THE DOCTRINE AND COVENANTS
SECTION 102
Minutes of the organization of the first high council of the Church, at Kirtland, Ohio, February 17, 1834. HC 2: 28—31. The original minutes were recorded by Elders Oliver Cowdery and Orson Hyde. Two days later, the minutes were corrected by the Prophet, read to the high council, and accepted by the council.
Verses 30—32, having to do with the Council of the Twelve Apostles, were added by the Prophet Joseph Smith in 1835 when he prepared this section for publication in the Doctrine and Covenants.
1 T
HIS day a general council of twenty-four high priests assembled at the house of Joseph Smith, Jun., by revelation, and proceeded to organize the high council of the church of Christ,
which was to consist of twelve high priests, and one or three presidents as the case might require.
[ Through revelation the Lord continues to organize his church line upon line. ]
2 The high council was
appointed by revelation [ Again the Lord is involved in the process. ] for the purpose of settling important difficulties which might arise in the church, which could not be settled by the church or the bishop’s council
to the satisfaction of the parties.
[ Structure in leadership is beginning to be developed for the saints. ]
3 Joseph Smith, Jun., Sidney Rigdon and Frederick G. Williams were acknowledged presidents by the voice of the council; and Joseph Smith, Sen., John Smith, Joseph Coe, John Johnson, Martin Harris, John S. Carter, Jared Carter, Oliver Cowdery, Samuel H. Smith, Orson Hyde, Sylvester Smith, and Luke Johnson, high priests, were chosen to be a standing council for the church, by the unanimous voice of the council.
4 The above-named councilors were then asked whether they accepted their appointments, and whether they would act in that office according to the law of heaven, to which they all answered that they accepted their appointments, and would fill their offices according to the grace of God bestowed upon them.
5 The number composing the council, who voted in the name and for the church in appointing the above-named councilors were forty-three, as follows: nine high priests, seventeen elders, four priests, and thirteen members.
6 Voted: that
the high council cannot have power to act without seven of the above-named councilors, or their regularly appointed successors are present.
[ Noted that at least 7 of the 12 high counsel must be present to hold a court. ]
7 These seven shall have power to appoint other high priests, whom they may consider worthy and capable to act in the place of absent councilors.
8 Voted: that
whenever any vacancy shall occur [ A permanent vacancy in the council shall be filled by nomination of the presidency and voice of the council, which one would assume implies consensus. ] by the death, removal from office for transgression, or removal from the bounds of this church government, of any one of the above-named councilors, it shall be filled by the nomination of the president or presidents, and sanctioned by the voice of a general council of high priests, convened for that purpose, to act in the name of the church.
9 The president of the church, who is also the president of the council, is appointed by revelation, and acknowledged in his administration by the voice of the church.
10 And it is according to the dignity of his office that he should preside over the council of the church; and it is his privilege to be assisted by two other presidents, appointed after the same manner that he himself was appointed.
11 And in case of the absence of one or both of those who are appointed to assist him, he has power to preside over the council without an assistant; and in case he himself is absent, the other presidents have power to preside in his stead, both or either of them.
[ The president of the Church is the president of the council, and there are two additional presidents. In their absence the others may fill in, but it appears that at least one of the three is required in order to convene the council. However, when traveling abroad, see v. 24-29. ]
[ How the High Council court is to proceed - the order of things. "Our acts are recorded, and at a future day they will be laid before us, and if we should fail to judge right and injure our fellow-beings, they may there, perhaps, condemn us; there they are of great consequence, and to me the consequence appears to be of force, beyond anything which I am able to express. Ask yourselves, brethren, how much you have exercised yourselves in prayer since you heard of this council; and if you are now prepared to sit in council upon the soul of your brother." Teachings Of The Prophet Joseph Smith pg 69]
12 Whenever a high council of the church of Christ is regularly organized, according to the foregoing pattern,
it shall be the duty of the twelve councilors to cast lots by numbers,
[ Lot's are cast in order to determine in a random manner the position that each councelor shal take in the manner and if they shall speak or not. ] and
thereby ascertain who of the twelve shall speak first, commencing with number one and so in succession to number twelve.
[ The order of who will speak, lowest first. verse 13 determones how many will speak. ]
13 Whenever this council convenes to act upon any case,
the twelve councilors shall consider whether it is a difficult one or not;
[ The President presents an idea of the nature of the council, with enough detail that it can be decided how difficult the manner may be to decide. Often will there be witnesses, has the person confessed, the severity of the offense...] if it is not, two only of the councilors shall speak upon it, according to the form above written.
14 But
if it is thought to be difficult, four shall be appointed; and if more difficult, six; but in no case shall more than six be appointed to speak.
15
The accused, in all cases, has a right to one-half of the council, to prevent insult or injustice.
16 And the councilors appointed to speak before the council are to present the case, after the evidence is examined, in its true light before the council; and
every man [ Each councilor who drew a lot, which is all of them but they are assigned by the number that they drew. ] is to speak according to equity and justice.
