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Good environmental stewardship is important to Latter-day Saints: "This beautiful earth and all things on it are the creations of God (see Genesis 1:1; Moses 2:1; John 1:10; 2 Nephi 2:14). As beneficiaries of this divine creation, we should care for the earth, be wise stewards over it, and preserve it for future generations."<ref>[https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics/environmental-stewardship-and-conservation?lang=eng "Environmental Stewardship and Conservation"], Gospel Topics, accessed 4 September 2022.</ref>


==Was Joseph Smith ego-maniacal, proud, and narcissistic?==
The Church takes efforts to ensure wise use of natural resources. For example, in some areas the Church:
Joseph Smith is quoted as saying such things as:
* Uses water-wise irrigation systems and low-flow plumbing systems<ref>[https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/drought-water-conservation-statement "The Importance of Water Conservation"] Newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org, 22 June 2022.</ref>
* "I am learned, and know more than all the world put together."
* Reduces watering of lawn and landscapes in drought-afflicted areas<ref>[https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/drought-water-conservation-statement "The Importance of Water Conservation"] Newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org, 22 June 2022.</ref>
* "I combat the errors of ages; I meet the violence of mobs; I cope with illegal proceedings from executive authority; I cut the Gordian knot of powers, and I solve mathematical problems of universities, with truth . . . diamond truth; and God is my ‘right hand man.’”
* Uses solar panels to power meetinghouse facilities<ref>[https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/solar-powered-construction-design-gets-green-light-from-church-leaders "Solar-Powered Construction Design Gets “Green” Light from Church Leaders"] Newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org, 27 April 2010</ref>


These quotes are used to portray Joseph as ego-maniacal, proud, and narcissistic.
The Church teaches its members that "as stewards, we avoid complacency and excessive consumption, using only what is necessary (see Doctrine and Covenants 49:19–21). We make our homes, neighborhoods, and cities beautiful. We preserve resources and protect for future generations the spiritual and temporal blessings of nature." The Church encourages its members to:
* "Check with your local utility company, local community groups, or on the internet to find suggestions to conserve energy and to recycle.
* "Support community recycling programs.
* "Consider starting a community garden.
* "Support local civic groups that promote stewardship and conservation.
* "Be an involved citizen in government.
* "Be informed, respect the views of others, and treat everyone with civility.
* "Learn, ponder, and pray about what you can do to be a better steward.
* "Use the resources of the earth sparingly and reverently.
* "Adopt lifestyles and personal habits that respect the Creation.
* "As you can, fix up and keep clean the places where you live, work, recreate, and worship.
* "Make your own living space more beautiful and inspirational.
* "Contemplate the ways that nature bears testimony of God and the harmony between the laws and patterns of nature and the gospel of Jesus Christ."<ref>[https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics/environmental-stewardship-and-conservation?lang=eng "Environmental Stewardship and Conservation"], Gospel Topics, accessed 4 September 2022.</ref>


To paraphrase G. D. Smith, small wonder, then, that this Joseph—the one revealed by the documents—decided to run for the presidency. The decision was natural since the Saints felt no candidate was worthy of their support—though they knew that a vote for Joseph could well be “throw[ing] away our votes.”<ref>{{TS|article=Who Shall Be Our Next President|vol=5|num=4|date=15 February 1844|pages=441}}</ref>  Joseph’s campaign was “a gesture,” though one he took seriously.<ref>{{RSR|512-517}}</ref>  Experienced students of Mormon history will know this; G. D. Smith evidently counts on his audience not knowing.
==Teachings from Church Leaders==
Church leaders have taught about the importance of good environmental stewardship. Some examples include the following.


