Craig J. Ostler: A grand obelisk in the mountains of Sharon Vermont stands near the site where the Prophet Joseph Smith was born and reaches into the heavens 38 1/2 feet. One foot for each year of the Prophets life.1
John P. Livingstone: Well Craig here we are in the beautiful visitor’s center in Sharon Vermont, the birthplace of the prophet Joseph Smith, is it not something?
Craig J. Ostler: Yes, one of my favorite places because of the strong spirit of peace, it just seems to permeate these grounds.
John P. Livingstone: You know, when Joseph F. Smith dedicated this property when the church bought it, he dedicated it to the Lord for his uncle. He dedicated it that it would be a peaceful place and that sure seems to have been answered by the Lord does it not?2
Craig J. Ostler: It does, and I think that part of it is so that individuals can have a witness from the Holy Ghost again that Joseph Smith was truly a Prophet of God, called to open the last dispensation and to have the gospel spread to all the world before the Savior returns a second time. I have had that experience each time I come, it is a very pervasive peace.
On December 23, 1805 Joseph Smith Sr. and his wife Lucy welcomed a new born son into their home. The young child was given his father’s name, Joseph, in fulfillment of ancient prophecy. Joseph who was sold into Egypt foretold of a descendent in latter days who would be named Joseph like himself, and who would be a great seer raised up by the Lord to bring the remnant of the house of Israel to the knowledge of the covenants God made with their fathers.3
John P. Livingstone: You know, I think Joseph Smith stands out really in the history of the world as one of the great Prophets. He is right in there with Abraham, Moses, and Noah. I mean, this dispensation, this last and great dispensation, really stands out as being critically important to anyone who has ever lived in the history of the world. The ordinances which have been restored, really for the dead, affect every dispensation in the past.
Craig J. Ostler: I have no doubt that not only do we look back to Joseph Smith as being the Prophet of the Lord for the dispensation, but past prophets look forward to the time when the Lord would send that man to the earth being born as a babe here in Sharon, Vermont.4
The cabin in which the Prophet Joseph Smith was born actually stood on the boundary between the two townships, the bedroom was in Sharon, Vermont, and rest of the cabin was in Royalton. Only two remnants of the original cabin have survived to the present, one of them is this doorstep, the other is this hearthstone now housed in the visitors center. Joseph Smith was only three years old when his family left Sharon Vermont so perhaps it was at this very hearth that he was washed and dressed as a babe.5
What is the purpose of a prophet, why is it so important to us that we understand what it means to say Joseph Smith was a true prophet of God? A true prophet of the Lord raises up and gives him power to bring forth his word. If we were to compare Joseph to other prophets, where does he fit in bringing forth the word of the Lord?
John P. Livingstone: Well, if you just look at the amount of the word of the Lord, if you look at the Book of Mormon, [if] you look at the Doctrine and Covenants, Pearl of Great Price, not to mention the Joseph Smith Translation…
Craig J. Ostler: …of the Bible.
John P. Livingstone: of the Bible, we have more of the word of the Lord through the Prophet Joseph Smith than any other single Prophet.6
Craig J. Ostler: The Lord called on Joseph to reintroduce to the world, God, and who He was.
John P. Livingstone: Yes.
Craig J. Ostler: It [the world] lost the true doctrine of who both God the Father is (our Father in Heaven), and who His Son, Jesus Christ, is, and Joseph revealed them anew, which is basically his mission.
John P. Livingstone: Joseph Smith restores truth; it was just a burst of light from the First Vision through to the final sections of the Doctrine and Covenants that come through the Prophet Joseph Smith, and it is revolutionary.
In-Video Text: Contributions of the Prophet Joseph Smith: Knowledge that God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ have bodies of flesh and bone and mankind has been created in their image.7 Translated and published the Book of Mormon.8 Received the authority and keys of the Aaronic and Melchizedek priesthoods.9 Organized the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.10 Received revelations that compose the Doctrine and Covenants.11 Restored truths and made clarifications in an inspired translation of the Bible. Restores temple ordinances for the living and the dead.12 Sent the message of the Restoration of the Gospel to the far reaches of the earth.13 Laid the foundation for Zion.14 Restored knowledge of eternal marriage of husband and wife and the eternal nature of the family.15 Gave the inhabitants of the earth a modern witness that God lives and that Jesus is the living Christ.16 Restored knowledge that all on earth are begotten sons and daughters of God.17 Testified that the resurrection is real and that resurrected being have visited the earth in our day.18
Craig J. Ostler: He becomes the center of what a prophet was, what a prophet is today, what a prophet will be – by studying what he is like – because he seems closer to us, especially as one who brought forth scripture and the word of God. And then I have greater confidence in the prophets that have followed in his footsteps, so-to-speak, and carrying that mantle [and] the keys of the kingdom that [were] restored to him. And I am grateful the Lord had this babe born, that we live in a day that we can come to Sharon, Vermont, and even have, again, as we sit here, the Spirit testify.
John P. Livingstone: Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God!
1 Joseph Smith was born December 23, 1805 and died on June 27, 1844, making him almost exactly 38½ years old at the time of his death.
2 President Joseph F. Smith, ERA, February 1906, 324-325.
3 See JST Genesis 50:30, 33; 2 Nephi 3:11, 15.
4 In addition to the above references note that Isaiah referred to a sealed book to come forth by one that was unlearned (Isaiah 29:11-12).
5 “Proceedings at the Dedication of the Joseph Smith Memorial Monument at Sharon, Windsor County, Vermont, etc.,” December 23, 1905 (Salt Lake City: Deseret News, n.d.), 15.
6 Even a by rough estimate Joseph Smith’s canonized contributions are more than 880 pages. Compare this to the maximum credited to Moses in Genesis, which is 308 pages in the King James Version of the Bible used by Latter-Day Saints.
7 D&C 130:22; Moses 2:26.
8 D&C 135:3.
9 JS-H 1:68-72; 27:12.
10 Joseph Smith, “History Drafts, 1838—Circa 1841,” The Joseph Smith Papers: Histories, Volume 1: Joseph Smith Histories, 1832-1844, eds. Kern Lynn Davidson, David J. Whitaker, Mark Ashurst-McGee, Richard L. Jensen, (Salt Lake City: The Church Historians Press, 2012), 364-365.
11 D&C 135:3.
12 D&C 124:26-42; 127; 128.
13 D&C 135:3.
14 D&C 57; 58.
15 D&C 131:1-4; 132:19-20.
16 See the Book of Mormon; JS-H 1:17; D&C 76:22-24; D&C 110:1-10.
17 D&C 131:1-4; 132:19-20.
18 D&C 13:1; 45:54; 63:49; 88:14-16; 129:1; JS-H 1:30-33, 68-72.
