To some, it may seem impossible to believe — a 14-year-old boy sees God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, who calls him to the work of restoring the Savior’s ancient church. An angel appears to the 17-year-old Joseph and shows him gold plates, which plates Joseph receives four years later, and then translates from a lost language into English in a matter of months.

The resulting book (The Book of Mormon), first published in 1830, contains the writings of ancient prophets who lived on the American continent, spanning over 1,000 years of time. A pinnacle part of the book captures the visit of the resurrected Savior not long after His death, resurrection, and ascension into heaven.

We believe Joseph Smith was a prophet like those in the Bible: Abraham, Moses, Joshua, and many others. We believe He was given priesthood power directly from those who held the keys of this priesthood in the Savior’s day (from John the Baptist and from Peter, James, and John). We believe in additional scriptures and continuing revelation, and in a living prophet today.

All of our beliefs really hinge on whether Joseph Smith was a prophet.

So, how can one really come to know if this is really truth?

Many will attempt to “prove” through facts that Joseph Smith wasn’t really a prophet, and that his claims of visions and revelations are silly fabrications of an uneducated mind.

On the flip side, I or many others could try to convince you, using logic of some sort, that we know that Joseph was a prophet.

But the answer to the question does not ultimately lie in logic alone — although the story *is* logical if one believes in the God of the Bible who once spoke to man, in angelic messengers who ministered to people, in miracles that go beyond mortal ability or understanding. The truths of the gospel can delight the brightest of minds, even while being simple enough for a child to grasp.

Ultimately, the way to know if Joseph Smith was a prophet is to find out from the Source of truth, even God Himself.

One of the things I love about our faith is that we invite everyone to study what we believe and then ask God if the things The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believes are true.

But a “testimony” of Joseph Smith’s divine calling can come in different ways to different people. I think of my father, who grew up in the Church but who didn’t really “know” like he wanted to until he became a missionary and plead for a specific and clear answer. He wanted to be able to go out as a missionary and have his own distinct witness. He received it, and he likely could tell you the day (and maybe even time) he got that answer.

Many others could probably share similar stories — they prayed and got an answer on such-and-such a day. I’ve seen this happen to one of my children — he can still remember a distinct experience. His six-year-old vocabulary described the moment (we were watching a video at home about Joseph Smith) like being wrapped in thousands of blankets. (He had a specific number — it was in the 6,000s. At age 11, he still remembers that moment.)

I, on the other hand, had my testimony of Joseph Smith’s prophetic calling unfold over time. For years, my testimony in his role in the restoration of the Savior’s gospel and organization of the latter-day church of Jesus Christ was tied inextricably to my testimony of the Book of Mormon. The Book of Mormon is a tangible result of Joseph Smith’s work, and because I had come to know the Book of Mormon was of God, I knew then that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God.

I encourage anyone wondering about Joseph Smith to make the Book of Mormon a central part of their quest to know. Not only is it a key to knowing if what we claim is true, it’s also full of powerful teachings about the Savior and about God’s plan for His children.

I will add that I gained a more specific confirmation of the reality of Joseph Smith’s calling as I looked into people’s eyes day after day as a missionary and taught them about what happened to him, about that first experience where God and Jesus Christ visited him. It didn’t matter whether someone wanted to hear more or not — I consistently felt God’s Spirit testify to me that what I was teaching was true and real. It was thrilling to me to complete my mission knowing more than ever before that Joseph Smith was a prophet.

To those of you who are LDS and reading this, please consider sharing below how it is that you have come to know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God.

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**Please note: The answers in “Ask a Mormon Woman” reflect the thoughts, perspectives, and experiences of individuals. Although here at Mormon Women, we strive to have our content consistent with the Church’s doctrine and teachings, we do not speak officially for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. For official information about or from the Church, please visit www.mormon.org or www.lds.org.

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One of the twelve apostles in modern times, Henry B. Eyring [now a counselor in the First Presidency], said this, “The Prophet Joseph [Smith] is an example and a teacher of enduring well in faith. I do not worship him, but I thank and love him as the Lord’s prophet of the Restoration.”

The answer to the question is a unequivocal “No.” But I would like to give you more insight into what Joseph Smith does mean to the members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by sharing my journey to understand him and his role.

I have been a member of the Mormon Church my whole life. My parents have been members their whole lives.  I have ancestors that literally rubbed elbows with Joseph Smith. Despite all of this, I have not always understood his mission or had a personal witness of his prophetic calling.

While in high school I read the Book of Mormon as part of a daily teenage gospel class called seminary. As I read the book, my seminary teacher explained things I didn’t understand, encouraged all of us to pray about what we read, and urged us to use what we learned in our lives. Through this process I gained a spiritual witness of the truthfulness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and the Book of Mormon. As I enjoyed my newly forged faith someone told me something similar to what Gordon B. Hinckley said, “If you accept the revelation, you must accept the revelator.” But I struggled, for the Joseph Smith story was just so incredible!

Just as I couldn’t possibly read an entire set of encyclopedias in a day, I couldn’t know everything about the gospel immediately either. Eventually there came a time in my life that not understanding Joseph Smith really bothered me. I decided to find out exactly what was true, and what I felt about it. I followed a pattern similar to what my seminary teacher taught. I read LDS church history, prayed about what I read, and tried to implement what I learned in my life. As I did these things with a good attitude, I felt my seed of testimony begin to grow. As I read about the service Joseph Smith performed on behalf of the entire modern world I was inspired to learn more. I read about his life, I read doctrine written by his own hand, I read experiences of people that surrounded him, and I continued to read the Book of Mormon – scripture translated with the help of God by Joseph Smith.

Through all of this I gained a belief in Joseph’s prophetic calling and his unique mission. I knew that he didn’t write the Book of Mormon, but that he translated it in accordance with the will of God. Gaining knowledge about Joseph Smith was a doorway to a spiritual confirmation of the truth.

My knowledge and spiritual witness was strengthened even further when I visited historic church sites that were prominent in the life of the prophet Joseph Smith. With my family I have seen Nauvoo, the city beautiful, so named by the prophet Joseph, and where the early pioneers of the church established a city and built a temple.

I visited Kirtland, Ohio where Joseph taught the leadership of the church the doctrines of God in the School of the Prophets. We have been to the Sacred Grove, where Joseph Smith knelt in humble prayer as a young boy and received his first lesson at the feet of God the father and Jesus Christ. Our family prayed together in that special place, a memory we hold dear.

Most recently I have been to the site of Joseph Smith’s baptism in the Susquehanna River. Where, nearby, the priesthood was restored to the earth so that God’s children would have access to all the blessings necessary to return to him.

Because of Joseph Smith’s role in restoring the full gospel of Jesus Christ to the earth in the last days, as Mormons we honor and revere him. We even make efforts to remember his birthday, which is this week, on December 23rd.  But we also obey the commandment that God presented in the time of Moses, “Thou shalt have no other Gods before me.” Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer and we worship him. God is our Eternal Heavenly Father and we worship him. Joseph Smith was a man, a prophet called by God to do a special work, and so we are grateful to him, but we do not worship him. Joseph Smith worked to his very last breath to bring men to Christ and I believe he would desire our worship to be directed in no other direction than to Jesus Christ and God the Father.

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