Joseph Smith Jr. Quotes
No honest man can doubt for a moment, but the glory of American Liberty, is on the wane
Smith and his converts were severely persecuted and the governments at the time (local, State, and Federal) would not uphold many of their rights and freedoms. Hence the observation. Smith had written to most of the then likely Presidential candidates of both major parties asking for their position on the Mormons who were facing persecution wherever they went. None of the politicians would make and satisfactory commitments. Smith took Direct Action and became the only major religious official to have run for the Presidency of the United States until Pat Robertson tried and failed in 2000. Smith’s assassination shortly thereafter cut his run for the Presidency short before it made much headway and politically he had no chance to affect the race.
Joseph Smith, Jr., 1805-1844, Founder of the Mormon Religion, General Smith's Views on the Powers and Policy of the Government of the United States, Platform for his run for the Presidency, February 7, 1844
Sourced by: Eigen's Political and Historical Quotations
Young and the Mormons sent missionaries to many counties and made many converts. Since few countries provided a great deal of religious freedom, Young and other Mormons believed that God himself had created America with its freedom. Ironically, it was this advertising of America as a land of freedom that caused many Americans to discriminate against Mormons. The issue of Mormonism was conflated with a strong nativist and anti-immigrant sentiment that has existed among a part of the American population throughout its history. Many opposed the Mormons for the main reason that they were encouraging and in many cases aiding large numbers of immigrants to the United States.
The Congress was encouraging all men volunteer for the military and defend the new nation now that the British were landing in force to put down the revolution. By modern language standards, this is a little “over the top” but it shows not only the passion felt by the Congress but the importance they placed on the struggle.
Joseph Smith, Jr. was an American religious leader and founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. When he was twenty-four, Smith published the Book of Mormon. By the time of his death fourteen years later, he had attracted tens of thousands of followers and founded a religious culture that continues to the present.
