Neither the 1832 account nor the 1835 account appear to have received any public circulation. Oliver writes,On the evening of the 21st of September, 1823, previous to retiring to rest, our brother’s mind was unusually wrought up on the subject which had so long agitated his mind—his heart was drawn out in fervent prayer, and his whole soul was so lost to every thing of a temporal nature, that earth, to him, had lost its claims, and all he desired was to be prepared in heart to commune with some kind messenger who could communicate to him the desired information of his acceptance with God…. Letters throughout 1849 repeat Oliver's hope to move west and also disclose his lack of means. Oliver supervised the printing of the Book of Mormon that fall and winter. ((Smith, “A History of the life of Joseph Smith Jr,” 2. The papers of Oliver Cowdery, his journals, correspondence, and documents, are now being transcribed and annotated for publication in a multi volume set. As one of the three Book of Mormon Witnesses, Oliver Cowdery testified that an angel displayed the gold plates and that the voice of God proclaimed them correctly translated. ((Cowdery to Phelps, Joseph’s 1832 history does not state that his family members joined the Presbyterians, though there is a possible, aborted attempt to do so.
((Cowdery to Phelps, Still not satisfied that he has adequately covered the period of the vision, Oliver continues to elaborate:Note Oliver’s use of the phrase “with a joy unspeakable” in association with Joseph receiving knowledge from the Lord. Something happened that caused Oliver to change his approach, for after he apologized for his apparent haste in documenting the history, he wrote:You will recollect that I mentioned the time of a religious excitement, in Palmyra and vicinity to have been in the 15th year of our brother J. Smith Jr’s, age—that was an error in the type—it should have been in the 17th.—You will please remember this correction, as it will be necessary for the full understanding of what will follow in time. His 1836 journal survives, showing his devotion to religion and family, his political activities, his study of Hebrew, and the spiritual power he shared at the completion of the Kirtland Temple. Nonetheless, when Oliver was tried for his membership, he sent a resignation letter in which he insisted that the truth of modern revelation was not at issue: "Take no view of the foregoing remarks, other than my belief on the outward government of this Church" (This trial was related to the excommunications of Oliver's brothers-in-law John Whitmer and David Whitmer, also at this time; this paralleled Oliver's earlier support of the Whitmer family in the matter of Hiram Page's competing revelations (Oliver's charge of adultery against the Prophet was simplistic, for Oliver already knew about the principle of plural marriage. This is the second known account of the vision written in the first person. Could the aborted phrase have been intended to refer to “about that time” that his mother and other family members were persuaded to unite with the Presbyterians? He skipped over Joseph’s 1832 account of seeing the Lord, and moves straight to Joseph’s vision of Moroni.Not only does Oliver skip the First Vision, but he also now seems to feel it necessary to I do not deem it to be necessary to write further on the subject of this excitement. Oliver spoke in meeting the next Sunday, which was "the first public discourse that was delivered by any of our number" (Few exceeded Cowdery in logical argument and elevated style. Section 27 lists the major priesthood messengers of the restoration: John the Baptist, whom "I have sent unto you, my servants, Joseph Smith, Jr., and Oliver Cowdery, to ordain you unto this first priesthood" (The lesser priesthood was restored on May 15, 1829, two weeks before the Prophet and Cowdery moved to the Whitmers' in New York to complete the translation of the Book of Mormon (After the move to the Whitmer farm, the angel showed the plates to Joseph Smith and the Three Witnesses in June 1829. Some of the account was written in Joseph’s own hand and the rest by Frederick G. Williams. Arrington, Leonard J. ((Cowdery to Phelps, This, of course, is the familiar story leading up to the First Vision. He was born at Wells, Vermont, on October 3, 1806. What, then, are we to make of Oliver’s convoluted account? Does it really describe a “single vision” as the Wikipedia article claims?Oliver’s account does indeed raise some questions. Rather than deny the charge, the Prophet testified that because Oliver had been his "bosom friend," he had "intrusted him with many things" (In 1838, following his excommunication, Oliver returned to Ohio, though he did not, as a fictitious deed states, then pay Bishop Edward Partridge $1,000 for the temple lot in Independence on behalf of his children, John, Jane, and Joseph Cowdery.
((Cowdery to Phelps, Still not satisfied that he has adequately covered the period of the vision, Oliver continues to elaborate:Note Oliver’s use of the phrase “with a joy unspeakable” in association with Joseph receiving knowledge from the Lord. Something happened that caused Oliver to change his approach, for after he apologized for his apparent haste in documenting the history, he wrote:You will recollect that I mentioned the time of a religious excitement, in Palmyra and vicinity to have been in the 15th year of our brother J. Smith Jr’s, age—that was an error in the type—it should have been in the 17th.—You will please remember this correction, as it will be necessary for the full understanding of what will follow in time. His 1836 journal survives, showing his devotion to religion and family, his political activities, his study of Hebrew, and the spiritual power he shared at the completion of the Kirtland Temple. Nonetheless, when Oliver was tried for his membership, he sent a resignation letter in which he insisted that the truth of modern revelation was not at issue: "Take no view of the foregoing remarks, other than my belief on the outward government of this Church" (This trial was related to the excommunications of Oliver's brothers-in-law John Whitmer and David Whitmer, also at this time; this paralleled Oliver's earlier support of the Whitmer family in the matter of Hiram Page's competing revelations (Oliver's charge of adultery against the Prophet was simplistic, for Oliver already knew about the principle of plural marriage. This is the second known account of the vision written in the first person. Could the aborted phrase have been intended to refer to “about that time” that his mother and other family members were persuaded to unite with the Presbyterians? He skipped over Joseph’s 1832 account of seeing the Lord, and moves straight to Joseph’s vision of Moroni.Not only does Oliver skip the First Vision, but he also now seems to feel it necessary to I do not deem it to be necessary to write further on the subject of this excitement. Oliver spoke in meeting the next Sunday, which was "the first public discourse that was delivered by any of our number" (Few exceeded Cowdery in logical argument and elevated style. Section 27 lists the major priesthood messengers of the restoration: John the Baptist, whom "I have sent unto you, my servants, Joseph Smith, Jr., and Oliver Cowdery, to ordain you unto this first priesthood" (The lesser priesthood was restored on May 15, 1829, two weeks before the Prophet and Cowdery moved to the Whitmers' in New York to complete the translation of the Book of Mormon (After the move to the Whitmer farm, the angel showed the plates to Joseph Smith and the Three Witnesses in June 1829. Some of the account was written in Joseph’s own hand and the rest by Frederick G. Williams. Arrington, Leonard J. ((Cowdery to Phelps, This, of course, is the familiar story leading up to the First Vision. He was born at Wells, Vermont, on October 3, 1806. What, then, are we to make of Oliver’s convoluted account? Does it really describe a “single vision” as the Wikipedia article claims?Oliver’s account does indeed raise some questions. Rather than deny the charge, the Prophet testified that because Oliver had been his "bosom friend," he had "intrusted him with many things" (In 1838, following his excommunication, Oliver returned to Ohio, though he did not, as a fictitious deed states, then pay Bishop Edward Partridge $1,000 for the temple lot in Independence on behalf of his children, John, Jane, and Joseph Cowdery.