Doctrine and Covenants Historical Resources: Doctrine and Covenants 37–40, Doctrine and Covenants Historical Resources (2020)
Doctrine and Covenants 37–40, Doctrine and Covenants Historical Resources
Doctrine and Covenants 37–40
The interior of the reconstructed Peter and Mary Whitmer home in Fayette, New York, USA. Joseph received the revelations now contained in Doctrine and Covenants 37–40 while in Fayette.
Texts
Historical background and the earliest manuscript of each revelation, as published in The Joseph Smith Papers
Revelation, 30 December 1830 [D&C 37]
A September 1830 revelation declared that all members of the Church of Christ should gather together into one place. More …
Revelation, 2 January 1831 [D&C 38]
This revelation, dictated at a church conference in Fayette, New York, came three days after a 30 December 1830 revelation commanded the Church to “assemble together at the Ohio.” More …
Revelation, 5 January 1831 [D&C 39]
Joseph Smith dictated this revelation in Fayette, New York, for James Covel, a Protestant minister, three days after the Church of Christ’s third conference. More …
Revelation, 6 January 1831 [D&C 40]
By 6 January 1831, the day after a revelation called him to preach the gospel, Methodist minister James Covel had departed Fayette, New York, leaving Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon searching for an explanation. More …
People
Biographical facts and historical images of individuals associated with the revelations
Historical Background
Conference Minutes, 1 January 1831
Conference convened according to adjournment but there were no minutes taken, save a commandment received, giving directions to the Saints, see Book of Commandments. More …
Book of Commandments
Oliver Cowdery’s copy of the Book of Commandments was used, along with several other source texts, by the editors of the 1835 Doctrine and Covenants as they were preparing Joseph Smith’s revelations for publication in that volume. More …
Revelations in Context
Essays on the background of each revelation
“Go to the Ohio”
As Joseph and Sidney Rigdon traveled from Fayette to Canandaigua, New York, in late December, they received a revelation directing the Church to “go to the Ohio.” More …
James Covel and the “Cares of the World”
James Covel, a Methodist minister, was preaching in the Richmond circuit, 45 miles east of Fayette, New York, when he attended a conference of Latter-day Saints. More …
Saints: The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days
Narrative history of events surrounding the revelations
Volume 1, Chapter 10
Gathered In
At the end of December, the Lord instructed Joseph and Sidney to pause their work on the translation. “A commandment I give unto the church,” He declared, “that they should assemble together at the Ohio.” More …
Volume 1, Chapter 12
After Much Tribulation
Some of the New York Saints came to Ohio with measles, and since they often stayed at the Partridge house, it was not long before Emily Partridge and her sisters developed high fevers and rashes. More …
Church History Topics
Essays on subjects related to the revelations
Endowment of Power
Before early Church members were “sent forth” among all nations to gather Israel, the Lord promised to “endow” them “with power from on high.” More …
Opposition to the Early Church
In 1823, the angel Moroni warned Joseph Smith that his “name should be had for good and evil among all nations.” More …
Zion/New Jerusalem
The Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith’s early revelations spoke of a future city of Zion that would serve as a gathering place for the scattered descendants of Israel in the last days. More …
Glossary
Conference: A meeting where ecclesiastical officers and other church members could conduct church business. More …
Gathering: As directed by early revelations, church members “gathered” in communities. More …
Places
Maps and information about places associated with the revelations from The Joseph Smith Papers, Historic Sites, and other helpful sources
Chronology
Timeline placing each revelation in the context of key events in the Church’s first century