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5.0 out of 5 stars
Joseph Smith, Sr., First Patriarch to the LDS Church, April 29, 2007
Reviewer: Richard H. Cracroft
Nan Osmond Grass Professor in English, Emeritus
Brigham Young University
Author of Column, "Alumni Book Nook," BYU Magazine
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Earnest M Skinner's informative and inspiring biography, Joseph Smith, Sr., First Patriarch to the LDS Church (Palmyra Publishing; 264 pp.; $15.95), is a well-documented and reliable account of the life and ministry of Joseph Smith, Sr. (1771-1840), vilified and honored as the father of the Prophet Joseph Smith, Jr.
"Father Smith," as he was affectionately called by contemporary Latter-day Saints, played an important role in the first decade of LDS Church history as one of the Eight Witnesses to the Book of Mormon who saw and held the gold plates; as the person to whom D&C 4 (February 1829) was directed; as one of the first baptized members of the Church; as one of the fledgling Church's first missionaries (successful in bringing nearly all of his family to Mormonism); as a member of the first High Council; as one of the assistant counselors to the Prophet Joseph; and as the first Patriarch to the whole Church. Father Smith gave patriarchal blessings and ministered to hundreds of Latter-day Saints, from his ordination on December 18, 1833, by his son, the Prophet Joseph, until his death on September 14, 1840, just hours after pronouncing patriarchal blessings on each of his children.
Brother Earnest Skinner cites the remarkable fulfillment of prophecies foretold in patriarchal blessings given to, among others, Wilford Woodruff, Frederick G. Williams and his wife Rebecca, Benjamin F. Johnson, Lydia Knight, Abraham O. Smoot, and members of the Smith family, including Joseph, Jr. Latter-day Saints who received blessings from Father Smith referred to them as a kind of personal Liahona which ever-after directed their lives. His blessing of Lorenzo Snow, later president of the Church, was instrumental, according to his sister Eliza R. Snow, in the penning of the famous couplet summarizing Joseph Smith's profound revelation on man's potential: "As man now is, God once was;/As God now is, man may be"(p. 98; see Eliza R. Snow, Biography of Lorenzo Snow, 1884, pp. 9-11, 46).
Skinner collects into 10 chapters and a four-part appendix a wealth of information about Joseph Smith, Sr., which has hitherto not been generally available. The chapter, "He Shall Sit in the General Assembly of Patriarchs," contains not only a fascinating description of a number of blessings given by Father Smith, but also one of the best discussions of "The Law and Order of Patriarchal Lineage"; of the "Doctrine of the Patriarchal Office"; of Father Smith's ministry and record-keeping methods as the patriarch who established the pattern for patriarchal blessings in the LDS Church; and of the history of the office of Patriarch to the whole Church. That office was retired in 1979, President Spencer W. Kimball announced, "because of the large increase in the number of stake patriarchs and the availability of patriarchal service throughout the world"; and Eldred G. Smith (ordained in 1946) was designated "Patriarch Emeritus"(see Conference Report, Oct. 1979; Encyclopedia of Mormonism, 3:1065-66).
Earnest M. Skinner (1916 -2001), who taught and administered in the Church Education System (CES) for 33 years, published a limited number of copies of this biography in 1958, making copies available only to family and friends and as a reference source in the BYU library. Shortly before his death, Brother Skinner agreed to a second printing of this one-of-a-kind resource. This invaluable book arises from Skinner's careful winnowing and sifting (before personal computers!) through many volumes of personal history and Father Smith's blessings (1833-1840), many of which were recorded by Wilford Woodruff and other scribes in the Journal History of the Church. Although the biography was published nearly a half-century ago, the historical data remain largely unchanged. Other recently discovered sources and, for example, Richard L Bushman's 1984 and 2005 biographies of Joseph Smith, Jr., provide additional details about Joseph Smith, Sr.'s personal and family life, the portrayal of Father Smith's life, of his contributions as Patriarch, and of the responses of his contemporaries to his influence and blessings, is timeless.
Joseph Smith, Sr., was revered by his son, Joseph, Jr., who praised him in a brief memoir as "a great and a good man." Wilford Woodruff, Lorenzo Snow, Eliza R. Snow, and dozens of Latter-day Saints recorded their testimonials of his inspired and inspiring blessings and of the fulfillment of specific promises made through the gift of prophecy and revelation with which Father Smith was richly endowed. Lorenzo Snow concluded that "I do not know that any man among the Saints was more loved than Father Smith. . . . He was as noble and generous a man as I have ever known"(p. 6). This book affords rich glimpses into the spiritual power which drove-and continues to drive-the Restoration.
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