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Instructions delivered at the General Conference of the Church at Nauvoo, Ill. on Thursday April 7, 1842
Sources: Times and Seasons and Wilford Woodruff Journal
Times and SeasonsWoodruff Journal
Temple and Nauvoo House

Conference met, Pres't Joseph Smith had the several quorums put in order, and seated: he then made some very appropriate remarks concerning the duties of the church, the necessity of unity of purpose in regard to the building of the houses, and the blessings connected with doing the will of God; and the inconsistency folly and danger of murmuring against the dispensations of Jehovah.

¶ He said that the principal object of the meeting was to bring the case of Elder Page before them,

Young Men Should Go Out to Prove Themselves

and that another object was to choose young men, and ordain them, and send them out to preach, that they may have an opportunity of proving themselves, and of enduring the tarring and feathering and such things as those of us who have gone before them, have had to endure.

¶ . . . Pres't. J. Smith then arose and stated that it was wrong to make the covenant referred to by him; that it created a lack of; confidence for two men to covenant to reveal all acts of secrecy or otherwise to each other and Elder Page showed a little grannyism. He said that no two men when they agreed to go together ought to separate, that the prophets of old would not and quoted the circumstance of Elijah and Elisha III Kings 2 chapter when about to go to Gilgal, also when about to go to Jericho, and to Jordan, that Elisha could not get clear of Elijah, that he clung to his garment until he was taken to heaven and that Elder Page should have stuck by Elder Hyde, and he might have gone to Jerusalem, that there is nothing very bad in it, but by theexperience let us profit; again, the Lord made use of Elder Page as a scape goat to procure funds for Elder Hyde. . . .

Don't Listen to Rumor

¶ Pres't. J. Smith spoke upon the subject of the stories respecting Elder Kimball and others, showing the folly and inconsistency of spending any time in conversing about such stories or hearkening to them, for there is no person that is acquainted with our principles would believe such lies, except Sharp the editor of the "Warsaw Signal."

Baptisms for Health and for the Dead in Temple Font Only

Baptisms for the dead, and for the healing of the body must be in the font, those coming into the church and those rebaptized may be done in the river.

¶ A box should be prepared for the use of the font, that the clerk may be paid, and a book procured by the monies to be put therein by those baptized, the remainder to go to the use of the Temple.1

Rainy in the fore part of the day conference opened at 1 o'clock President J. Smith H. Smith Wm Law & the Twelve took the stand & opened meeting & spoke upon a variety of subjects & called upon those who wished to be ordained to the office of an Elder to come forward & have their names taken many came forward.

Notes

1. The practice of Latter-day Saints being baptized again for the remission of sins or as a sign of rededication was common in this period and remained a part of Church practice for many years. It was discontinued after the beginning of the next century. The practice of being baptized "for health" originated from the experience of several Saints who upon being baptized were healed of some affliction. Even Joseph Smith had directed individuals to be baptized for this purpose. The practice was discontinued during the administration of Joseph F. Smith (1901-1918).


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