Is the “first vision” account forming the foundation of the Mormon Church really credible?
Joseph Smith’s “first vision” forms the essence of Mormonism’s claim to uniqueness: that God Himself had rejected all other churches as false and was now restoring the “true” church through this 15-year-old boy. This is why Mormons have agreed that the “first vision” account is absolutely crucial to the credibility and authority of both Smith and the Church. Second in importance only to Christ’s “deity,” the “first vision” is the foundation of the church”; the Mormon Church stands or falls on the authenticity of this event, and the “truth and validity” of all of Joseph Smith’s subsequent work rests upon its genuineness. The following facts prove, by Mormonism’s own assertions, that their church is based on falsehood. The official account of the event was written by Smith around 1838 and published in Times and Seasons in 1842, two decades after “the event” took place. What most Mormons have never been told is that at least five earlier drafts of the “first vision” exist. These conflicti
