Minutes, 28 April 1838, as Reported by Ebenezer Robinson
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Source Note
Zion high council, Minutes, , Caldwell Co., MO, 28 Apr. 1838. Featured version copied [between 1 Oct. 1842 and 14 Sept. 1843] in Minute Book 2, pp. 137–140, 157–159; CHL; handwriting of . For more complete source information, see the source note for Minute Book 2.
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Historical Introduction
On 28 April 1838, JS participated in the trial of , which the conducted in , Missouri. Information about the case was captured in the trial’s official minutes, which were kept by high council clerk , and in an account that included in JS’s “Scriptory Book.” Both documents are presented here.was the presiding in the at the settlement at , about eight miles east of . One of the members living there was . She had moved from to in 1837 to settle with the Latter-day Saints, with the expectation that her husband would soon join her. When her husband did not arrive within a few months, she asked Lyon “to inquire of the Lord concerning my husband and what was the cause of his not coming.” Sometime later, the recently widowed Lyon told her he had received a revelation that her husband had died. On another occasion, Lyon told Jackson of a vision in which he saw her as his wife. Jackson initially expressed doubt about the validity of Lyon’s vision, but the influential, much-older man coerced her to agree to marry him. However, in November 1837, before the wedding occurred, Jackson’s husband arrived. Lyon attempted to excuse his actions by blaming the devil for giving him false revelations. Nevertheless, Jackson’s husband brought charges against Lyon in an “’s meeting.” The verdict of the elders council, which is not known, was appealed to the high council. JS may have heard of the case in March 1838 from , who was a member of the branch of the church at Guymon’s mill. As JS traveled from , Ohio, to Far West, Barnard joined him in central Missouri, and they completed the journey together, stopping one night at Barnard’s residence en route. On 21 April, JS attended a high council meeting, during which the council members scheduled a meeting for 28 April, probably with the intention to review the Lyon appeal. On 27 April, the day before the high council considered the appeal, Jackson wrote a testimony regarding her interactions with Lyon in a letter to the high council.On the morning of 28 April, JS, , and were invited to attend the high council meeting during which the trial would be held. When the council was called to order and only ten of its members were present, JS and Rigdon were invited to participate. They joined the two counselors assigned to speak on behalf of the defendant and the plaintiff, respectively. After hearing testimony from Latter-day Saints in the branch at , Rigdon argued for justice and JS argued for mercy. The council determined to retain as a member of the church but revoked his office in the .prepared the official minutes of the council meeting most likely during the meeting or based on notes that he took during the meeting. His minutes were recorded in Minute Book 2 in 1842 or 1843 by high council clerk . wrote an account of the trial in JS’s Scriptory Book. Robinson wrote the 28 April entry during the Scriptory Book’s transition from a record of “scripts”—transcripts of letters, revelations, and other documents—to a journal for JS. The account begins much like a journal entry, with a narrative of the invitation that JS, , and George W. Robinson received to attend the trial. The account then moves into a summary of the trial; this summary is somewhat similar to the content and format of meeting minutes. At the conclusion of the account, Robinson signed it explicitly as “scribe,” thus differentiating this entry from the ordinary journal entries that would follow and resembling more the discrete transcripts that he had previously inscribed in the Scriptory Book. Robinson’s identification of his role as a scribe suggests he wrote the document for the or for First Presidency members JS and Rigdon, who participated prominently in the trial. The format of the trial summary—comprising a narrative amalgamation of facts from witnesses’ testimonies, followed by a dramatic recounting of the arguments made on behalf of justice and mercy—suggests that Robinson did not write the account during the trial. Rather, he likely wrote the account later in the day or within a few days of the trial.
Footnotes
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1
Foote, Autobiography, 24 Sept. 1838, 29.
Foote, Warren. Autobiography, not before 1903. Warren Foote, Papers, 1837–1941. CHL. MS 1123, fd. 1.
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2
Nothing further is known of Sarah Jackson, nor has her husband been identified.
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3
See Hamer, Northeast of Eden, 59, 81.
Hamer, John. Northeast of Eden: A Historical Atlas of Missouri’s Mormon County. [Mirabile, MO]: Far West Cultural Center, 2004.
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4
See Historian’s Office, Brigham Young History Drafts, 17; and JS, Journal, Mar.–Sept. 1838, p. 16; see also Riggs and Thompson, “Notorious Case of Aaron Lyon,” 108–109.
Historian’s Office. Brigham Young History Drafts, 1856–1858. CHL. CR 100 475, box 1, fd. 5.
Riggs, Michael S., and John E. Thompson. “Joseph Smith, Jr., and ‘the Notorious Case of Aaron Lyon’: Evidence of Earlier Doctrinal Development of Salvation for the Dead and a Trigger for the Practice of Polyandry?” John Whitmer Historical Association Journal 26 (2006): 101–119.
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5
The minutes of this meeting state that the high council was “adjourned till Saturday the 28th inst.” (Minutes, 21 Apr. 1838.)
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6
Several high council meetings had been held in Far West since JS’s arrival. JS attended and presided over most but not all of these councils. For example, JS did not attend the 17 March meeting, at which Thomas B. Marsh presided. Also, on 13 April 1838, JS testified in the trial of Lyman Johnson, but Marsh presided over the meeting. (Minute Book 2, 17 Mar. 1838; Minutes, 13 Apr. 1838.)
