.” The circular recounted the efforts of Jews in Jerusalem to rebuild the city’s synagogues and other ancient Jewish structures and then invited other Jews to contribute to the effort. (“A Voice from the Holy City,” Times and Seasons, Aug. 1840, 1:157–159; see also “Restoration of the Jews,” Times and Seasons, 1 Dec. 1840, 2:232; and “The Jews,” Times and Seasons, 15 Feb. 1842, 3:691–693.)
Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.
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11
See, for example, Book of Mormon, 1837 ed., 40, 525–526, 556–557 [1 Nephi 15:19–20; 3 Nephi 20:32–34, 46; Mormon 5:14]; Minutes and Prayer of Dedication, 27 Mar. 1836 [D&C 109:62–64]; and Revelation, 3 Nov. 1831 [D&C 133:13].
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12
See Elias Higbee and Parley P. Pratt, “An Address,” Times and Seasons, Mar. 1840, 1:69.
Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.
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13
Charles Olcott, “Latter Day Saints,” LDS Messenger and Advocate, May 1836, 2:315.
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
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15
[Rigdon], Appeal to the American People, 2nd ed., iii. There is no extant copy of the actual blessing. In 1840 Hyde stated that the blessing was given “something near eight years ago,” suggesting that it occurred sometime around 1832. Hyde was in the eastern United States on a mission from 1 February through 22 December 1832. Accordingly, if the blessing was given in that year, it occurred either in January or in late December. (Hyde, Journal, Feb.–Dec. 1832.)
Hyde, Orson. Journal, Feb. 1832–Mar. 1833. CHL. MS 1386.
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18
See, for example, Recommendation for Edward Partridge and Isaac Morley, 1 June 1835; Recommendation for Lyman Wight, 4 Apr. 1836; and Recommendation for Oliver Granger, 1 Nov. 1839.
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19
Orson Hyde, Notice, Times and Seasons, Apr. 1840, 1:87. The certificate was also reprinted in two pamphlets. ([Rigdon], Appeal to the American People, 2nd ed., v–vi; Hyde, Voice from Jerusalem, iv–v.)
Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.
Hyde, Orson. A Voice from Jerusalem, or a Sketch of the Travels and Ministry of Elder Orson Hyde, Missionary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, to Germany, Constantinople, and Jerusalem. Liverpool: P. P. Pratt, 1842.
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20
Hyde, Voice from Jerusalem, v.
Hyde, Orson. A Voice from Jerusalem, or a Sketch of the Travels and Ministry of Elder Orson Hyde, Missionary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, to Germany, Constantinople, and Jerusalem. Liverpool: P. P. Pratt, 1842.
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22
“Letter from Elder O. Hyde,” Times and Seasons, 1 Oct. 1841, 2:551–254; Hyde, Voice from Jerusalem, 7–11. Hyde met with a rabbi in Rotterdam in the Netherlands, but language barriers prohibited any real interchange between the two. (“Letter from Elder Hyde,” Times and Seasons, 15 Oct. 1841, 2:570–573.)
Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.
Hyde, Orson. A Voice from Jerusalem, or a Sketch of the Travels and Ministry of Elder Orson Hyde, Missionary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, to Germany, Constantinople, and Jerusalem. Liverpool: P. P. Pratt, 1842.
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