G. D. Smith writes that “in defending his theology [during the King Follett discourse], Smith proclaimed, ‘I am learned, and know more than all the world put together.’” The period ending the sentence would imply that this completed his thought—and so it appears in the ''History of the Church''.<ref>{{CriticalWork:Smith:Nauvoo Polygamy|pages=226}}</ref> If the three published versions of the original talk are consulted,<ref>{{Book:Smith:Essential Joseph Smith|pages=238}} {{TS|author=Joseph Smith|article=Conference Minutes|vol=15|num=5|date=15 August 1844|pages=614–15}} {{BYUS1|author=Stan Larson, ed.|article=[https://byustudies.byu.edu/showtitle.aspx?title=5321 The King Follett Discourse: A Newly Amalgamated Text]|vol=18|num=2|date=Winter 1978|pages=193–208}}.</ref> However, they each demonstrate that the sentiment may have been quite different:
'''President Russell M. Nelson'''
<blockquote>
<blockquote>
Now, I ask all the learned men who hear me, why the learned doctors who are preaching salvation say that God created the heavens and the earth out of nothing. They account it blasphemy to contradict the idea. ''If you tell them that God made the world out of something'', they will call you a fool. The reason is that they are unlearned but I ''am learned and'' know more than all the world put together—''the Holy Ghost does, anyhow''. If the Holy Ghost in me comprehends more than all the world, I will associate ''myself'' with it.<ref>Larson, “Newly Amalgamated Text,” 203. The italic type (added by Larson) indicates material found only in Wilford Woodruff’s account.</ref>
As beneficiaries of the divine Creation, what shall we do? We should care for the earth, be wise stewards over it, and preserve it for future generations. . . . The Lord has entrusted us to care for the earth. He said: “It is expedient that I, the Lord, should make every man accountable, as a steward over earthly blessings, which I have made and prepared for my creatures. I, the Lord, stretched out the heavens, and built the earth, my very handiwork; and all things therein are mine. And it is my purpose to provide for my saints, for all things are mine” (D&C 104:13–15; see also Rev. 7:3).<ref>Russell M. Nelson, [https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2000/04/the-creation?lang=eng "The Creation,"] April 2000 general conference.</ref>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>


In the ''History of the Church'' version, the statement about the Holy Ghost is placed in its own sentence. This allows G. D. Smith to exclude it with no ellipsis and portray Joseph as decidedly more arrogant than he was. Daniel C. Peterson’s remark is telling: “Amusing, isn’t it, . . . that the very same people who vehemently reject the . . . ''History of the Church'' as an unreliable source when it seems to support the Latter-day Saint position clutch it to their bosoms as an unparalleled historical treasure when they think they can use it as a weapon against the alleged errors of Mormonism.”<ref>{{FR-7-2-5}}</ref>{{Rp|54-55}}
'''President Ezra Taft Benson'''
 
===Letter taken from context===
Critics fail, then,  to provide the context for these remarks, some of which are taken from an exchange which Joseph had with newspaperman James Arlington Bennet.<ref>Bennet’s name is also sometimes spelled ''Bennett.''</ref>  For example, G.D. Smith quotes the phrases above and then editorializes: “With such a self-image, it is not surprising that he also aspired to the highest office in the land: the presidency of the United States.”<ref>Smith, ''Nauvoo Polygamy, 225.</ref> Here again, he serves his readers poorly. He neglects to tell us that Joseph’s remark comes from a somewhat tongue-in-cheek exchange with James Bennet, who had been baptized in the East but immediately wrote Joseph to disclaim his “glorious frolic in the clear blue ocean; for most assuredly a frolic it was, without a moment’s reflection or consideration.”<ref name="hc6">{{HoC1|vol=6}}</ref>{{Rp|71}}
 
===James Bennet's original letter===
Bennet went on to praise Joseph in an exaggerated, humorous style: “As you have proved yourself to be a philosophical divine . . . [it] point[s] you out as the most extraordinary man of the present age.” “But,” cautioned Bennet,
<blockquote>
<blockquote>
my mind is of so mathematical and philosophical a cast, that the divinity of Moses makes no impression on me, and you will not be offended when I say that I rate you higher as a legislator than I do Moses. . . . I cannot, however, say but you are both right, it being out of the power of man to prove you wrong. It is no mathematical problem, and can therefore get no mathematical solution {{ia}}<ref name="hc6"></ref>{{Rp|72}}
We are stewards over these earthly blessings which the Lord has provided, those of us who have this soil and this water. We have no moral latitude, it seems to me. In fact, we are morally obligated to turn this land over to those who succeed us—not drained of its fertility but improved in quality, in productivity, and in usefulness for future generations.<ref>''The Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson,'' 645, as cited in Steven E. Snow, [https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/the-moral-imperative-of-environmental-stewardship-elder-steven-e-snow "The Moral Imperative of Environmental Stewardship,"] address given at an environmental stewardship symposium at Utah State University on 10 October 2018.</ref>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>


