Oh, How Lovely Was the Morning: Sun 26 Mar 1820?
FEATURES
- The Part of Christ’s Sacrifice You Haven’t Considered by H. Wallace Goddard
- No Simple Slogans for Israel and Gaza by Gale Boyd
- Inside Out Joy by Kathy K. Clayton
- What Archeology Has Taught Us About Lehi’s Jerusalem by Daniel C. Peterson
- Come Follow Me Book of Mormon Podcast #13: “He Shall Rise … with Healing in His Wings,” Easter by Scot and Maurine Proctor
- The First Presidency Announces New Voice for ‘Music & the Spoken Word’ by Meridian Church Newswire
- A Special Edition Podcast: A Message of Faith and Hope from the Proctors by Scot and Maurine Proctor
- Relearning Touch After Betrayal by Geoff Steurer, MS, LMFT
- Come Listen to a Prophet’s Voice by Carolyn Nicolaysen
- Watch First Video From Final Season of “Book of Mormon Videos” by Larry Richman
-
What Archeology Has Taught Us About Lehi’s Jerusalem
-
Kevin Bacon Accepts Invitation to Payson High School Prom
-
Four Contacts to Make After the Mission
-
How the Coming Forth of the Book of Mormon Is Similar to the Resurrection of Jesus Christ
-
5 Tips for Writing about Friendship
-
‘Mistakes do not disqualify us,’ Elder Uchtdorf says in new video
By Church News -
Inside Out Joy
Comments | Return to Story
ScottMarch 28, 2020
Oh, my goodness. Where to begin? Those commenters citing the need for leaves on the trees because that's how it's depicted in the church films, you obviously have never heard of poetic license. Think of the temple films with different actors portraying the same roles in different ways. Which one is correct, or are they all together wrong? And for the person thinking that leaves were necessary in order to not be seen, do you really think that God times his interactions with mortals to coincide with whether He will be seen or not? "With God, all things are possible," even making what would be visible to one invisible to another. The research that the author has done, though compelling, doesn't necessarily mean that March 26, 1820 was indisputably the date, but the arguments that have been put forth by the commenters are really, um..., silly.
EllenMarch 31, 2015
The art and movie portrayals don't have much to do with what "spring", early or late, looks like in the Northeast. Frost is quite possible as late as mid May, so green leaves would be more "very late spring" or early summer.
DianeMarch 27, 2015
Absolutely fascinating! I love a background story. And what better background story than this pivotal event! I told my Seminary class this year that everything derives from this single episode. Everything. If it happened, then everything that followed was of God. When this event actually took place is of lessor importance than the fact that it actually did take place, but fascinating just the same! Thank you for this!
Mathew ChalkerMarch 26, 2015
As a missionary, I don’t remember anyone ever asking what the exact date was. The “spring of 1820” has always been adequate for humble truth seekers. Folks, could we be on the threshold of analysis paralysis?
KateMarch 26, 2015
I read this article when it was first published and was impressed. Then last year I happened to be in Palmyra, NY, on 1 April. Guess what? There are no leaves on any trees and you can see clear throughout the Sacred Grove. There would be NO PRIVACY there. None. Zip. Nada. It seems unlikely to me that the First Vision occurred that early--Joseph might as well have had his vision in the middle of town as the Sacred Grove if it happened on 26 March. We were driving from Rochester, NY, through Palmyra, down to Ithaca, NY, and then west to Colorado. I looked diligently as we drove, remembering your article and trying to imagine a theophany taking place--no leaves on any bushes or trees in the first week of April until we got almost home to Colorado, and I could easily see quite a ways into all groves and thickets in upstate NY. Sorry, lovely though this argument is, I don't believe you've got the date right. Maybe the end of April or the beginning of May when the trees leaf out.
Mary BelangerMarch 26, 2015
You kind of have to be from central or western New York to understand this; I don't write this to find fault - only to caution you about narrowing your constraints too much. I am from central New York and can tell you that snowfall is not unusual there throughout April. Defining early spring as March 1 - April 15 may work in other places, but someone from that area would consider all of April to be early spring. I don't think you can safely eliminate April 16-30 based on the use of the words "early spring" in Joseph Smith's account.
WallyMarch 26, 2015
I LOVE knowing the backstory of the First Vision! Thank you for publishing this.
Paul W. SextonMarch 26, 2015
Crackerjack research. Thanks for a thorough study and clear writing. I am glad that the lives and activities of "those people" are important to us. The exact date, of course, is less important than the exact event, but it's good to address our nature of wanting to know.
PhilMarch 25, 2015
Fascinating research! One question I would ask is: Could Joseph's qualifier of "early in the spring" been not relative to the equinox of Mar 21 but a more arbitrary reference of when it felt like spring, perhaps later in April or even May. Are there other candidate dates then? The movie portrayals produced by the church show foliage not bare branches, more consistent with May or June.
ADD A COMMENT