[ Each councilor appointed to speak is to do so, with one half making sure that no injustice was done the individual and the other half making sure that no injustice is done to the church. I have been on councils where each councilor assigned to speak was asked to render their decision, and make a decision in the matter as to what to do. ]
17
Those councilors who draw even numbers, that is, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12, are the individuals who are to stand up in behalf of the accused, and prevent insult and injustice.
[ Assignment given to those who draw even numbers. ]
18
In all cases the accuser and the accused shall have a privilege of speaking for themselves before the council, after the evidences are heard and the councilors who are appointed to speak on the case have finished their remarks.
[ The one for whom the council is held is given the opportunity to speak at the end, as well as the accuser if present. ]
19 After the evidences are heard, the councilors, accuser and accused have spoken,
the president shall give a decision according to the understanding which he shall have of the case,
[ Usually the presidency goes into a separate room and prays and comes back with th erecommendation. ] and
call upon the twelve councilors to sanction the same by their vote.
[ The decision made by the presidency is then ratified by the council. Additional input is given as to what may be done to help the individual in the repentance process. ]
20 But should the remaining councilors, who have not spoken, or any one of them, after hearing the evidences and pleadings impartially, discover an error in the decision of the president, they can manifest it, and the case shall have a re-hearing.
21 And if, after a careful re-hearing, any additional light is shown upon the case, the decision shall be altered accordingly.
22 But in case no additional light is given, the first decision shall stand, the majority of the council having power to determine the same.
23 In case of difficulty respecting doctrine or principle,
if there is not a sufficiency written [ presumably in the Scriptures, to be clear on how the matter should be dealt with the president of the council is obligated to obtain the Lord’s will on the matter by revelation. ] to make the case clear to the minds of the council, the president may inquire and obtain the mind of the Lord by revelation.
24 The high priests, when abroad, have power to call and organize a council after the manner of the foregoing, to settle difficulties, when the parties or either of them shall request it.
25 And the said council of high priests shall have power to appoint one of their own number to preside over such council for the time being.
26 It shall be the duty of said council to transmit, immediately, a copy of their proceedings, with a full statement of the testimony accompanying their decision, to the high council of the seat of the First Presidency of the Church.
27
Should the parties or either of them be dissatisfied with the decision of said council, they may appeal to the high council of the seat of the First Presidency of the Church, and have a re-hearing, which case shall there be conducted, according to the former pattern written, as though no such decision had been made.
[ If any of the parties involved are not satisfied with the results, they may appeal to the presidency (v. 27). NOte how this is worded so that the ease of appeals in this case would make it expedient to only convene councils on matters that were easily concluded, otherwise the whole process would just have to be repeated. Thus, it would discourage the council from acting often without the presidency, particularly in cases where there was sure to be an appeal when both parties are sure to not get what they want. ]
28 This council of high priests abroad is only to be called on the most difficult cases of church matters; and no common or ordinary case is to be sufficient to call such council.
29 The traveling or located high priests abroad have power to say whether it is necessary to call such a council or not.
30 There is a distinction between the high council or traveling high priests abroad, and the traveling high council composed of the twelve apostles, in their decisions.
31 From the decision of the former there can be an appeal; but from the decision of the latter there cannot.
32 The latter can only be called in question by the general authorities of the church in case of transgression.
33 Resolved: that the president or presidents of the seat of the First Presidency of the Church shall have power to determine whether any such case, as may be appealed, is justly entitled to a re-hearing, after examining the appeal and the evidences and statements accompanying it.
34 The twelve councilors then proceeded to cast lots or ballot, to ascertain who should speak first, and the following was the result, namely: 1, Oliver Cowdery; 2, Joseph Coe; 3, Samuel H. Smith; 4, Luke Johnson; 5, John S. Carter; 6, Sylvester Smith; 7, John Johnson; 8, Orson Hyde; 9, Jared Carter; 10, Joseph Smith, Sen.; 11, John Smith; 12, Martin Harris.
After prayer the conference adjourned.