Joseph’s claim that his religious witness can “solve mathematical problems of universities” is thus a playful return shot at Bennet,<ref>Charles Mackay, though mistaking this Bennet for John C. Bennett, nevertheless realized what was going on: “‘Joseph’s reply to this singular and too candid epistle was quite as singular and infinitely more amusing. Joseph was too cunning a man to accept, in plain terms, the rude but serviceable offer; and he rebuked the vanity and presumption of Mr Bennett, while dexterously retaining him for future use.” See Charles Mackay, ed., ''The Mormons, or Latter-day Saints; with memoirs of the Life and Death of Joseph Smith, the American Mahomet'', 4th ed. (London, 1856); cited in Hubert Howe Bancroft and Alfred Bates, ''History of Utah, 1540–1886'' (San Francisco: The History Co., 1889), 151 n. 112. Concludes Bancroft: “More has been made of this correspondence than it deserves,” though G. D. Smith has seen fit to continue the error.</ref> who has claimed a “so mathematical” mind that cannot decide about Joseph’s truth claims since they admit of “no mathematical solution.”<ref>Joseph pursued Bennet’s mathematical analogy for several paragraphs; see {{HC|vol=6|start=75–77}}. Bennet was fond of the metaphor; in 1855 he was to privately publish ''A New Revelation to Mankind, drawn from Axioms, or self-evident truths in Nature, Mathematically demonstrated''. See {{Dialogue|author=Richard D. Poll|article=Joseph Smith and the Presidency, 1844|vol=3|num=3|date=Autumn 1968|pages=19 n. 19}}</ref>  G. D. Smith may not get the joke, but he ought to at least let us know that there is one being told.
'''Elder D. Todd Christofferson'''
<blockquote>
Caring for our bodies, protecting the sacredness of life, and promoting political and religious participation are all elements of our stewardship of God’s creations. His greatest creation is, of course, His children—you and I and all our brothers and sisters in the family of our Heavenly Father. . . .  


Bennet continued by suggesting that he need not have religious convictions to support Joseph, adding slyly that “you know Mahomet had his ‘right hand man.’” Joseph’s reply that God is his right-hand man is again a riposte to Bennet and follows Joseph’s half-serious gibe that “your good wishes to go ahead, coupled with Mahomet and a right hand man, are rather more vain than virtuous. Why, sir, Cæsar had his right hand Brutus, who was his left hand assassin.” Joseph here pauses, and we can almost see him grin before adding: “Not, however, applying the allusion to you.”<ref name="hc6"></ref>{{Rp|77}}
We should see our stewardship of God’s creations as a responsibility to help fulfill His purposes. We do not worship God’s creations; we worship God, the Creator. Therefore, we use what He has given us to honor Him and accomplish His will. As Bishop Caussé pointed out, our Heavenly Father’s will, His work, is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of His children. Knowing the ultimate purpose of creation, we measure what we do by that standard, asking ourselves, “Would it help, or would it hinder God’s divine plan?” For example, we should use our earthly blessings to minister to the temporal and spiritual needs of others in a way that enables them to come to know and serve God and eventually inherit eternal life.<ref>D. Todd Christofferson, [https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/christofferson-honoring-the-creator "Honoring the Creator,"] address given at the Florianópolis Brazil Seminario SudAmericano 2023 (an environmental stewardship conference) in Florianópolis, Brazil, on Friday, October 20, 2023 (see Newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org).</ref>
</blockquote>


Bennet had also offered Joseph a carving of “your head on a beautiful cornelian stone, as your private seal, which will be set in gold to your order, and sent to you. It will be a gem, and just what you want. . . . The expense of this seal, set in gold, will be about $40; and [the maker] assures me that if he were not so poor a man, he would present it to you free. You can, however, accept it or not.”<ref name="hc6"></ref>{{Rp|72}}
'''Elder Marcus B. Nash'''
 
