LdS, my RLDS friend tells me that Joseph Smith III was the rightful heir to his Father's office(s). And by not later ceding the Presidency to JSIII (and by sanctioning polygamy) Brigham Young lead the Utah LdS Church into apostasy. Why is this wrong?
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Mister IT has a Liahona equipped COAT
ANSWERS: 4
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Firstly, Joseph Smith Jr introduced polygamy, so is Brigham Young to be criticized for sanctioning the same? Your friend is on shaky grounds with polygamy. As to the crux of who was the legitimate successor of Joseph Smith Jr, if those intimately involved in the Church at the time couldn't figure it out, how can we when we are so far removed? Brigham Young and Emma Smith had a volatile relationship, so Joseph Smith III probably learned to dislike the man. Likewise, many who followed Brigham wondered if Emma lost her status as an Elect Lady.
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because the RLDS is in direct competition with the LDS church for the claim of being the complete restored gospel. one piece of personal evidence that has always kept me believing that Brigham Young was the true prophet is the fact that he was the only one to continue baptism for the dead and to continue the temple ceremonies, both instituted by Joseph Smith.
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Joseph Smith III was never heir to the office of President and Prophet, only the son of the man God had called to that office. . The Presidency of the church never belonged to Joseph Smith. It belonged to God and was and is his to fill as he sees fit. . God called Brigham Young to that office through the Quorum of the 12 apostles, the highest remaining earthly authority after the death of the Prophet.
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Wrong depends on your perspective. It's right from the CoC perspective. It's wrong from the LDS perspective. From the perspective of the Strangites, Temple Lot, or other non LDS/RLDS restoration groups both LDS and RLDS are apostate imposters. (I'm assuming you know CoC is the current name of RLDS) Looking at history objectively there are at least three or four reasonable claims to succession, and that's not counting the matter of the office of presiding patriarch which was parallel to the office of president. Religious partisans are going to favor their own traditions. And that is to be expected. You are not going to answer a metaphysical question through the scientific method. Latter-day Saints' faith rests on the spiritual witness that the LDS path works for them, not on the particulars of the succession crisis. Replace the names and I expect the same is to be said of RLDS.
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