Joseph
Smith, the first Prophet and founder of the Restoration tells us that the Book
of Mormon was translated from plates shown to him by a heavenly messenger on
September 21, 1823.
"While
I was thus in the act of calling upon God I discovered a light appearing in the
room which continued to increase until the room was lighter than at noonday,
when immediately a personage appeared at my bedside standing in the air for his
feet did not touch the floor...When I first looked upon him I was afraid, but
the fear soon left me. He called me by name, and said unto me that he was a
messenger sent from the presence of God to me, and that his name was Moroni. That God had a
work for me to do, and that my name should be had for good and evil, among all
nations, kindred’s, and tongues; or that it should be both good and evil spoken
of among all people. He said there was a book deposited written upon gold plates, giving an account of the
former inhabitants of this continent, and the source from whence they sprang.
He also said that the fullness of the everlasting gospel was contained in it,
as delivered by the Savior to the ancient inhabitants. Also that there were two
stones in silver bows, and these stones fastened to a breastplate constituted
what is among them called the Urim and Thummim, deposited with the plates, and
the possession and use of these stones was what constituted seers in ancient or
former times, and that God had prepared them for the purpose of translating the
book." (Times and Seasons, vol. 3, p. 753)
The time
soon came for The Prophet Joseph to see the plates and to experience the beauty
of being given a record that has been lost to the world, this is what he says concerning
that moment.
"Convenient
to the village of Manchester, Ontario Co. New York, stands a hill of
considerable size, and the most elevated on any in the neighbor hood; on the
west side of this hill not far from the top, under a stone of considerable
size, lay the plates deposited in a stone box: this stone was thick and
rounding in the middle on the upper side, and thinner towards the edges, so
that the middle part of it was visible above the ground, but the edge all round
was covered with earth. Having removed the earth and obtained a lever which I
got fixed under the edge of the stone and with a little exertion raised it up,
I looked in and there indeed I beheld the plates, the Urim and Thummim and the
Breastplate as stated by the messenger. The box in which they lay was formed by
laying stones together in some kind of cement; in the bottom of the box were
laid two stones crossways of the box, and on these stones lay the plates and
the other things with them. I made an attempt to take them out but was
forbidden by the messenger and was again informed that the time for bringing
them forth had not yet arrived, neither would until four years from that
time." (Times and Seasons, vol. 3, p. 771)
After
many times of being able to go to the hill and see the plates the time came for
the Prophet to be given the plates and to take them. Here the prophet Joseph
describes receiving the plates and the gravity if the situation.
"At
length the time arrived for obtaining the plates, and Urim and Thummim, and the
breastplate; on the 22nd day of September, 1827, having went as usual at the
end of another year to the place where they were deposited, the same heavenly
messenger delivered them up to me, with this charge that I should be
responsible for them: that if I should let them go carelessly or through any
neglect of mine I should be cut off; but that if I would use all my endeavors
to preserve them, until he the messenger should call for them, they should be
protected...by the wisdom of God they remained safe in my hands until I had
accomplished by them what was required at my hands when according to
arrangements the messenger called for them, I delivered them up to him and he
has them in his charge until this day." (Times and Seasons, vol. 3, p. 772)
Here Josephs mother Lucy describes the effort that Joseph
had to make to get the plates back home safely.
"After removing the plates from
the stone box, Joseph hid them in a birch log until preparations could be made
at home for the plates. Then he went to retrieve them. "The plates were
secreted about three miles from home...Joseph, on coming to them, took them
from their secret place, and wrapping them in his linen frock, placed them
under his arm and started for home." After proceeding a short distance, he
thought it would be safer to leave the road and go through the woods. Traveling
some distance after he left the road, he came to a large windfall, and as he
was jumping over a log, a
man sprang up from behind it, and gave him a heavy blow with a gun. Joseph
turned around and knocked him down, then ran at the top of his speed. About
half a mile further he was attacked again in the same manner as before; he
knocked this man down in like manner as the former, and ran on again; and
before he reached home he was assaulted the third time. In striking the last
one he dislocated his thumb, which, however, he did not notice until he came
within sight of the house, when he threw himself down in the corner of the
fence in order to recover his breath. As soon as he was able, he arose and came
to the house." (History of Joseph Smith
by His Mother, pp. 107- 108)
In the modern restoration today and in this Restored
Branch we hold the prophet Joseph Smith in high regard not because he was an
extraordinary man although he was but because he is a Prophet of God and he
brought forth one of the greatest books in history, The Book of Mormon. Now in this day we have been given
further revelation from God and have had plates of brass given to us and upon
those plates are engraven the words of a lost Children of Araneck who once lived
here on this land. We as a branch are now standing and building on the
foundation laid by Brother Joseph Smith we are rebuilding what was once torn
down and in doing so we hold before the world not only the Book of Mormon but
also the Chronicles of The Children of Araneck. We need not be afraid and
shamed to do this for we know that Joseph was and is a prophet of God and that
he did translate form ancient lost plates, and that we have had the same
privilege and that we are like unto him. My brothers and sisters let us go
forth from here with a renewed vigour to take these two wonderful records to
the world and bring light and knowledge to a dark and dreary lost people who
are crying out to be saved form themselves and the eternal darkness that awaits
them if they do not heed our words. I bless you with the Lord guidance in the
coming week ahead until we meet again in fellowship and love.
In The Name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
