Joseph Smith’s preaching largely disappeared after it was spoken. His preaching was extempore with very few exceptions and among the earliest Latter-day Saints, preaching was considered to be of ephemeral value—good for the moment but not for preservation. Partly at least this attitude reflected the position that the direct voice of God in the form of written revelations was available when needed. These revelations dictated by Smith were preserved, if not in their first form, at least when put to print. These revelations in the first few years of Mormonism were held in permanent esteem by the ..read more

I recently published a new volume in the sermon project, The King Follett Sermon: A Biography. You can find it on Amazon or bookstores can get it for you if it is not in stock. The book is a part of the project to publish critical editions, reception histories, imprint variorums, and source critical work on all of the Joseph Smith’s sermons. The King Follett book has been praised by various historians, including the current president of the Mormon History Association, Matthew Bowman. The larger project’s second stage will focus on ten sermons delivered by Joseph Smith as funeral addresses. Ten ..read more

The JSP has announced some new content at their web site. All annotation for Documents Vol. 5 is now up. In addition, Robin Jensen, Associate Managing Historian of the Papers has a new article on the Book of Abraham complementing the recent Revelations and Translation series volume on the Book of Abraham ..read more