Restoration

July 05, 2024 11:34 AM MDT
I've always liked to keep my mental shelves fully stocked with absolutes and platitudes. Until the late Melissa Inouye showed me the power of emptiness.
4 Min Read
October 18, 2023 07:30 AM MDT
“The Church is a real place to do real work on being real children of God.”
7 Min Read
July 28, 2023 10:14 AM MDT
“We may begin with habit, duty, fear of hell, or hope of heaven. But the only durable discipleship is rooted in the capacity to feel and reciprocate the love of Christ.”
11 Min Read
September 20, 2022 05:00 AM MDT
“It’s overly simplistic to say that the Presbyterian God abhorred people and the Methodist God didn’t, but the contrast helps us see a difference that meant a lot to Joseph.”
4 Min Read
July 19, 2022 12:00 PM MDT
When the first volume of The Work and the Glory series was published in 1990, readers instantly fell in love with the Steed family and their adventures in 1800s Palmyra.
8 Min Read
May 13, 2022 12:30 PM MDT
While the First Vision holds great significance, little would have happened had Joseph’s interactions with heavenly messengers ended there.
2 Min Read
May 12, 2022 03:32 PM MDT
“What does [the priesthood] bring into our lives? Why did God need this authority? Why did God need these ordinances in our lives at this time?”  
4 Min Read
March 01, 2022 09:15 AM MST
How can the gospel of Jesus Christ help heal our fallen world and provide answers in an age characterized by “wars and rumors of wars” when “the love of men shall wax cold”?
6 Min Read
January 31, 2022 08:00 AM MST
Did you know the first baptism for the dead was a mother acting in proxy for her recently deceased son?
3 Min Read
More than 200 deliveries of food to local pantries across the state of New York were made by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 2020 to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
5 Min Read
November 25, 2020 11:08 AM MST
Anthony Sweat isn’t just a BYU religion professor and an author; he is also a talented artist. We recently sat down to ask him about his latest book, his faith, his family, and his love of painting unique Church history events.
4 Min Read
October 23, 2020 08:23 PM MDT
This article was originally shared on LDS Living in 2017 and has been updated to reflect additional recent counsel.
4 Min Read
Two hundred deliveries to food pantries and charities in the state of New York are being donated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the first appearance of God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, in Palmyra, New York, to Joseph Smith, prophet and first president of the Church.
4 Min Read
July 31, 2020 03:56 PM MDT
One of the many ways April general conference was "unforgettable" was the introduction of “The Restoration of the Fulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ: A Bicentennial Proclamation to the World.”
35 Min Read
July 31, 2020 12:00 PM MDT
Editor's note: Our bi-weekly Friday column, “Found in the footnotes,” explores some of the footnotes from remarks given by General Authorities and General Officers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
3 Min Read
July 01, 2020 08:43 PM MDT
In May 1829, Hyrum Smith traveled 160 miles from Palmyra, New York, to visit Joseph and Emma in Harmony, Pennsylvania, eager to learn more about Joseph's recent work and revelations as prophet. During Hyrum's stay, Joseph received a revelation for his brother, which is now known as section 11 in the Doctrine and Covenants.
1 Min Read
June 05, 2020 07:20 PM MDT
Two months ago, President Russell M. Nelson introduced a new bicentennial proclamation in general conference.
1 Min Read
May 21, 2020 12:30 PM MDT
Church magazines are full of accounts of the Lord guiding hearts and hands around the world. This month, however, there is an extra special story behind the magazine itself. Hidden in the brushstrokes of all four magazines’ cover art (The Ensign, Liahona, New Era, and Friend) is a stunning story of the Lord’s tender involvement in the world.
9 Min Read
March 31, 2020 07:20 PM MDT
Elder Neil L. Andersen of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles says he has testified hundreds of times of the Father, the Son, and the prophet Joseph Smith, but he still remembers a time as a 16-year-old boy when he shared his testimony of the First Vision.
