Crandall Printing Museum

I found the Crandall Printing Museum highly interesting. It was very fun to learn about printing because I knew absolutely nothing about it beforehand. The guides were incredibly knowledgeable, and it was even better that they actually worked as printers during their life. They knew so many fun facts and made the presentation very interesting and hands-on which made it easier to learn.
One thing I found fascinating was that Gutenberg’s Printing Press, which he invented in 1440, was not improved upon until the late 20th Century. This is incredible! The technology that he used to create his moveable type and printing press in the 1400s could not be improved for hundreds of years! He was a truly intelligent and inspired man that he could make that kind of invention during the era in which he lived.
Another thing that struck me was the amount of time that went into printing. It was a truly time consuming process! I can’t believe they had to pick out every single letter, and then put them into a long line of type. And do that with every single line of type throughout the whole paper! I thought it was funny that they would hire 14 years old boys to do this during the summer; it was probably the only people they could persuade to do the tedious job.
The point I found the most amazing was how they tied the Joseph Smith story into printing. They talked about how incredible it was that there was a Gutenberg press in Joseph Smith’s town, along with the presence of a bookbinder. These two things were very uncommon and I think it was truly the work of God that they were together in the same town where Joseph was ready to publish the Book of Mormon. He told us that the printer was reluctant to print the Book of Mormon at first, but he took the job because he needed the money. So Joseph Smith ordered 5,000 copies of the book of Mormon to be printed, and he wanted them done by April 6. The amazing part of the story is that starting in August like they did, the job should have taken at least 2 years. But incredibly, they were done by April 6 so that Joseph Smith could organize the church. Men could not have done this job on their own. Truly Heavenly Father had his hand in the work of the printing of the Book of Mormon. You could tell how amazing this was by the emotion of the guide who told us this story. He had printed his entire life and knew the hard work and time that printing required. He had tears in his eyes as he adamantly told us that God helped those men who printed the Book of Mormon. This to me was a very testimony building experience, and convinced me even more of the divinity of the Book of Mormon.
We are so lucky to have the Crandall Printing Museum so close to us in Provo. It is one of the best printing museums in the entire world, and is continually gathering new artifacts for display and improving their museum so that people can gain a new appreciation towards the work of printing.

Religious Freedom

One of the things I have found most fascinating in our discussions so far this semester is the concept of Religious Freedom. Religion, I believe, is something that shapes history more than almost anything else.
When I have learned history in the past, I always learned how the pilgrims came here to America so that they could find religious freedom that they were denied in England. I always felt so proud that some of my ancestors had the courage to stand up for their religious beliefs and come to a strange new land. However, in one of the greatest ironies in history, once they had their religious freedom here, they promptly set about to denying those freedoms to all people who did not believe as they did. I don’t know how I missed that connection through all my years of studying history! I heard about the religious laws and Salem witch trials and things, but I did not make the connection that the very people who came here to find religious freedom were the ones persecuting others.
Once the Puritans came here, they quickly set up their own little society that was very exclusive and persecuted others. The priests also became almost like dictators who determined how the society was run. Everyone had to worship exactly the same, or they were ostracized and persecuted. It made it worse that the church and the state were one in the same, which made every individual of the community conform. Where is the religious freedom that the Puritans came to find?
There are countless examples of the Puritans flagrant disregard for religious freedom. When Anne Hutchison tried to hold private bible studies in her house, she was found guilty of “faulty preaching,” merely for expressing her own ideas about religion. Most of this persecution was probably aggravated more because of the fact that she was a woman, and she was eventually banished from Massachusetts and had to flee to Rhode Island. Another example is Roger Williams, who was also banished from the colony for expressing views contrary to those of the ministers. It’s so funny how different their definitions and views of religious freedom were. Of course they hated it when they were the ones being persecuted in England for their beliefs that were contrary to the churches, but as soon as they are in power they do the same thing. They had no idea that to be a truly free county, people must be able to worship, as they will, with church and state completely separate. In their society freedoms were forced on people with no thought for their individual rights and liberties.
The Salem Witch trials are an example of the extreme measures that were taken to ensure religious conformity. People posed suspicions about members and non-members alike, especially Quakers, and because they were even thought to have gone against the church they received no fair trial. Especially since the trial was run by the ministers of the church! It is always amazing to me how out of hand their society got at this period of time. It went far beyond denying people their religious freedom; it actively went about accusing people on every unfounded accusation! All they had to go on were the testimonies of some clearly deranged young girls, and they ended up hanging a number of innocent people! It is amazing what a slippery slope it is once you start denying people their freedoms. Soon the government, or church in this case, didn’t see anything wrong with killing people without any concrete evidence. Even after this, states would declare a “state religion,” and would persecute those who did not comply. I am so deeply grateful for the Founding Fathers and their great wisdom and foresight for including in the first amendment a declaration of people’s freedom of religion. They saw the tyranny that ensued when the church and state were fused and promised that America would never have a specific religion that it would be a melting pot where people from all religions could live in peace with each other. Without this statement, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints could never have been restored to the earth. I’m so grateful that here in America we are truly free to worship exactly as we please. It is a promise that is denied to so many peoples around the earth, and we need to remember and be mindful of it.

