Different Versions of the First Vision Story

  It's been a while since I've posted anything here. Life has been very busy, but I'm preparing to make my position known to my family and other church members. Rather than shock everyone with a pronouncement I would like to make my position clear with a series of short essays before the willingness to listen to what I have to say is switched off. Recently a discussion about the various accounts of the first vision story came up in which it was indicated that I didn't know what I was talking about and the other versions were written by other people not by Joseph Smith like the official version was. Using information, mainly from the amazing articles at MormonThink I wrote up a response that I know will be the first in a chain of events. I would love to get as much feedback on this as I can before I unleash it.

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Different Versions of the First Vision Story

  In 2013 the church published an essay on their website called “First Vision Accounts”
https://www.lds.org/topics/first-vision-accounts?lang=eng
In this article they talk about 8 different accounts, 2 written directly by Joseph Smith’s hand and the other dictated by him to other people. The article supports the validity of these accounts and says, “The various accounts of the First Vision tell a consistent story, though naturally they differ in emphasis and detail. Historians expect that when an individual retells an experience in multiple settings to different audiences over many years, each account will emphasize various aspects of the experience and contain unique details…. the rich historical record enables us to learn more about this remarkable event than we could if it were less well documented.”

Why are there so many different versions instead of just one?

  People might ask why there are so many differences and use it as an excuse to say he made the whole thing up. There are a number of differences and considering the long time span between the event and when it was recorded you would expect some differences to occur. After all it is a scientifically proven fact that we add details that never happened if experiences are not recorded immediately because we shape our memories to fit a story-line. When we remember we are recreating the events in our minds rather than recalling exact images, we tend to make ourselves look better in the retelling to explain our actions. These are established scientific facts about memory recall. If fact we re-imagine historic pasts so much that if people repeatedly imagine having an experience, they are likely to report that it actually happened, especially if they did not record actual details of the experience immediately. This is why stories often grow in the retelling and most people are not even aware that it is happening.

  Joseph Smith had a vision in 1820. He did not write down a single fact about it until 1832. He re-told a number of different first vision stories over a period of 22 years and since he did not have a photographic memory you can expect fact to become embellished and changed from the original events. His retellings are consistent with what science has said we should expect from this duration of memory recall. Clearly some of the accounts have false embellishments in them but it is important to know that the early church members didn’t even know about the first vision story. Why? Because the first vision is not the “Keystone of our religion” the Book of Mormon is.

In the January 1985 issue of The Ensign, Joseph Smith's Recitals of the First Vision by Milton V. Backman, Jr. he says, “On at least four different occasions, Joseph Smith either wrote or dictated to scribes accounts of his sacred experience of 1820. Possibly he penned or dictated other histories of the First Vision; if so, they have not been located… The differences, however, are not important—they may have resulted from incorrect transmissions or translations, or may be the result of recording the event from different perspectives. As a matter of fact, we do not have a full account today of the First Vision. At no time did the Prophet disclose everything that he learned during his vision near Palmyra. Nevertheless (as with the four Gospels and the three versions of Paul’s experience on the road to Damascus), by combining all known accounts of the First Vision written by the Prophet, we may gain a more complete understanding of his theophany of 1820.”

Why didn’t more people know about it?

  The Book of Commandments (which is the first draft of what is now known as the Doctrine and Covenants,) pointed out that it was the Book of Mormon - not the first vision known to the church today - that constituted Joseph's "call to his holy work" (24:7-11/D&C 20:6-11). Also both Joseph in 1832 and Oliver Cowdery in 1835 reported that it was the angel Moroni, who first called Joseph to actually do the work, rather than Jesus in the first vision.

  Joseph Smith did not use the first vision to teach members about the nature of God, and Moroni’s visit was hailed by church leaders as the actual first vision in the first official history. Even Joseph's own mother, was not familiar with the vision of the Father and the Son in the Sacred Grove. In her unpublished history, she traced the origin of Mormonism to a late-night bedroom visit by an angel. According to her, the angel told him "there is not a true church on Earth, No, not one" (First draft of Lucy Smith's History, p. 46, LDS Church archives).

  In the early 1800s having visions was fairly common. Even Joseph Smith's father claimed to have had a vision - namely the Tree of Life vision. People believed in magic, seer stones, divining rods, etc. and people claiming to have visions were not seen as strange like they would be today. Other people had reported similar vision stories to Joseph’s before he did and so it would not have been seen as a major event by the people of the time. Some notable published stories similar to Joseph’s are: Norris Stearns published in 1815, Elias Smith in 1816, Asa Wild in 1823, Solomon Chamberlain in 1816, Charles G. Finney in 1821, Mormon by James G. Marsh in 1832 (before the official publication of the official version) as well as a number of others.

  The first vision story was not referenced in any published material in the 1830's and it was left out of the first publication of the Church's history written by Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery. It was also left out of the Book of Commandments (published in 1833, which was the precursor to the Doctrine & Covenants) and the general Church membership did not receive information about the First Vision until the 1840s and even then, the story did not hold the prominent place in Mormon thought that it does today since such visions were not unique. It was the Book of Mormon, not the first vision, that was used to recruit church membership all throughout the early church.

