Twenty-Three (1828)continued to “marvel and wonder” about religion and priesthood authority, and persisted
in embracing every other aspect of their own personal traditions.
At first, Joseph tried in patience, just like Jesus tried, to convince them that they
didn’t need a church, or authority, or anything except the fullness of the everlasting Gospel
as presented in the Book of Mormon.^59 Joseph specifically pointed out what was presented
above as the storyline of how the people rejected the words of Jesus and wanted a church.
Nevertheless, because the storyline continued with Jesus instituting the sacrament, naming
the church, and allowing the twelve Nephite/Lamanite disciples to give the people what
they desired, Cowdery and Whitmer justified their own desires for “carnal” evidences of
their faith. Joseph, as did Christ, “groaned within himself” because of the wickedness of
these men in having eyes that could not see and ears that could not hear and understand.
Conversely, Martin Harris had no desire to establish a religion, as he had been
alienated from the work because of the lost 116-page manuscript. He wasn’t around when
Cowdery and Whitmer pressed Joseph about the religious aspects of the Book of Mormon
translation. He was not present when Cowdery and Whitmer got what they wanted and
the church was officially established on April 6, 1830.^60 Harris continually fought Joseph
throughout his life about the way he kept giving in to the carnal desires of the people,
believing that Joseph was not supposed to allow a religion or a church to be established
(as Harris supposed—based on the discussion below).
One might ask, how did Martin Harris know this, while Cowdery and Whitmer did
not? The answer comes in knowing that Harris was Joseph’s scribe for the Book of Lehi, the
116-page manuscript that he had lost. The lost text of this important document deprived
these early leaders and the LDS/Mormon people from ever knowing (until now) how
profoundly it denounces religion and religious practices. It even included chapter one of
Isaiah’s searing denunciation of religion. All of this was contained in the lost manuscript, of
which Cowdery and Whitmer had no knowledge.
The Purpose of the Lost Manuscript
Many stories have circulated over the years about how and when the 116-page
manuscript was lost. The complete story and real truth of the matter was published in
2004, along with the sealed portion of the plates.^61 If the reader is interested, he or she can
research the information. Suffice it to say, the re-translation of the book of Lehi was meant
to help prove the veracity of the claim that the translator of the sealed portion was doing
so from the exact same plates and with the exact same means that Joseph used to publish
the unsealed portion. If the Book of Mormon (translated from the unsealed portion of the
plates) had been complete in Joseph’s day, it would have included sixteen books (as
opposed to the present fifteen), beginning with the book of Lehi. Whereas the book of Lehi
included chapter one of Isaiah, the subsequent inclusion of most of the chapters of Isaiah
beginning in 1st Nephi would have made more sense.
The book of Lehi would have provided Joseph with the perfect set-up to negate the
people’s desire for a church or religion, especially as observed from the reaction of Martin
Harris against starting a church—who knew what was contained in the book of Lehi. But
the advanced monitors had different plans for Joseph’s day.
There have been some who have pretended to have a Urim and Thummim and to
have published words through those means. But none of their nebulous fabrications
compare to the authentic translation of The Sealed Portion of the Book of Mormon., given