1 Min Read
Editor's note: The Power of Stillness is the LDS Living Book Club's book of the month. Join the conversation on the LDS Living Book Club's Instagram.
3 Min Read
March 24, 2020 01:29 PM MDT
How have you done with your general conference prep? Maybe you feel your desires to study the Restoration per President Nelson’s invitation have exceeded your ability, or maybe you have been successful in your study but want a little refresher? In a new video published on Monday, David Butler and Emily Belle Freeman remind viewers that preparing for conference in a way that makes it extra special can still be done in a few easy steps:
2 Min Read
March 04, 2020 08:30 PM MST
Editor's note: Due to COVID-19, this event has been rescheduled for June 4.
3 Min Read
February 28, 2020 05:00 PM MST
At the end of the October 2019 general conference, President Russell M. Nelson said that April 2020 conference would be "different from any previous conference."
5 Min Read
February 26, 2020 01:42 PM MST
President Russell M. Nelson posted a video across social media platforms Wednesday morning issuing his second invitation of 2020.
1 Min Read
February 03, 2020 08:27 PM MST
Is the Restoration finished?
1 Min Read
October 08, 2018 09:10 AM MDT
At noon on the Ides of March, 1493, a small wooden ship rode the rising tide up the Río Tinto and into the harbor of Palos, Spain. She wasn’t much of a ship—her deck was only about 55 feet long. She was weathered but solidly built and appeared to be newly caulked. She was named the Santa Clara, but was usually called the Niña after her owner, Juan Niño of Moguer. The Niña had last been seen in Palos on August 3, 1492, sailing down the ebb tide with two other ships, the Santa María and the Pinta as part of an attempt to reach the Orient by sailing west across the uncharted waters.
8 Min Read
November 10, 2017 05:01 PM MST
The people of Connecticut in those days thought it wicked to believe in any religion, or belong to any church, except the Presbyterian. They did not believe in having any prophets, apostles, or revelations, as they had in the days of Jesus, and as we now have in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
5 Min Read
August 25, 2017 03:08 PM MDT
It's amazing to see how historical events helped shape the Restoration of the gospel.
1 Min Read
By  LDS Living
May 16, 2017 07:51 PM MDT
The Restoration of the Aaronic Priesthood took place on May 15, 1829. For nearly 200 years, different depictions of this event portrayed in film and art, as well as in photographs that claim to represent its location, have led to confusion about its true location. This recent video from Book of Mormon Central explains historians' current understanding regarding where the Aaronic Priesthood was restored.
1 Min Read
April 06, 2017 04:00 PM MDT
As Latter-day Saints, we tend to assume that the heavens were sealed until the Sacred Grove appearance in 1820 and that the Restoration didn't really begin until Moroni tutored Joseph and subsequently gave him the plates in 1827. But that isn't entirely true.
9 Min Read
January 26, 2017 09:43 AM MST
The following is an excerpt from the book The Witness of Women: Firsthand Experiences and Testimonies from the Restoration, by Janiece Johnson and Jennifer Reeder:
14 Min Read
January 11, 2017 08:55 PM MST
Close behind the organization of the Church in the meridian of time came the apostasy, accompanied by a diversification of beliefs that would lead ultimately to thousands of different Christian denominations. Every doctrinal disagreement seemed to be a cause for reorganization: perhaps the only cause. In any religious organization where doctrine does not matter, or where there is unity of opinion about the doctrine, splinter groups are not likely to break off from the main body. But thousands had broken off and now, on the 6th of April of 1830, the time had finally come for the Lord to put things right and to restore “the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth . . .” (D&C 1:30).
13 Min Read
December 01, 2016 10:37 PM MST
Joseph Smith–History 1:1–26
4 Min Read
February 27, 2016 02:42 PM MST
What a beautiful testimony from this post: "That was Joseph. Unlikely, uneducated, untainted. God, knowing a successful restoration was imperative to the divine plan, chose Joseph. Not just at age 14, but every step of the way."