What is in the different versions?

  Various church leaders have emphasized the importance of combining the various accounts of the first vision in order to gain a greater understanding. Unfortunately nearly all church members have ignored this counsel and are completely unaware of what is in the different accounts or that they even exist. The article on the LDS website has links to each of the versions you can read along with scans of the original journal entries. Some of the differences involve the reason or motive for seeking divine help, Bible reading and conviction of sins, a revival, and a desire to know if God existed. Who appeared to him is different from a spirit, an angel, two angels, Jesus, many angels, and finally, the Father and the Son.

  Before 1835 nobody, not even Joseph’s own family, had heard about the story of the first vision as we have it today. For a long time the angel visitation was considered to be the first vision by many leaders in the church, even up into the 1870s. It was not mentioned in either the History of the Church written in 1835 by Oliver Cowdery and Joseph Smith or by Joseph's own mother, Lucy Mack Smith. And in those accounts (6 of them) Nephi is declared to be the angelic visitor who told Smith about plates of gold.

The differences in the first vision account are not just grove versus the angel visitation but differences within each of the 2 types of accounts exist as well. (See a pictograph of the differences at the end) Here is a rundown of the differences within the various known accounts:

2 refer to Angels or many angels. (Both by Joseph Smith)
1 refers to 1 unidentified personage. (William Smith)
4 refer to 2 unidentified personages. (Two by Joseph Smith)
1 refers to The Lord alone, assumed to be Jesus Christ. (Joseph Smith)
2 refer to 2 personages, assumed to be God and Jesus Christ. (Joseph Smith)
25 accounts refer to angelic visitations. Of these 8 are specifically dreams:
1 refers to a dream about treasure.
1 refers to an unidentified ghost in a dream.
3 refer to an unidentified spirit or spirit of the almighty in a dream.
3 refer to an unidentified angel (or angel of light or of God) in a dream.
1 refers to an unidentified spirit in a vision.
7 refer to an unidentified angel. (*One angel says Moroni is someone else).
1 refers to an unidentified personage or messenger.
2 refer to the angel Moroni. (Cowdery & Smith 1835 & 1838)
6 refer to the angel Nephi. (1838 onward, 4 Smith, 1 quoting him & 1 Lucy Mack)

  Six times Nephi was listed as the angel who visited Smith and told him where gold plates were hidden. Twice, Moroni is listed as that angel. During his lifetime, though Joseph edited the written histories of the church he never changed the name Nephi to Moroni. That was done after his death.

How do we know which ones have errors and which are correct?

  As with any historical writings the account written first hand and closest to the event will have the least amount of changes. In this case the 1832 account written in Joseph’s Smith Journal is believed to be the most accurate rather than the 1838 version written by James Mulholland which is the current “official” version of the event. Unfortunately this presents some problems as the James account has a number of contradictions from Joseph’s account.

• In his 1832 account Joseph said it was by personal Bible study that he determined all the churches were apostate, while in his 1838 account he said it "never entered into my heart that all were wrong." 
• Joseph was welcomed, not persecuted by the Methodists. 
• The official version states that he told people in the neighborhood about his vision and they persecuted him for it. However, evidence indicates that his own family did not know about the vision. There was no mention of religious persecution. The only persecution recorded was for engaging in a confidence scheme using a magic rock-in-a-hat to reveal where buried treasure lay beneath the earth's surface. 
• Oliver Cowdery stated that the "first vision" occurred in 1823 and was not aware of the 1820 experience. Cowdery's account also reported that Smith's interest in religion was sparked by the preaching of the Methodist elder George Lane, rather than by reading in the Bible as a youth. 
• The religious revival date is off by 4 years. A revival as described by Joseph Smith actually happened in the spring of 1824, not 1820 as recorded by various newspapers and writings. 
• In his 1832 version Joseph claimed to see only a vision of Christ and in his 1835 version Joseph told of the visit of an angel, while in the 1838 story the message came from the Father and the Son. 
• The events as told by Joseph Smith will not fit into the time period between the 1824 revival and the 1830 publication of the Book of Mormon. (See below for a timeline breakdown of events)

  People like a good story and as we can see by the number of different retellings the facts have not remained consistent. But people don’t changes their stories without a reason and there are some very good theories as to why certain embellishments were made. One of the best critical summaries and perhaps most plausible explanations for the various issues surrounding Joseph's First Vision, can be found in the last chapter of former LDS Church Education System teacher Grant Palmer's book An Insider's View of Mormon Origins. 

After a mass exodus of high-ranking church leaders including several apostles, all three special witnesses of the BOM and three of the eight witnesses to the BOM, Joseph took to reestablishing his authority. He made many changes to the church including changing the name of the church. He began by attacking those who were circulating unsavory "reports" regarding "the rise and progress of the Church," then told a revised and more impressive version of his epiphany.

