Praise to the Men

A few weeks back, I had the opportunity to go to an art exhibit at the museum of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints near Temple Square. I had just finished listening to a podcast about the martyrdom of Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum Smith. They had these clothes, worn by Hyrum at the time of his death, displayed at the museum. It made the experience much more real. It dawned on me that Hyrum was with his during all the difficult times Joseph went through. It is natural since he was not the prophet that he wouldn't be mentioned as much in these situations as Joseph, but he deserves just as much admiration. As I understand, he wasn't required to go with Joseph to Carthage, but wouldn't leave his brother alone. They both must have been incredibly brave men.

They are talked about as deceivers and had other horrible accusations levied against them. There is one aspect of the martyrdom I can't forget when I hear these criticisms. I believe President Holland brought this up in his conference talk about the Book of Mormon years ago. They were quoting verses from the Book of Mormon to each other in Carthage. It's inconceivable to me that this could happen if they knew it was false or made up. This is further evidence to me that they did in face seal their testimonies and authenticity of their work with their blood. So praise to the men!