These historic resources can amplify your ‘Come, Follow Me’ study right in the Gospel Library app

This article is from The Joseph Smith Papers and is shared with permission. 

The Joseph Smith Papers includes a wealth of information that can enhance your study of Joseph Smith’s revelations and the other texts in the Doctrine and Covenants. The list here includes resources developed by the staff of the Joseph Smith Papers Project and by other scholars in the Church History Department of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

From the Gospel Library, click on Restoration and Church History.

Click on Doctrine and Covenants Study.

Then click on whatever resource you want to use. We’ll explain each of these below.

Joseph Smith’s Revelations: A Doctrine and Covenants Study Companion from the Joseph Smith Papers, updated in 2020, is a compilation and historical study of the earliest surviving versions of Joseph Smith’s revelations now found in the Doctrine and Covenants. It was compiled from previous publications of the Joseph Smith Papers and is designed for those looking to better understand the original text and historical background of these revelations. This publication is also available as a free epub download, which can be loaded into an e-reader, or the e-book can be downloaded through Deseret Book and Amazon.

Doctrine and Covenants, Historical Resources is specifically designed to supplement the Come, Follow Me curriculum for 2021. It follows the Come Follow Me—For Individuals and Families manual chapter by chapter and provides much more historical material for those who want to research in depth. There are maps, biographical summaries, glossary terms, and artwork and artifacts from the Church’s historical collections.

Revelations in Context: The Stories behind the Sections of the Doctrine and Covenants contains stories told from the point of view of individuals from Church history whose lives were affected by the revelations in the Doctrine and Covenants. Each chapter gives insight into the meaning of the revelations. What questions prompted the revelations? What did the responses mean to those addressed in the revelations? How did they respond? Also available in print through store.ChurchofJesusChrist.org and Deseret Book.

Joseph Smith Papers Podcasts shares two podcasts done by the Joseph Smith Papers.

The Priesthood Restored: A Joseph Smith Papers Podcastis a six-part miniseries from the Joseph Smith Papers Project that explores the events and circumstances that played a role in the restoration of the priesthood. Series host Spencer W. McBride interviews historians, researchers, General Authorities, and others in a documentary-style podcast about this defining topic in Latter-day Saint history.

The First Vision: A Joseph Smith Papers Podcastis a six-part miniseries from the Joseph Smith Papers Project that explores the history and legacy of Joseph Smith’s First Vision. Series host Spencer W. McBride interviews historians in a documentary-style podcast about this pivotal event in Latter-day Saint history.

► You may also like: 6 things I learned from the new Church podcast, ‘The Priesthood Restored’

Featured Topics

Several Featured Topics on the Joseph Smith Papers website may be helpful to those studying the Doctrine and Covenants:

“Sources behind the Doctrine and Covenants” is an easy-to-use list linking to the earliest surviving version of each section of the current edition of the Doctrine and Covenants, with images of the original and extensive introductory material and footnotes.

“Corresponding Section Numbers in Editions of the Doctrine and Covenants” is a list of all sections included in various editions of the Doctrine and Covenants. Users studying changes in the Doctrine and Covenants over time may find this list especially helpful.

“Publishing Joseph Smith’s Revelations” presents documents relating to the publication of Joseph Smith’s revelations in the Book of Commandments (1833) and the first edition of the Doctrine and Covenants (1835). These resources are the first step in learning more about how this modern-day book of scripture came to be.

Introductions

The following series and volume introductions from Joseph Smith Papers print volumes provide information on Joseph Smith’s role as a revelator and the process of recording and publishing the revelations in the 1830s and 1840s:

“Joseph Smith as Revelator and Translator” is the introduction to the Revelations and Translations series as a whole.

“Manuscript Revelation Books” is an introduction to the first volume of the Revelations and Translations series, which reproduces the earliest handwritten compilations of the revelations.

“Joseph Smith–Era Publications of Revelations” is an introduction to the second volume of the Revelations and Translations series, which reproduces the compilations of revelations published during Joseph Smith’s lifetime.

Lead image: Shutterstock