He announced that his initial calling had not come from an angel in 1823, as he had stated for over a decade, but from God the Father and Jesus Christ in 1820. The earlier date established his mission independent of the troubling questions and former witnesses associated with the Book of Mormon. Like the priesthood restoration recitals, the first vision version of April 1838 added significant material that bolstered his authority during a time of crisis.

When missionaries teach investigators the first vision story, they are unaware of the contradictions and so are investigators unless they fact check.

The grandest, most impressive founding event of the LDS church ought to be clear, consistent and easier to defend. Instead the story and apologetic attempt to defend it is riddled with contradictions and holes. These only raise more serious questions.

Members try to answer investigators' questions about this event. The shallow, evasive explanations provided by church leaders and curriculum materials, leave them skeptical and unsatisfied, despite how often they are encouraged to “just have faith.”

  Church leaders teach that Joseph had a vision in 1820 and that it has always been the central part of the LDS faith. It teaches a simple, plain truth that God the Father and Jesus Christ were separate beings. But this was not understood by church members during Smith's lifetime. And as indicated earlier leaders knew little if anything about the “official” account of the first vision story.
The latest essay by the church leaders (November 2013) and other written church publications gloss over, ignore and otherwise offer evasive answers to legitimate questions about Smith's contradictions. Pointing them out does not make any one anti-anything, except anti-dishonest.
Joseph recounted how the visitation of the angel Moroni happened on September 21, 1823. A reasonable (not anti) question is, “How is it that Joseph could remember the precise date of the angel's visit in 1823, but could not remember the precise date of God's appearance to him in 1820”? There are so many questions and problems surrounding the various stories about a first vision and we may never get a convincing and conclusive answer.

Pictographs of first vision stories

Here is a quick comparison chart of the 4 grove versions in the 1985 Ensign article.

Here is a quick listing of the 9 major vision stories that people had heard.




Timeline of various first vision accounts with important events

1820: First vision, official version is supposed to have taken place (God and Christ)

1821: Another version of the first vision is supposed to have taken place

1822

1823: Joseph said he prayed to know if God existed (another first vision version)

1824

1825

1826

1827: First vision account told by Joseph Smith Sr. (Nephi spirit in a vision)

First vision account told by Martin Harris (Angel in a dream)

1828: Joseph Smith applied for membership in the Methodist Church where Lucy attended and also attended classes taught there

1829: Joseph Smith tells Palmyra Freeman he saw the “Spirit of the Almighty in a dream”

1830: First public mention of first vision, JS is interviewed by Peter Bauder (Unidentified Angel)

    Book of Mormon is Published

1831

1832: Joseph Smith’s first handwritten account of first vision (The Lord)

1833: Book of Commandments is published

1834: Church newspaper begins publication by Joseph Smith

1835: Doctrine and Covenants is published, including “Lectures on Faith”

First “Church History” is published by Oliver Cowdery and Joseph Smith

Robert Matthews is told the first vision as recorded in J.S. journal (Many Angels)

Joshua, a Jewish Minister, told the first vision by Joseph Smith (Unidentified Angel)

Erastus Holmes is told a version of the first vision by Joseph Smith (Vision of Angels)

1836: The angel appearing to Joseph Smith is changed from Nephi to Moroni

1837: Pamphlet for missionaries to use is published

    2nd Edition of the Book of Mormon is published with 4,000 alterations

1838: The official account of the First Vision is written by James Mulholland

work on Joseph Smith History begins, Angel visitation is identified as Nephi

1839: The Times and Seasons begins publication

1840: First vision, Orson Pratt (2 unidentified personages)

1841

1842: First publication of the First Vision by James Mulholland, (adopted as official version)

Joseph Smith History is published

Times and Seasons publishes first vision (2 unidentified personages)

LDS owned Times and Seasons publishes angel visitation as Nephi

LDS owned Millennial Star publishes angel visitation as Nephi

First vision, Orson Hyde (2 unidentified personages)

1843

1844: Joseph Smith writes a version for a chapter on Mormonism for Daniel Rupp’s book  (2 unidentified personages)

Joseph Smith Dies

1845: Lucy Mack Smith Biography (Unidentified Angel)

1846

1847

1848

1849

1850

1851: Church publication "Times and Seasons" testified that the angel that visited Joseph was "Nephi," rather than Moroni.

    Pearl of Great Price 1st ed, refers to Angel Nephi (from Joseph Smith handwritten copies)

1852

1853: Lucy Mack Smith, History of Joseph Smith identifies the Angel as Nephi

1854: Apostle Orson Hyde in General Conference declared there was no Savior visitation

1855: Brigham Young and Wilford Woodruff declare it was the angel who told Jospbh not to join any church

1856

1857: Heber C. Kimball in Journal of Discourses was not aware of First Vision

1858

1859: Martin Harris tells another version of the first vision in an interview

1860

1861

1862

1863: John Taylor and George A. Smith confirm it was the angel who said not to join any church

1864

1865

1866

1867

1868

1869: George A. Smith repeats it was the angel who said not to join any church