<blockquote>
Joseph does not let this rhetorical opportunity go by, telling Bennet that “facts, like diamonds, not only cut glass, but they are the most precious jewels on earth. . . . As to the private seal you mention, if sent to me, I shall receive it with the gratitude of a servant of God, and pray that the donor may receive a reward in the resurrection of the just.”<ref name="hc6"></ref>{{Rp|77, {{ea}}}}  Joseph’s concluding remark about the necessity of “truth—diamond-hard truth” plays on this same association with the proffered precious stone.
All humankind are stewards over this earth and its bounty—not owners—and will be accountable to God for what we do with regard to His creation. . . . As stewards over the earth and all life thereon, we are to gratefully make use of that which the Lord has provided, avoid wasting life and resources, and use the bounty of the earth to care for the poor.<ref>Marcus B. Nash, [https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/elder-nash-stegner-symposium "Righteous Dominion and Compassion for the Earth,"] Newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org, 2013</ref>
</blockquote>


The key point of Bennet’s letter, after the sardonic preliminaries, was an invitation to use untruth for political gain—hence Joseph’s insistence on “diamond-hard truth.” Bennet closed his letter by asking to be privately relieved of his honorary commission with the Nauvoo Legion, noting that
'''Elder Massimo De Feo'''
<blockquote>
<blockquote>
I may yet run for a high office in your state, when you would be sure of my best services in your behalf; therefore, a known connection with you would be against our mutual interest. It can be shown that a commission in the Legion was a Herald hoax, coined for the fun of it by me, as it is not believed even now by the public. In short, I expect to be yet, through your influence, governor of the State of Illinois.<ref name="hc6"></ref>{{Rp|72, {{ea}}}}
For people of faith, protecting and preserving our planet is not just a matter of survival. It is our home, and we consider it a creation and a gift of God.<ref>Massimo De Feo, [https://www.thechurchnews.com/global/2022-01-20/elder-de-feo-conference-on-the-future-of-europe-240213 "Elder De Feo participates in Conference on the Future of Europe session,"] The Church News, 20 Jan 2022</ref>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>


Bennet hoped to use Joseph without embracing his religious pretensions and was bold enough to say so.<ref>{{BYUS|author=Lyndon W. Cook|article=[https://byustudies.byu.edu/showtitle.aspx?title=5374 James Arlington Bennet and the Mormons]|vol=19|num=2|date=Winter 1979|pages=247–49}}</ref>  However, Joseph was not as cynical and malleable as the Easterner hoped, for the Prophet then insisted at length on the impropriety of using “the dignity and honor I received from heaven, to boost a man into [political] power,” since “the wicked and unprincipled . . . would seize the opportunity to [harden] the hearts of the nation against me for dabbling at a sly game in politics.”
'''Elder Steven E. Snow'''
 
Joseph’s fear in relation to politics is that to support the unworthy would be to corrupt the mission he has been given. “Shall I,” continued Joseph rhetorically, “. . . turn to be a Judas? Shall I, who have heard the voice of God, and communed with angels, and spake as moved by the Holy Ghost for the renewal of the everlasting covenant, and for the gathering of Israel in the last days,—shall I worm myself into a political hypocrite?” Rather, Joseph hoped that “the whole earth shall bear me witness that I, like the towering rock in the midst of the ocean, which has withstood the mighty surges of the warring waves for centuries, am impregnable, and am a faithful friend to virtue, and a fearless foe to vice.”<ref name="hc6"></ref>{{Rp|77-78}}
 
