Joseph Smith, Martyr?

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Most Mormons grow up having been taught that Joseph Smith was unjustly thrown in jail and then murdered by an angry mob, therefore being made a martyr for his faith. The problem is that this narrative is not the truth. The glossed over history they have been taught is a fairy tale, created to put Joseph in the best possible light. The real story of Joseph Smith’s death is far from what most Mormons believe. When the truth of the actual historical events are known, Joseph looks a lot less like a martyr and much more like a deeply flawed tragic figure who met a predictable demise.
 
It wasn’t a martyrdom. A martyr wouldn’t have smuggled guns. It was a gun fight. Joe killed two. The mob killed two. It was a tie score.
 
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Someone who is murdered standing up for their faith. Like when early Christians were given the choice to either renounce their faith and worship Caesar or suffer execution. They stood as witnesses for God even unto death.

Dying in a jail gunfight where Joseph used smuggled-in firearms to shoot back and injured or killed other men was not martyrdom. He did not deserve to be killed, but he certainly didn’t act like a martyr.
 
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What he did to get thrown in jail was burn down the Navoo Expositor printing press, which had recently published a newspaper exposing his unscrupulous conduct as the leader of the LDS church. The paper was written by church members (including ones at the very top) who became disillusioned with Joseph after they witnessed him doing a lot of bad stuff. Among other things, the paper exposed his polygamous marriage practices, which he had lied about previously to the public with denials.

This is not too far off from what the LDS church still does today to silence dissenters. Nowadays they just excommunicate members who publicly challenge the church’s truth claims or challenge the leadership in some other way. The church calls it apostacy. Excommunication is a way to discredit dissenters so other members won’t listen to them. You might be surprised to know that excommunications for apostacy happen very frequently.
 
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My guess is that among the mob were a number of men who didn’t appreciate Brother Joe hitting on their wives. He did a lot of that.
 
Yes the similarities between the two are striking, yet LDS don’t see it. They refuse to see it.
 
Although the LDS claim JS was a martyr the fact he was shooting back, was in jail for a crime, and smuggled in guns would indicate he was not.
 
Joseph Smith is not a martyr. He’s not even a Christian.

A martyr dies for their belief in Christ, not just any religion.

The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church,

Deacon Christopher
 
Diaconia said:
Joseph Smith is not a martyr. He’s not even a Christian.

A martyr dies for their belief in Christ, not just any religion.

The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church,

Deacon Christopher
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Your statement about Joseph Smith not being a Christian is 100% false.
 
Diaconia said:
Joseph Smith is not a martyr. He’s not even a Christian.
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On whether Joseph Smith was Christian, perhaps we can be charitable to our LDS friends positing here and allow God to judge on that one. I’m more than happy to turn that judgement over to God.
 
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The Catholic Church has spoken definitively on Mormonism.

Their baptisms are invalid, and they are, therefore not Christians.

They do not believe in the Trinity, and are polytheistic.

Deacon Christopher
 
Diaconia said:
The Catholic Church has spoken definitively on Mormonism.

Their baptisms are invalid, and they are, therefore not Christians.

They do not believe in the Trinity, and are polytheistic.

Deacon Christopher
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What results are you expecting from Mormons who read your post Deacon Christopher?
 
Diaconia said:
They do not believe in the Trinity, and are polytheistic.
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By your criteria, neither is Justin Martyr a Christian. He believed in two Gods and was not a Trinitarian.

[T]here is said to be, another God and Lord subject to the Maker of all things; who is called an Angel…. I shall endeavor to persuade you, that He is said to have appeared to Abraham, and to Jacob, and to Moses, and who is called God, is distinct from Him who made all things – numerically, I mean, not [distinct] in will.” (Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho 56[ANF 1:223])

I hope this helps…
 
Being a Christian is not subjective nor is it based on behavior. Being a Christian is completely objective.

To be a Christian means one believes in ONE God, creator of heaven and earth. A God who is, has always been, and will always be. To be a Christian means to believe in Jesus Christ, who God sent from heaven to be incarnate and save the world. Jesus Christ established His Church on earth and left it in the care of the apostles to grow throughout the nations. They were also left with the Holy Spirit to ensure the Church would not stray from the true teachings of Christ.

The LDS do not believe as we believe. They try to convince others they do and even sometimes sound as if they do. However they have a trick with manipulating language, using the same words but giving them different meanings.

They will deflect by cherry picking random quotes taken out of context to attempt to prove the Catholic Church is wrong rather than defend their own teachings.

Are the LDS capable of Christian behavior, of course they are. Everyone is capable of Christian behavior but that does not make them a Christian by definition of what it is to be Christian.
 
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