In his closing remarks during the last session of the October 2019 general conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, President Russell M. Nelson designated “the year 2020 . . . as a bicentennial year” commemorating the restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. “In the springtime of the year 2020,” said President Nelson during his talk, “it will be exactly 200 years since Joseph Smith experienced the theophany that we know as the First Vision. God the Father and His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ, appeared to Joseph, a 14-year-old youth. That event marked the onset of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ in its fulness, precisely as foretold in the Holy Bible.”
To prepare for a bicentennial celebration at “a unique [general] conference” of the Church in April 2020, President Nelson invited members of the Church to study the early events of the Restoration “by reading afresh Joseph Smith’s account of the First Vision as recorded in the Pearl of Great Price.”
To help prepare members of the Church for this conference and to assist them in their study of Joseph Smith’s canonical account of the First Vision, Pearl of Great Price Central is pleased to present this study guide. The intended length of this course of study is left to be determined at the discretion of the reader. The guide can be completed in one week (seven topics, one per day) or spread out over the next two months leading up to the April 2020 general conference.
The structure of the study guide is as follows:
Primary Reading: the relevant verses from Joseph Smith–History in the Pearl of Great Price and one or two short articles that provide contextual information relevant to the topic. This is the minimal amount of reading required for each topic.
Secondary Reading: articles that provide more in-depth information relevant to the topic. These articles are encouraged to be read along with the items listed under Primary Reading but are left to the discretion of the reader based on his or her level of interest.
Additional Reading: additional print and online articles relevant to the topic for readers who wish to broaden the scope of their study beyond the material listed in the Primary and Secondary Reading categories.
Additional Resources: miscellaneous multimedia resources to complement the material listed under the Primary, Secondary, and Additional Reading categories.
Pearl of Great Price Central First Vision Study Guide
Topic 1: Joseph Smith’s 1838-39 History and the Pearl of Great Price
Primary Reading
“Introduction” in The Pearl of Great Price.
“Histories” online at www.josephsmithpapers.org.
“The Pearl of Great Price” online at www.josephsmithpapers.org.
Secondary Reading
“Introduction to History, 1838–1856 (Manuscript History of the Church)” online at www.josephsmithpapers.org.
“Joseph Smith as Revelator and Translator” online at www.josephsmithpapers.org.
Dean C. Jessee, “The Writing of Joseph Smith’s History,” BYU Studies 11, no. 4 (1971): 439–473.
James R. Clark, “Our Pearl of Great Price: From Mission Pamphlet to Standard Work,” Ensign, August 1976.
Additional Reading
Dean C. Jessee, “The Reliability of Joseph Smith’s History,” Journal of Mormon History 3 (1976): 23–46.
Paul H. Peterson, “Understanding Joseph: A Review of Published Documentary Sources,” in Joseph Smith: The Prophet, The Man, ed. Susan Easton Black and Charles D. Tate Jr. (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1993), 101–116.
Oscar W. McConkie, “Why the Pearl of Great Price,” in The Pearl of Great Price: Revelations from God, ed. H. Donl Peterson and Charles D. Tate Jr. (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1989), 1–12.
Additional Resources
“First Vision Accounts: Joseph Smith History, 1838–1856”
“Joseph Smith Papers: History of a History”
”Joseph Smith Papers: Joseph Smith and His Papers, Part 1”
“Joseph Smith Papers: Joseph Smith and His Papers, Part 2”
“Joseph Smith Papers: Pearl of Great Price”
Topic 2: The Early Life of Joseph Smith
Primary Reading
“Chapter 1: Ask In Faith,” in Saints: The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days (Salt Lake City, UT: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 2018), 3–10.
“Joseph Sr. and Lucy Mack Smith Family”
Secondary Reading
Richard Neitzel Holzapfel, “The Early Years, 1805–19,” in Joseph Smith, the Prophet and Seer, ed. Richard Neitzel Holzapfel and Kent P. Jackson (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University; Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2010), 1–22.
“Sacred Grove and Smith Family Farm”
Additional Reading
M. Russell Ballard, “The Family of the Prophet Joseph Smith,” Ensign, November 1991.
Daniel R. Winder, “The Smith Family Legacy of Prayer,” Selections from the Religious Education Student Symposium 2007 (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 2007), 18–34.
Donald L. Enders, “The Joseph Smith, Sr., Family: Farmers of the Genesee,” in Joseph Smith: The Prophet, The Man, ed. Susan Easton Black and Charles D. Tate Jr. (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1993), 213–225.
Additional Resources
“Joseph Smith Papers: Joseph’s Roots”
“Joseph Smith Papers: Joseph’s America”
“Joseph Smith Papers: The Family of Joseph Smith, Part 1”
Topic 3: Religious Excitement During Joseph Smith’s Youth
Primary Reading
“Chapter 1: Ask In Faith,” in Saints: The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days (Salt Lake City, UT: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 2018), 11–13.
Secondary Reading
“Christian Churches in Joseph Smith’s Day”
Additional Reading
Joseph T. Antley, “The Cultural and Religious Environment of Joseph Smith’s Youth.” In BYU Religious Education 2010 Student Symposium, 3–21. Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 2010.