It is at this point that he makes the statement quoted by G. D. Smith—a nice rhetorical summation of the word games he and Bennet were playing and a jovial but direct rejection of Bennet’s politically cynical offer—but hardly evidence of someone with a grandiose self-image.<ref>When Joseph’s personal letters are compared with this letter, one suspects a large contribution by scribe and newspaperman W. W. Phelps.</ref>
{{endnotes sources}}
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==Was Joseph Smith prone to boasting?==
Joseph Smith is reported as saying:
<blockquote>
<blockquote>
I have more to boast of than ever any man had. I am the only man that has ever been able to keep a whole church together since the days of Adam... Neither Paul, John, Peter, nor Jesus ever did it. I boast that no man ever did such work as I. The followers of Jesus ran away from Him; but the Latter-day Saints never ran away from me yet.” ({{HC|vol=6|start=408|end=409}}
God expects every one of His sons and daughters to act as good stewards of the land He created. It causes me much grief when I look outside my window and see a hazy inversion or when I hear consistent reports of Utah’s poor air quality. I am concerned for the families affected by wildfires and for the schoolchildren forced to stay indoors because of smoky skies. Algal blooms are breaking out in Utah’s lakes. We are experiencing unusually dry seasons and record-breaking warm winters. . . . Climate change is real, and it’s our responsibility as stewards to do what we can to limit the damage done to God’s creation. . . . God made us stewards over His creations and, as such, He expects accountability. believe it is unbecoming of a Latter-day Saint to willfully deface and defile the earth.<ref>Steven E. Snow, [https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/the-moral-imperative-of-environmental-stewardship-elder-steven-e-snow "The Moral Imperative of Environmental Stewardship,"] address given at an environmental stewardship symposium at Utah State University on 10 October 2018.</ref>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>


===Joseph's quote, if accurate, is taken out of context===
'''Bishop Gérald Caussé'''
Assuming that the quote is accurate in ''History of the Church'', it is evident that Joseph's quote is taken out of context. What was Joseph's intent, and why did he use this approach?  As it turns out, he was drawing from the Bible and applying its lessons to his own situation. In the original context, Joseph was facing intense persecution by many people, including some he had previously considered to be his friends. The statement about "boasting" was supposedly made about a month before he was killed. He made it after reading {{b|2|Corinthians|11||}} to the congregation. Note the following statement by Paul, in this scripture:
 
===Paul: "let no one think me foolish; but if you do, receive me even as foolish, that I also may boast a little"===
Paul said:
<blockquote>
<blockquote>
Again I say, let no one think me foolish; but if you do, receive me even as foolish, that I also may boast a little. That which I am speaking, I am not speaking it as the Lord would, but as in foolishness, in this confidence of boasting. Since many boast according to the flesh, I will boast also. For you, being so wise, bear the foolish gladly. ({{b|2|Corinthians|11|16-19}}, NASB)
The Creator has entrusted the earth’s resources and all forms of life to our care, but He retains full ownership. . . . As God’s children, we have received the charge to be stewards, caretakers, and guardians of His divine creations. . . . Our Heavenly Father allows us to use earthly resources according to our own free will. Yet our agency should not be interpreted as license to use or consume the riches of this world without wisdom or restraint. . . . The care of the earth and of our natural environment is a sacred responsibility entrusted to us by God, which should fill us with a deep sense of duty and humility. It is also an integral component of our discipleship. How can we honor and love Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ without honoring and loving Their creations? . . . Considering our individual circumstances, each of us can use the bountiful resources of the earth more reverently and prudently. We can support community efforts to care for the earth. We can adopt personal lifestyles and behaviors that respect God’s creations and make our own living spaces tidier, more beautiful, and more inspirational.<ref>Gerald Causse, [https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2022/10/31causse?lang=eng "Our Earthly Stewardship,"] October 2022 general conference.</ref>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
Paul then launches into a literary tirade where he claims many things to make himself look the fool, to contrast himself with those who the Corinthians were listening to for their words of salvation, instead of to him. His words were meant to compare and contrast what the Saints at Corinth were doing against what he was offering.


