Posted by:
RPackham
(
)
Date: August 24, 2015 05:35PM
It's always fun to tour the Mormon hysterical sites.
When my nevermo wife and I went to Carthage, she refused to go inside where the holy brothers were made more holey. But I did.
I was in a group of about fifteen people, and my guess is that every single one of them was a faithful Mormon. Our guide was an old guy who couldn't remember much of the details of anything that wasn't directly connected with the Events of That Day.
As we all entered the room where the Prisoners were at the time of the attack, our guide closed the door reverently. I noticed that boxes of tissues were placed strategically around the room, so that if we were overcome with emotion in that Sacred Place, we could grab one and weep appropriately and without restraint. He paused for a moment, crossed his hands piously over his abdomen, and said quietly, "I'm sure you all feel the Spirit in this room."
I couldn't resist. I said, "Of course, what spirit one feels depends on what one believes, doesn't it?" He said, somewhat flustered, I think, "Of course," and said that we would now listen to a tape recording which re-enacted the sounds of the Prophet's last minutes on earth. One man knelt down and bowed his head as the tape played.
When the tape ended, our guide bore his testimony, assuring us of his admiration for Joseph Smith, for his divine calling, for his great contributions to mankind, and so on. After he finished, he just stood there. Nobody moved, nothing was said. There was a full two minutes of silence. I suppose there was a lot of silent praying going on among my fellow pilgrims. Even the children in the group were silent (having been well-trained, I suppose, in Sunday School). Finally I dared to break the silence and said, "May we ask questions?"
Our guide said that we could. I asked first, "Why didn't the tape recording say anything about the shots Joseph Smith fired at his attackers, using the pistol which he was carrying?"
The guide acknowledged that the Prophet did, indeed, have a pistol that had been smuggled to him, and that he did shoot it. He didn't say why no mention was made on the tape of this brave act.
I then asked, "Exactly how many widows did Joseph Smith leave behind?"
He said, "Well, we don't know, but a number of women had been sealed to him for eternity only." One woman spoke up and said, "We don't know how many!"
I said, "Todd Compton's book - you know, the Mormon historian? - lists about forty, doesn't it? You've read it, haven't you?"
My next question was going to be why there was no mention on the tape of the fact that Joseph Smith, just before he fell from the window, gave the Masonic sign of distress. But then I realized that I was standing right in front of that very window, surrounded by what was becoming an "angry mob," and there were no Masons standing below to come to my aid. Also, unlike Joe, I had no pistol. So I took the coward's way out, and scurried down the stairs.
My wife had entertained herself by watching Mormons having their photos taken in front of the life-sized statue of Joseph and Hyrum on the grounds.