Seeking Mormonism

Joseph Smith Sr, the father of Joseph Smith

Where does Mormonism come from? The Mormons themselves claim that it's the result of a true and inspired divine revelation, given by an angel to the prophet Joseph Smith. Sceptics have advanced other explanations, the most popular being the idea that Joseph Smith was inspired by magical folk traditions in Upstate New York, and perhaps also more robust occult notions.

Dan Vogel's "Religious seekers and the advent of Mormonism" takes yet another tack on the problem. Vogel attempts to trace the pedigree of Mormonism to a group of religious dissenters known as Seekers. This radical Protestant current goes back to the 16th century Reformation, but was particularly strong during the English Civil War (17th century). Still during the 19th century, there were many people in the United States who considered themselves Seekers, including Joseph Smith's father. Vogel distinguishes between "spiritualistic Seekers" and "literalist Seekers". The former group regarded the church, the sacraments and the second advent of Christ as purely spiritual notions. Most of these joined the Quakers. The literalistic Seekers, by contrast, hoped for the restoration of a literal church, a literal millennium under the direct rule of Jesus Christ, and the emergence of an apostle or angel to take the lead in this process. Both groups were charismatic. They also both held that all established churches, sacraments and priesthood ordinances were fallen and invalid. Only God himself could restore the church. Until such a time, the Seekers didn't administer any sacraments, had no priesthood, and were decentralized.

Vogel then attempts to find parallels between the ideas of the Seekers and those of Joseph Smith and the Mormons. Obviously, he finds quite a lot of such! That, after all, is the entire point of his book. Thus, Vogel points out that Seekers and Mormons rejected both Catholicism and Protestantism, regarded the Biblical documents as corrupt, and hoped for the restoration of a prophetic ministry. Instead of the questionable Bible, there would be direct revelation from God to humanity through the medium of new apostles. The new revelations could very well add new truths to the old ones. Vogel points out that the Mormons, just as the Seekers, were intensely charismatic during their first phase of development. Joseph Smith later put an end to the outpourings of the Holy Ghost at Mormon meetings, presumably because they undermined his own authority (other Mormons started having "revelations" of their own).

The author then argues that Mormons and Seekers rejected both Calvinist predestination and anti-Calvinist universalism. The Book of Mormon attacks both doctrines. The premillennialism of the Mormons was, Vogel believes, somewhat unusual within American Christianity during the 1830's. So where did the premillennial ideas come from? Once again, Vogel points to the Seekers, more specifically the literalistic Seekers. Here, his argument is somewhat less clear, since Mormonism might just as well be interpreted as postmillenarian. Isn't the in-gathering of the saints and the building of Zion in America in anticipation of the second advent actually a kind of postmillennialism?

Not knowing much about the Seekers, I honestly don't know whether Vogel's thesis is correct or not. The folk magic, occultist connection seems a more relevant one, since Joseph Smith (not to mention Brigham Young!) developed some pretty strange doctrines.

Still, I recommend Vogel's book to all seekers...