Ep 196 – Joseph Smith Assassination Plot
Naked Mormonism Podcast
Bryce Blankenagel
4.7 • 680 Ratings
🗓️ 28 February 2020
⏱️ 70 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
On this episode, we examine the times around General Conference of April 1844. Yes, the King Follett Discourse had been given, among many other interesting talks, but what was going on that may have contributed to it falling out of grand recognition we give it today? We examine the concomitant events of scandal after scandal burning the emptying fuel of the outrage machine. The Higbees, Fosters, and Laws create some problems for the prophet, most notably, they devise an assassination plot for Joseph Smith. Another man, Augustine Spencer, refused arrest by the city marshal, John P. Greene, and Charles A. Foster, one of the conspirators, draws a pistol on Joseph in broad daylight. With everything going on, it’s no wonder the King Follett Discourse wasn’t more noticed at the time it was given.
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A Voice of Innocence From Nauvoo
https://www.churchhistorianspress.org/the-first-fifty-years-of-relief-society/part-1/1-10?lang=eng
Nauvoo Neighbor 1 May 1844
http://boap.org/LDS/Nauvoo-Neighbor/1844/5-1-1844.pdf
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | I am Ryan McKnight. I'm Kara Santa Maria. I am Christopher Smith. Hi, I'm Andrew Torres. This is |
| 0:07.1 | Naked Mormonism. The Serial Mormon History podcast. The King Fulet discourse had been given on the 14th |
| 0:20.2 | anniversary of the church's founding. It was well |
| 0:23.9 | received, and of course the propaganda machine cogs began to turn. A little context for what |
| 0:30.8 | we're going to discuss from the King Follett discourse written by Joan Follett Mortensen. |
| 0:36.7 | No documentation survives about the response of King's family and his friends to the sermon. |
| 0:42.2 | That would forever be associated with King's death as the King Follett discourse. |
| 0:46.9 | Certainly, they would have been comforted to be told by their prophet that they would once again see King Follett and recognize him as they had on earth. |
| 0:55.1 | Joseph Fielding, a British convert, recorded in his journal, |
| 0:58.9 | Joseph's discourse on the origin of man, the nature of God, and the resurrection was the most |
| 1:03.4 | interesting matter of this time. More than 50 years later, Ariot L. Hale recalled it as |
| 1:09.6 | the greatest sermon that was ever preached in our church. |
| 1:13.1 | Mary C. Westover, a young girl in 1844, wrote in 1906, |
| 1:17.4 | I thought as I sat there that the Lord was speaking through Joseph. Donald Kucannon reported in |
| 1:24.4 | 1978, quote, my research assistants and I have read some 300 journals at the |
| 1:30.3 | LDS Church Archives at the Brigham Young University. Most did not comment on the discourse. |
| 1:35.8 | However, those who did made meaningful observations. According to Canon, examples of these |
| 1:40.8 | observations were, now quoting Wondell Mace, it was a remarkable discourse and |
| 1:44.8 | this most interesting and instructive conference. Edward Stevenson said grand funeral sermon |
| 1:50.8 | at King Phyllette. Irassus Snow, all were highly edified and highly delighted. Joseph Lee Robinson, |
| 1:58.2 | the prophet's statements amazed him and caused him to wonder. |
| 2:06.1 | Alfred Corden, I was much delighted with the teachings and doings of the conference, end quote. |
... |
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