[Wilford Woodruff] Baptizes father, mother, and sister in Farmington, Connecticut (1)
-- 1838 4 July
Far West Temple cornerstones laid. (2)
-- 1838 July 4
The cornerstone is laid for the new temple to be constructed at Far West. Sidney Rigdon declares a "war of extermination" on those who intend to remove the saints from their land and deprive them of their liberties. (3)
-- July 4, 1838
[Joseph Smith] Far West, Missouri. Joseph Smith participated in laying the cornerstones for the Far West Temple. (4)
[Joseph Smith] Cornerstones are laid for a temple in Far West. (5)
-- 1838 July 4
[Joseph Smith] Presided over Independence Day celebration that included ceremonial laying of temple cornerstones and public address by Sidney Rigdon declaring Saints intent to defend themselves from persecution, Far West. (6)
-- 4 July 1838
[Missouri War] Fourth of July celebration at Far West. Rigdon declares Mormons will wage a "war of extermination" against mobs. (7)
-- 1838 6 July
Exodus of most Saints from Kirtland, Ohio. (2)
-- 1838 July 6
515 Saints left Kirtland for Missouri. (8)
The "Kirtland Camp", 515 members under the direction of the Seventy, leave Kirtland, Ohio for Far West, Missouri. (3)
[Joseph Smith] About five hundred Latter-day Saints constituting Kirtland Camp departed Kirtland, migrating to Missouri. (6)
-- 6 July 1838
[Lucy Mack Smith] Over 500 Kirtland Saints set out for Missouri; only 260 are left by the time they reach Springfield, Illinois, about the half-way point. About this time, William and Caroline Smith, both dangerously ill, are brought to Joseph Sr.'s and Lucy's home for nursing. (9)
-- July 8, 1838
[Financial] Joseph Smith records the revelation (in Section 119 of the Doctrine and Covenants) that formally institutes the law of tithing among Latter-day Saints. Church members are instructed to pay "one-tenth of all their interest annually," with the stipulation that "this shall be a standing law unto them forever." The revelation also instructs that all tithing shall be put "into the hands of the bishop of my church in Zion."
A second revelation (in Section 120 of the Doctrine and Covenants) recorded the same day creates the Council on the Disposition of the Tithes to oversee the management of funds and property accrued from tithing. (10)
Footnotes:
1 - Wilford Woodruff's Journals 1833-1898: Typescript Edited by Scott G. Kenney, Signature Books, Midvale, Utah. Chronology
2 - http://www.lds.net/forums/scripture-study-forum/12108-church-chronology-1800-2000-part-1-a.html#post214550
3 - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/19th_century_(Mormonism)
4 - BYU Studies Journal, volume 46, no. 4: A Chronology of the Life of Joseph Smith
5 - http://www.prophetjosephsmith.org/joseph_smith_timeline
6 - Joseph Smith Papers: Chronology for the Years 1832-1839
7 - Stephen C. LeSueur: The 1838 Mormon War in Missouri, Appendix: Chronology of Events in Missouri, 1838-1839
8 - Richards - Little, Compendium of the Doctrines of the Gospel, Church Chronology, Ch.66, p.306
9 - Lucy's Book: A Critical Edition of Lucy Mack Smith's Family Memoir, Edited by Lavina Fielding Anderson, 2001, Signature Books
10 - http://www.heraldextra.com/content/view/282148/
Clair Barrus