Stephen J. Fleming, “John Wesley: A Methodist Foundation for the Restoration,” Religious Educator 9, no. 3 (2008): 131–150.
Milton V. Backman Jr., “Verification of the 1838 Account of the First Vision,” in The Pearl of Great Price: Revelations from God, ed. H. Donl Peterson and Charles D. Tate Jr. (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1989), 197–212.
Porter, Larry C. “Reverend George Lane—Good ‘Gifts,’ Much ‘Grace,’ and Marked ‘Usefulness’,” BYU Studies 9, no. 3 (1969): 321–340.
Additional Resources
“Joseph Smith Papers: Palmyra”
“Joseph Smith Papers: First Vision Beginnings”
“Joseph Smith Papers: Unusual Excitement”
“Episode 5—The Setting of the First Vision”
Topic 4: The Vision
Primary Reading
“Chapter 2: Hear Him,” in Saints: The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days (Salt Lake City, UT: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 2018), 14–19.
Secondary Reading
Richard Lloyd Anderson, “Joseph Smith’s Testimony of the First Vision.” Ensign, April 1996, 10–21.
J. B. Haws, “Reconciling Joseph Smith–––History 1:10 and 1:18–19,” Religious Educator: Perspectives on the Restored Gospel 14, no. 2 (2013): 97–105.
Additional Reading
Steven C. Harper, “A Seeker’s Guide to the Historical Accounts of Joseph Smith’s First Vision.” Religious Educator: Perspectives on the Restored Gospel 12, no. 1 (2011): 165–176.
Additional Resources
Topic 5: The Aftermath of the Vision
Primary Reading
Secondary Reading
Christopher C. Jones, “The Power and Form of Godliness: Methodist Conversion Narratives and Joseph Smith’s First Vision.” Journal of Mormon History 37, no. 2 (Spring 2011): 88–114.
Additional Reading
Truman G. Madsen, “The First Vision and Its Aftermath,” in Joseph Smith the Prophet (Salt Lake City, UT: Bookcraft, 1989), 7–18.
Additional Resources
Ron Barney, “Joseph Smith’s Visions: His Style and his Record,” Presented at the 2013 FairMormon Conference, August 2013.
Topic 6: Joseph Smith’s Firsthand Accounts of the First Vision
Primary Reading
“First Vision Accounts” online at www.churchofjesuschrist.org.
Steven C. Harper, “The First Vision: A Narrative from Joseph Smith’s Accounts” online at www.history.churchofjesuschrist.org.
Secondary Reading
“Primary Accounts of Joseph Smith’s First Vision of Deity” online at www.josephsmithpapers.org.
Steven C. Harper, “Suspicion or Trust: Reading the Accounts of Joseph Smith’s First Vision.” In No Weapon Shall Prosper: New Light on Sensitive Issues, ed. Robert L. Millet (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University; Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2011), 63–75.
Milton V. Backman Jr., “Joseph Smith’s Recitals of the First Vision,” Ensign, January 1985, 8–17.
Additional Reading
James B. Allen, “Eight Contemporary Accounts of Joseph Smith’s First Vision—What Do We Learn from Them?” Improvement Era, April 1970, 4–13.
James B. Allen and John W. Welch. “Analysis of Joseph Smith’s Accounts of His First Vision,” in Opening the Heavens: Accounts of Divine Manifestation, 1820–1844, edited by John W. Welch, 2nd ed (Provo, UT: BYU Studies, 2017), 37–77.
Michael Baldwin, “A Harmony of First Vision Accounts,” in BYU Religious Education 2009 Student Symposium (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 2009), 83–104.
Additional Resources
“Ask of God: Joseph Smith’s First Vision”
“Joseph Smith Papers: Four Accounts”
“Four Firsthand Accounts of the First Vision”
Topic 7: The Significance of the First Vision
Primary Reading
Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “The Fruits of the First Vision,” April 2005 General Conference.
Richard J. Maynes, “The First Vision: Key to Truth,” Ensign, June 2017.
Secondary Reading
James B. Allen, “The Significance of Joseph Smith’s ‘First Vision’ in Mormon Thought,” Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought 1, no. 3 (Autumn 1966): 29–45.
Adele Brannon McCollum, “The First Vision: Re–Visioning Historical Experience,” in Literature of Belief: Sacred Scripture and Religious Experience, ed. Neal E. Lambert (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1981), 175–96.
Douglas N. Marsh, “First Visions: The Opening Events of the Mosaic, Nephite, and Final Dispensations,” Selections from the Religious Education Student Symposium 2006 (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 2006), 53–71.
Additional Reading
J. B. Haws, “First Vision, doctrinal contributions of.” In Pearl of Great Price Reference Companion, 123–125. Edited by Dennis L. Largey. Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book, 2017.
Steven C. Harper, First Vision: Memory and Mormon Origins. New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, 2019.
Matthew B. Brown, A Pillar of Light: The History and Message of the First Vision (American Fork, UT: Covenant Communications, 2009).