Do the critics dismiss the words of Paul and deny his calling as an Apostle because he used such a literary approach that included boasting? No, they do not. Yet, they dismiss Joseph Smith when it is clear by his own statements, in context, that he engaged in the exact same literary approach. Consider the words of Joseph right after reading this chapter of Paul's to the congregation:
<blockquote>
<blockquote>
My object is to let you know that I am right here on the spot where I intend to stay. I, like Paul, have been in perils, and oftener than anyone in this generation. As Paul boasted, I have suffered more than Paul did, I should be like a fish out of water, if I were out of persecutions. Perhaps my brethren think it requires all this to keep me humble. The Lord has constituted me curiously that I glory in persecution. I am not nearly so humble as if I were not persecuted. If oppression will make a wise man mad, much more a fool. If they want a beardless boy to whip all the world, I will get on the top of a mountain and crow like a rooster: I shall always beat them. When facts are proved, truth and innocence will prevail at last. My enemies are no philosophers: they think that when they have my spoke under, they will keep me down; but for the fools, I will hold on and fly over them.<ref>{{HoC1|vol=6|start=408}}</ref>
The creation of this marvelous world in which we live is not an end in itself; it is the means by which our Heavenly Father’s eternal designs can be accomplished. This earth and everything in it — the towering mountains, the vast oceans, the fertile plains, the green valleys, the meandering rivers, the arid deserts, the innumerable variety of plants, insects, birds, and animals — everything, absolutely everything, was created for one purpose: to enable His sons and daughters to inherit immortality and exaltation in eternal family units.<ref>Gérald Caussé, [https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/bishop-causse-caring-for-gods-creations "Caring for God’s Creations: A Duty of Love,"] address given at the Florianópolis Brazil Seminario SudAmericano 2023 (an environmental stewardship conference) in Florianópolis, Brazil, on Wednesday, October 18, 2023 (see Newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org).</ref>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>


Joseph then makes the statements that the critics attack, in the same way that Paul made outrageous "boasts" to contrast his position with the position of those who the Corinthians were starting to listen to. Paul starts the next chapter of 2 Corinthians with the statement "boasting is necessary, though it is not profitable." So, it would appear that Paul recognizes the necessity of boasting at times against the wicked and hard-hearted (though it may do little good, being unprofitable), yet the critics do not allow Joseph to follow Paul's advice and, of necessity, boast at times.
'''Bishop L. Todd Budge'''
<blockquote>
God created the earth for the use of man, and each one of us is accountable to God for how we use it. This trust is not a matter of what we have the right to do to the earth, but the responsibility to care for the earth. The earth is a gift to care for, not a possession to keep. . . . If we act as good stewards, there are plenty of resources for the needs of our brothers and sisters around the globe, but not in excess and not to hoard from the poor. . . . When it comes to taking care of the earth, we cannot afford to think only of today. The consequences of our actions, for better or worse, accumulate into the future and are sometimes felt only generations later. Stewardship requires feet and hands at work in the present with a gaze fixed on the future. . . .  


Perhaps the critics are unaware of Paul's advice? Or perhaps they apply a double standard where Paul is allowed such literary and rhetorical license, but Joseph is not?
We have an obligation, to be good stewards, to pass to future generations an earth better than we found it through the habits and values of wise stewardship. We have the power within us to not only maintain, but to be co-creators with God in beautifying and replenishing the earth. In doing so, we not only show our reverence and love for God, the Creator, but love for His greatest creation — each of us, humankind.<ref>L. Todd Budge, [https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/bishop-l-todd-budge-sacred-duty-care-for-earth "The Divine Gift of Creation: Our Sacred Duty to Care for the Earth,"] address given at “Why it Matters: The 1st International Academic Conference on the Sustainable Development Goals,” Utah Valley University, on October 5, 2022.</ref>
</blockquote>


Such double standards are, sadly, the stock-in-trade of sectarian anti-Mormonism.
'''Bishop H. David Burton'''
 