American Revolution and the Book of Mormon

I think that people try entirely to hard to discredit Joseph Smith, and consequently the Book of Mormon. People who look to criticize and discredit will always find something to rag on, even if their arguments don’t really make sense. Such as the one that says since there are political sentiments in the Book of Mormon that are comparable to the time period Joseph Smith lived in, he must have copied from them. This is absolutely absurd. The Nephites experienced the best reforms in their society when they were under the instruction of a prophet. The United States of America was in fact created as a nation with the help of God, in order to create a political climate in which freedom of religion and the coming forth of the Book of Mormon would be possible. These kind of political ideals exist in all societies that are living righteously with the help of God.
Another point that makes it clear that Joseph Smith did not invent the Book of Mormon is the issue of Kings. The attitudes of the Nephite people towards Kings are very different than the attitudes that would have been prominent during Joseph Smith’s times. In Joseph Smith’s time period, the people had just gotten rid of a tyrannical King and had no wish to ever be under a King’s rule again. Whereas in the Book of Mormon times, the people literally created King’s for themselves and did not know what to do without a King to rule over them. Even when they first arrived in the New World they straight away asked Nephi to be their King. This is very different than the mindset of the people during Joseph Smith’s time.
A third point to consider is that most all of the principles associated with the American Constitution are disregarded altogether. All of the checks and balances instituted by the founding fathers to check the government are completely missing. Separation of Powers was simply not heard of in Book of Mormon times. They had a chief judge who was a judge, and an executive legislator all rolled into one. He also made laws. In conclusion, I think that it is really futile to try and discredit the book of Mormon in comparing it to the political mindset of Joseph Smith’s era. Clearly the politics at that time and during the Book of Mormon’s time are very different. The Book of Mormon peoples were just like other ancient civilizations, very dependent on Kings and not sure what other types of governments there could be. It was only after God opened the minds of the Founding Fathers and inspired them about another type of government that this type of freedom occurred. The Book of Mormon stands as a witness itself that Joseph Smith could never have invented the things that are found in it. It was truly a work inspired of God, and anyone that tries to discredit or defame it is really just wasting all of their time.

A Revolution of Sober Expectations

I love the Revolution of Sober Expectations article. I love the point made in the article that it wasn’t just the Revolution, or the Constitution alone that set up America as a free and democratic government, it was both combined. When the founders wrote and signed the Declaration of Independence, it was unlike any other revolution in the world. With any other revolution, a new government is immediately put into effect. With the Declaration of Independence, the ideals and rights that the founders deemed important were stated, but a form of government to protect those rights was not formed. It was like a great pause while the world waited with bated breath to see what would happen after the war was over. Finally, with the Constitution, the world could breathe again. Finally a new government unlike any other was created. The Constitution was the second part that made the American Revolution complete. It built upon the rights and principles listed in the Declaration of Independence and set up institutions that would protect and defend these rights. I also find it fascinating that the Declaration doesn’t specifically state what kind of government should be instituted. It simply lays out what rights the people ought to have, and says that the people also have a right to have whatever form of government they choose. It could be any type of government and it would be fine as long as it had the consent of the governed. And that, I think, is the beauty of America. It’s not that our government is absolutely perfect, because it’s not. It’s that it’s all focused on the people. The people’s unalienable rights, and their right to choose a government that they feel will best protect those rights.