Editing Openai/691a45a6-8ed0-8010-a7d9-24657a41a9aa (section)

==== 1. Purpose of the Talk - Hyrum Smith gives a devotional talk (delivered at Ricks College, Sept 27, 1988) explaining why he believes the Church of Jesus Christ was restored in 1820. colterreed.net<ref>{{cite web|title=colterreed.net|url=https://www.colterreed.net/spokenwrit/media/Why%201820.pdf|publisher=colterreed.net|access-date=2025-11-16}}</ref> - He focuses on two questions: (a) why a Restoration was needed, and (b) why it happened when it did — specifically in 1820. colterreed.net<ref>{{cite web|title=colterreed.net|url=https://www.colterreed.net/spokenwrit/media/Why%201820.pdf|publisher=colterreed.net|access-date=2025-11-16}}</ref> ====
# The Apostasy - Smith argues that after the death of the apostles, the true Church gradually fell into apostasy — corruption, doctrinal error, and loss of revelation. colterreed.net<ref>{{cite web|title=colterreed.net|url=https://www.colterreed.net/spokenwrit/media/Why%201820.pdf|publisher=colterreed.net|access-date=2025-11-16}}</ref> - He traces a timeline of Church history, suggesting that early Christian leadership (in Rome, for example) deviated from original authority. colterreed.net<ref>{{cite web|title=colterreed.net|url=https://www.colterreed.net/spokenwrit/media/Why%201820.pdf|publisher=colterreed.net|access-date=2025-11-16}}</ref> - He specifically discusses a figure named “Linus”: in his narrative, one Linus was bishop, but then a deacon Linus took over, and was eventually killed under persecution. Smith uses this to argue that authorized, true leadership quietly disappeared. colterreed.net<ref>{{cite web|title=colterreed.net|url=https://www.colterreed.net/spokenwrit/media/Why%201820.pdf|publisher=colterreed.net|access-date=2025-11-16}}</ref>
# Why 1820 Was the Right Time - According to Smith, 1820 was “the only time that [the Restoration] could possibly have survived on the planet.” newartdirection.com<ref>{{cite web|title=newartdirection.com|url=https://newartdirection.com/succubus-name/hyrum-w-smith-why-1820|publisher=newartdirection.com|access-date=2025-11-16}}</ref> - He reasons that by 1820 the world was spiritually and socially “prepared” — there was enough instability, enough doctrinal confusion, and a need for a fresh restoration. colterreed.net<ref>{{cite web|title=colterreed.net|url=https://www.colterreed.net/spokenwrit/media/Why%201820.pdf|publisher=colterreed.net|access-date=2025-11-16}}</ref> - He draws a contrast with earlier times (e.g., the Reformation). He suggests that if Joseph Smith or someone similar had claimed a vision in, say, 1512, the institutional church (e.g., the Catholic Church) would have crushed him. Scribd<ref>{{cite web|title=Scribd|url=https://www.scribd.com/document/231874009/Why-1820|publisher=scribd.com|access-date=2025-11-16}}</ref> - Smith also points to later key dates: 1830 (when the Church was formally organized) is one he asks listeners to note. colterreed.net<ref>{{cite web|title=colterreed.net|url=https://www.colterreed.net/spokenwrit/media/Why%201820.pdf|publisher=colterreed.net|access-date=2025-11-16}}</ref>
# Testimony and Faith - Throughout, Smith weaves his personal testimony: he believes in the First Vision (Joseph Smith’s vision of the Father and the Son) and in the necessity of revelation. colterreed.net<ref>{{cite web|title=colterreed.net|url=https://www.colterreed.net/spokenwrit/media/Why%201820.pdf|publisher=colterreed.net|access-date=2025-11-16}}</ref> - He emphasizes that revelation (not human authority) is the true “rock” upon which Christ’s Church should be built — a foundation that had been lost but needed to be restored. colterreed.net<ref>{{cite web|title=colterreed.net|url=https://www.colterreed.net/spokenwrit/media/Why%201820.pdf|publisher=colterreed.net|access-date=2025-11-16}}</ref>
# Implications - The talk is meant to bolster faith in the Restoration: not just that Joseph Smith saw God, but why that event matters historically. - Smith encourages humility, faith, and seeking personal revelation, arguing that anyone who earnestly seeks can receive divine knowledge. Church of Jesus Christ<ref>{{cite web|title=Church of Jesus Christ|url=https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/teachings-of-presidents-of-the-church-joseph-fielding-smith/chapter-7-joseph-and-hyrum-smith-witnesses-for-christ?lang=eng|publisher=Church of Jesus Christ|access-date=2025-11-16}}</ref>