OLIVER COWDERY,
ORsoN HYDE,
Clerks
[ Historical Material Pertaining to Doctrine & Covenants 102 Excerpts from History of the Church At a council of the High Priests and Elders, (Orson Hyde, clerk,) at my house in Kirtland, on the evening of the 12th of February, I remarked that I should endeavor to set before the council the dignity of the office which had been conferred on me by the ministering of the angel of God, by His own voice, and by the voice of this Church; that I had never set before any council in all the order in which it ought to be conducted, which, perhaps, has deprived the councils of some or many blessings. And I continued and said, no man is capable of judging a matter, in council, unless his own heart is pure; and that we are frequently so filled with prejudice, or have a beam in our own eye, that we are not capable of passing right decisions. Our acts are recorded, and at a future day they will be laid before us, and if we should fail to judge right and injure our fellow-beings, they may there, perhaps, condemn us; there they are of great consequence, and to me the consequence appears to be of force, beyond anything which I am able to express. Ask yourselves, brethren, how much you have exercised yourselves in prayer since you heard of this council; and if you are now prepared to sit in council upon the soul of your brother. (Joseph Smith, History of the Church, volume 2, pages 25-26) On the 18th of January [February] I reviewed and corrected the minutes of the organization of the High Council, and on the 19th of February, the Council assembled according to adjournment, from the 17th, (Oliver Cowdery and Orson Hyde, clerks,) when the revised minutes were presented and read to the Council. I urged the necessity of prayer, that the Spirit might be given, that the things of the Spirit might be judged thereby, because the carnal mind cannot discern the things of God. The minutes were read three times, and unanimously adopted and received for a form and constitution of the High Council of the Church of Christ hereafter; with this provision, that if the President should hereafter discover anything lacking in the same, he should be privileged to supply it. (History of the Church, volume 2, page 31) Excerpt from Revelations of the Prophet Joseph Smith Section 102 consists of the final revised and corrected minutes of the organization and rules of procedure for the Kirtland high council. On 12 February 1834 Joseph Smith met with a group of high priests and elders to discuss the function of Church councils. The Prophet instructed those present that no man was capable of judging a matter in council without his own heart was pure.... In ancient days councils were conducted with such strict propriety, that no one was allowed to whisper, be weary, leave the room, or get uneasy in the least, until [a decision had been reached]. Joseph Smith declared that Church councils or courts were to be conducted according to an ancient pattern which had been “shown to him by vision.” “Jerusalem was the seat of the Church Council in ancient days,” said the Prophet; “the apostle, Peter, was the president of the Council and held the keys of the Kingdom of God on earth.” To clarify the matter of guilt, the Prophet added, It was not the order of heaven in ancient councils to plead for and against the guilty as in our judicial courts (so called) but that every counsellor when he arose to speak, should speak precisely according to evidence and according to the teaching of the Spirit of the Lord, that no counsellor should attempt to screen the guilty when his guilt was manifest. The formal organization of the Kirtland high council occurred on 17 February 1834, and a companion high council was organized in Clay County, Missouri, on 7 July 1834. The Kirtland high council, and the high council in Clay County, Missouri, held wide judicial and administrative powers. This pattern remained consistent for several years with regard to a high council situated at Church headquarters (i.e., Kirtland, Far West, Nauvoo, and Salt Lake City). Although their authority and jurisdiction would subsequently diminish, members of these early councils (ordained high priests), were clearly recognized as “general authorities.” Whether officially or unofficially, these high councils held the status of a “High Council in Zion” and, as such, were in their respective right and turn, a presiding quorum of the Church. Although these early Church high councils rarely convened to hear criminal cases, Church courts did adjudicate controversies between member and member—matters that today would be settled by civil courts. An important feature of the high council court was that the rights of the accused were protected by at least half of the participating high councilors. (Lyndon W. Cook, Revelations of the Prophet Joseph Smith) Excerpt from Doctrine and Covenants Commentary The Prophet carefully guarded, against error, the report of the meeting in which this Council was organized. On February 18, he reviewed and corrected the minutes, and on the following day he assembled the Council to pass on the revised copy. The members then first engaged in prayer, asking God for the Spirit by which spiritual things are discerned. Then the minutes were read three times and, finally, adopted. It now forms what may be called the Constitution of the High Council of the Church of Christ. A few days before the organization of this High Council, the Prophet addressed a council of High Priests and Elders on the subject of the proper order in such gatherings. "In ancient days," he said, "councils were conducted with such strict propriety, that no one was allowed to whisper, be weary, leave the room, or get uneasy in the least, until the voice of the Lord, by revelation, or the voice of the Council, by the Spirit, was obtained, which has not been observed in this Church to the present time" (Hist. of the Church, Vol. II., p. 25). "I remember very well the organization of the High Council at Kirtland as a permanent institution. There had been several councils of twelve High Priests called for special cases, but they organized it permanently on the 17th of February, 1834. On the 19th, the first case that was brought up was that of Elder Curtis Hodge, Sen., who, while speaking in meeting, had gone into a spasm, shouting and screaming in such a manner as caused one of the Elders to rebuke him. Brother Hodge was brought before the Council for so doing. A great deal of instruction was imparted to the people, who were assembled in a room, sixteen feet by eighteen. The decision was that the charges in the declaration had been fairly sustained by good witnesses; that Elder Hodge ought to have confessed when rebuked by Elder Ezra Thayre; also that, if he had the Spirit of the Lord at the meeting where he shouted, he must have abused it and grieved it away, and all the Council agreed with the decision" (George A. Smith, Jour. of Dis., Vol. XL., p. 7). A very important Council meeting was held on the 20th of February, 1834. The attention of the Council had been called to the fact that, at a meeting at Springfield, Pa., held by Elders Orson Pratt and Lyman E. Johnson, some of the members of the Church had refused to partake of the Sacrament, because the Elder administering it did not keep the Word of Wisdom. Elder Lyman E. Johnson argued that they were justified in refusing, while Elder Orson Pratt held that Church members ought to receive the emblems from any Elder who retains his office, or license. Six councilors were appointed to speak on the question. When they had finished, the President gave the decision: "No official member in this Church is worthy to hold an office, after having the Word of Wisdom properly taught him and he, the official member, neglecting to comply with or obey it." This decision was confirmed by the vote of the Council (History of the Church, Vol. II., p. 34-5). (Hyrum M. Smith and Janne M. Sjodahl, Doctrine and Covenants Commentary, page 658) ]