1 Min Read
December 23, 2015 04:30 PM MST
Look at how the prayer of a teenage boy has transformed the world we live in today. Check out these great insights from John Bytheway about what the world would look like if Joseph Smith had never been born.
1 Min Read
November 20, 2015 06:14 PM MST
Within the first few pages of the Book of Mormon, readers come across the names of 11 witnesses, each who has signed his name as someone who has either seen or felt the ancient plates that Joseph Smith used to translate the Book of Mormon.
1 Min Read
September 21, 2015 01:05 PM MDT
Over 180 years ago, on May 15, 1829, the priesthood of God was restored in a quiet and remote corner of what used to be Harmony, Pennsylvania. This past Saturday, September 19, President Russell M. Nelson traveled back to this sacred spot to dedicate the Church's newly developed site and visitor's center, making the surrounding areas the last of the major historic Church sites to be developed.
2 Min Read
Fun
March 25, 2015 01:11 PM MDT
What a beautiful rendition!
1 Min Read
March 11, 2015 01:30 PM MDT
As I consider each of the various arguments against Mormonism, my mind always comes back to the many questions that Mormon doctrine seems to answer with ease. These questions….and their answers form what I consider to be a doctrinal “Mormon Superstructure”.
1 Min Read
January 26, 2015 05:05 AM MST
Image from LDS.org.
5 Min Read
December 19, 2014 05:31 PM MST
A group of about 20 people met frequently the first few months after the fire to determine if the building should be rebuilt as a tabernacle, torn down and replaced by something new, or maybe transformed as a temple, Utt said.
1 Min Read
Fun
July 16, 2014 02:40 PM MDT
Come, Come Ye Saints
1 Min Read
April 18, 2014 02:50 PM MDT
President Spencer W. Kimball’s remarks on “The Gospel Vision of the Arts” thrilled many members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints of my generation.
1 Min Read
March 22, 2013 04:14 AM MDT
Preparation: Make separate word strips for each scripture reference (see below). Gather the pictures needed from lds.org, the Gospel Art Kit, or Gospel Art Book (see below). Post the pictures from the time of Christ down the left side of the board. Post the modern pictures down the right side of the board (mix up the order). Place the scripture reference word strips in random order down the center.
2 Min Read
March 05, 2013 10:22 PM MST
How do you top the Hill Cumorah? You write The Book of Mormon, a biting, bawdy musical satire about two naïve young Mormon missionaries in Africa. It won nine Tony Awards in 2011 and became the hottest show first on Broadway and then on tour.
1 Min Read
March 05, 2012 01:52 PM MST
Mormons may think they understand the Restoration, but in 19th century America, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was not just another restoriationist religion. Scholar Terryl Givens explained at the “Exploring Mormon Conceptions of the Apostasy” conference on Friday afternoon at BYU: “It is historically misleading in one important regard to consider Mormonism another variety of restorationism. Parley P. Pratt made this seemingly obvious point, ‘We can never understand precisely what is meant by restoration until we understand what was taken away.’”
1 Min Read
February 29, 2012 03:55 PM MST
Following the release of the second volume of the manuscript history of the Church online, the Joseph Smith Papers website has now added to its collection a dozen new documents relating to early Latter-day Saint history and Joseph Smith’s personal life. The new documents, dated from 1829 to 1838, are owned by Community of Christ, which made the document images available under a licensing agreement with the project.
1 Min Read
February 10, 2012 04:37 PM MST
Decades ago, I attended a gathering where the late Stanley Kimball, a professor of history at Southern Illinois University and president of the Mormon History Association, spoke. His remarks have stuck in my mind ever since. (If anybody out there knows where a written version of the speech can be found, I would be delighted to see it.) Kimball explained what he called the "three levels" of Mormon history, which he termed Levels A, B, and C. (Given my own background in philosophy, I might have chosen Hegel's terminology instead: "thesis," "antithesis" and "synthesis.")
1 Min Read