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7
The recording of document transcripts continued up through the entry for 26 April 1838, which consisted of a copy of JS’s revelation on that date. The following entry, for 27 April, took the form of an ordinary journal entry. The entry for 28 April recounted the Lyon trial held that day. Daily entries for the next two weeks and sporadic entries over the next four months generally took the form of a journal. (JS, Journal, Mar.–Sept. 1838.)
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8
Because Ebenezer Robinson likely wrote his minutes before George W. Robinson wrote his account, Ebenezer Robinson’s minutes are presented first in this volume.
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1
Document Transcript
| no 1 | no. 2 | ||
| " 2 3 | Zecheriah Wilson | " 4 | |
| " 5 | Joseph Smith jr | " 6 | |
| " 7 | " 8 | ||
| " 9 | " 10 | ||
| " 11 | " 12 |
Footnotes
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1
Marsh was the president pro tempore of the church in Zion, with David W. Patten and Brigham Young as assistant presidents. Young may have not attended the meeting because JS had recently dictated a revelation directing Young to go to his property at Mill Creek, where his family was residing, and to provide for them. (Minutes, 6 Apr. 1838; Revelation, 17 Apr. 1838.)
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2
When cases were brought before the council, the counselors were numbered, and one or more odd-numbered counselors represented the plaintiff, with the same number of even-numbered counselors representing the defendant. For each odd-numbered counselor representing the plaintiff, the even-numbered counselor just higher in number represented the defendant. The responsibilities for representing the two parties seem to have rotated through the council. In the council meeting of 28 April, it was the duty of counselors 9 and 10—George M. Hinkle and George W. Harris—to represent the plaintiff and defendant. (See Minute Book 2, 10 Mar.–29 June 1838.)
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3
This popular hymn, composed by William W. Phelps, is about Adam-ondi-Ahman. (Hymn 23, Collection of Sacred Hymns, 29–30.)
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4
The appeal of the case involving Lemons and Wixom was presented to the Zion high council on 10 March but was rescheduled for the 28 April council meeting. (Minute Book 2, 10 Mar. 1838.)
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5
Probably John Wheeler, who owned land in the area. (Hamer, Northeast of Eden, 59, 93.)
Hamer, John. Northeast of Eden: A Historical Atlas of Missouri’s Mormon County. [Mirabile, MO]: Far West Cultural Center, 2004.
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6
Aaron Lyon’s wife, Roxana Palmer Lyon, died in August 1836, leaving Aaron with “a family of children.” (Obituary for Roxana Palmer Lyon, LDS Messenger and Advocate, Jan. 1837, 3:447–448.)
Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Kirtland, OH. Oct. 1834–Sept. 1837.
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7
Guymon was the owner of the local horse-powered mill. (Foote, Autobiography, 15 Sept. 1838, 29.)
Foote, Warren. Autobiography, not before 1903. Warren Foote, Papers, 1837–1941. CHL. MS 1123, fd. 1.
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8
TEXT: This insertion is enclosed in an inscribed rectangle. When Stout copied Sarah Jackson’s testimony into Minute Book 2, he copied the testimony out of place and then noted that it “should have been inserted on Page 139.” Her testimony is reproduced at the end of the minutes.
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9
Possibly Nahum or Timothy Benjamin, both of whom lived near Guymon’s mill. Nahum Benjamin owned land near Barnard. (Hamer, Northeast of Eden, 59, 81.)
Hamer, John. Northeast of Eden: A Historical Atlas of Missouri’s Mormon County. [Mirabile, MO]: Far West Cultural Center, 2004.
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10
Calvin Reed was Nahum Benjamin’s nephew. Calvin’s father, Tillison Reed, was the brother of Nahum Benjamin’s wife, Judith Reed Benjamin. (Merrill, History of Acworth, 259.)
Merrill, J. L., ed. History of Acworth, with the Proceedings of the Centennial Anniversary, Genealogical Records, and Register of Farms. Acworth, NH: Town of Acworth, 1869.
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11
The New Testament states that between the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, he “preached unto the spirits in prison.” In 1832, JS and Rigdon affirmed this doctrine in their account of a vision of the postmortal kingdoms of heavenly glory. In the mid-1830s, this doctrine developed to include the idea of faithful men joining in this divine enterprise by preaching to “the spirits in prison” after they died. In her written testimony, Sarah Jackson recounted that Lyon told her that her husband was “preaching to the spirits in prison.” Though it is unclear whether Reed related his own vision or a vision Lyon claimed he received, if Sarah Jackson had heard Reed recount a vision of his own in which her husband was dead and preaching to postmortal spirits, it may have helped her accept Lyon’s claim that he had received a revelation to that effect. (1 Peter 3:18–20; Vision, 16 Feb. 1832 [D&C 76:73]; Patriarchal Blessing for Lorenzo Snow, 15 Dec. 1836, Lorenzo Snow, Papers, CHL; Woodruff, Journal, 3 Jan. 1837.)
Snow, Lorenzo. Papers, ca. 1836–1896. CHL.
Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.
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13
Lyon was fifty-five or fifty-six. (See Obituary for Aaron Lyon, Times and Seasons, Apr. 1840, 1:95.)
Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.