In short, Joseph is using the scripture in Paul as a counter-argument (or a rhetorical device)--he is responding to his critics, and demonstrating that (as with Paul) true messengers from God are often persecuted by those who should listen, while the false and apostate are praised.
{{endnotes sources}}
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==Did Joseph Smith believe that he was better than Jesus Christ?==
Consider the following excerpt from a letter Joseph wrote to his wife Emma:
<blockquote>
<blockquote>
I will try to be contented with my lot, knowing that God is my friend. In him I shall find comfort. I have given my life into his hands. I am prepared to go at his call. I desire to be with Christ. I count not my life dear to me [except] to do his will.<ref>[https://www.lds.org/manual/teachings-joseph-smith/chapter-20?lang=eng Letter from Joseph Smith to Emma Smith], June 6, 1832, Greenville, Indiana; Chicago Historical Society, Chicago, Illinois.</ref>
It’s about creating a place of worship that works in harmony with the environment. . . . For decades we have looked for innovative ways to use natural resources in our meetinghouses that reflect our commitment as wise stewards of God’s creations. . . . As the Church continues to grow globally, and there is a greater demand for meetinghouses, more than ever we need to engage in wise construction practices to benefit both the environment and our members.<ref>H. David Burton, [https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/solar-powered-construction-design-gets-green-light-from-church-leaders "Solar-Powered Construction Design Gets “Green” Light from Church Leaders"] Newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org, 27 April 2010</ref>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
These are not the words of a man who believed himself to be better than Christ. Joseph loved Christ and throughout his life strove to follow him. These words written in private to his wife demonstrate that Joseph was not so prideful as to think himself better than Christ. Consider also the following statement, made in public, by Joseph Smith:
 
'''Church Statement'''
<blockquote>
<blockquote>
I do not think there have been many good men on the earth since the days of Adam; but there was one good man and his name was Jesus. Many persons think a prophet must be a great deal better than anybody else....I do not want you to think that I am very righteous, for I am not.<ref>''History of the Church'' 5:401.</ref>
We have a responsibility to care for and gratefully use what God has given, avoid wasting resources and wisely use the bounty of the earth to care for one another. . . . We all play a part in preserving the critical resources needed to sustain life — especially water — and we invite others to join us in reducing water use wherever possible.<ref>[https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/drought-water-conservation-statement "The Importance of Water Conservation"] Newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org, 22 June 2022.</ref>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
Both in private and in public Joseph Smith demonstrated his humility before the Lord.
 
'''Additional Statements'''
 
Additional statements from Church leaders, along with related scriptures, are available in [https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/environment-statements "Selected Scriptures and Church Leader Statements on Environmental Stewardship and Conservation,"] Newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org.
 
{{endnotes sources}}
{{endnotes sources}}
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Revision as of 21:43, 17 October 2023


Primary sources

Good environmental stewardship is important to Latter-day Saints: "This beautiful earth and all things on it are the creations of God (see Genesis 1:1; Moses 2:1; John 1:10; 2 Nephi 2:14). As beneficiaries of this divine creation, we should care for the earth, be wise stewards over it, and preserve it for future generations."[1]

The Church takes efforts to ensure wise use of natural resources. For example, in some areas the Church:

  • Uses water-wise irrigation systems and low-flow plumbing systems[2]
  • Reduces watering of lawn and landscapes in drought-afflicted areas[3]
  • Uses solar panels to power meetinghouse facilities[4]

The Church teaches its members that "as stewards, we avoid complacency and excessive consumption, using only what is necessary (see Doctrine and Covenants 49:19–21). We make our homes, neighborhoods, and cities beautiful. We preserve resources and protect for future generations the spiritual and temporal blessings of nature." The Church encourages its members to:

  • "Check with your local utility company, local community groups, or on the internet to find suggestions to conserve energy and to recycle.
  • "Support community recycling programs.
  • "Consider starting a community garden.
  • "Support local civic groups that promote stewardship and conservation.
  • "Be an involved citizen in government.
  • "Be informed, respect the views of others, and treat everyone with civility.
  • "Learn, ponder, and pray about what you can do to be a better steward.
  • "Use the resources of the earth sparingly and reverently.
  • "Adopt lifestyles and personal habits that respect the Creation.
  • "As you can, fix up and keep clean the places where you live, work, recreate, and worship.
  • "Make your own living space more beautiful and inspirational.
  • "Contemplate the ways that nature bears testimony of God and the harmony between the laws and patterns of nature and the gospel of Jesus Christ."[5]

Teachings from Church Leaders

Church leaders have taught about the importance of good environmental stewardship. Some examples include the following.

President Russell M. Nelson

As beneficiaries of the divine Creation, what shall we do? We should care for the earth, be wise stewards over it, and preserve it for future generations. . . . The Lord has entrusted us to care for the earth. He said: “It is expedient that I, the Lord, should make every man accountable, as a steward over earthly blessings, which I have made and prepared for my creatures. I, the Lord, stretched out the heavens, and built the earth, my very handiwork; and all things therein are mine. And it is my purpose to provide for my saints, for all things are mine” (D&C 104:13–15; see also Rev. 7:3).[6]

President Ezra Taft Benson

We are stewards over these earthly blessings which the Lord has provided, those of us who have this soil and this water. We have no moral latitude, it seems to me. In fact, we are morally obligated to turn this land over to those who succeed us—not drained of its fertility but improved in quality, in productivity, and in usefulness for future generations.[7]

Elder D. Todd Christofferson

Caring for our bodies, protecting the sacredness of life, and promoting political and religious participation are all elements of our stewardship of God’s creations. His greatest creation is, of course, His children—you and I and all our brothers and sisters in the family of our Heavenly Father. . . .

We should see our stewardship of God’s creations as a responsibility to help fulfill His purposes. We do not worship God’s creations; we worship God, the Creator. Therefore, we use what He has given us to honor Him and accomplish His will. As Bishop Caussé pointed out, our Heavenly Father’s will, His work, is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of His children. Knowing the ultimate purpose of creation, we measure what we do by that standard, asking ourselves, “Would it help, or would it hinder God’s divine plan?” For example, we should use our earthly blessings to minister to the temporal and spiritual needs of others in a way that enables them to come to know and serve God and eventually inherit eternal life.[8]

Elder Marcus B. Nash

All humankind are stewards over this earth and its bounty—not owners—and will be accountable to God for what we do with regard to His creation. . . . As stewards over the earth and all life thereon, we are to gratefully make use of that which the Lord has provided, avoid wasting life and resources, and use the bounty of the earth to care for the poor.[9]

Elder Massimo De Feo

For people of faith, protecting and preserving our planet is not just a matter of survival. It is our home, and we consider it a creation and a gift of God.[10]

Elder Steven E. Snow

God expects every one of His sons and daughters to act as good stewards of the land He created. It causes me much grief when I look outside my window and see a hazy inversion or when I hear consistent reports of Utah’s poor air quality. I am concerned for the families affected by wildfires and for the schoolchildren forced to stay indoors because of smoky skies. Algal blooms are breaking out in Utah’s lakes. We are experiencing unusually dry seasons and record-breaking warm winters. . . . Climate change is real, and it’s our responsibility as stewards to do what we can to limit the damage done to God’s creation. . . . God made us stewards over His creations and, as such, He expects accountability. believe it is unbecoming of a Latter-day Saint to willfully deface and defile the earth.[11]

Bishop Gérald Caussé

The Creator has entrusted the earth’s resources and all forms of life to our care, but He retains full ownership. . . . As God’s children, we have received the charge to be stewards, caretakers, and guardians of His divine creations. . . . Our Heavenly Father allows us to use earthly resources according to our own free will. Yet our agency should not be interpreted as license to use or consume the riches of this world without wisdom or restraint. . . . The care of the earth and of our natural environment is a sacred responsibility entrusted to us by God, which should fill us with a deep sense of duty and humility. It is also an integral component of our discipleship. How can we honor and love Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ without honoring and loving Their creations? . . . Considering our individual circumstances, each of us can use the bountiful resources of the earth more reverently and prudently. We can support community efforts to care for the earth. We can adopt personal lifestyles and behaviors that respect God’s creations and make our own living spaces tidier, more beautiful, and more inspirational.[12]

The creation of this marvelous world in which we live is not an end in itself; it is the means by which our Heavenly Father’s eternal designs can be accomplished. This earth and everything in it — the towering mountains, the vast oceans, the fertile plains, the green valleys, the meandering rivers, the arid deserts, the innumerable variety of plants, insects, birds, and animals — everything, absolutely everything, was created for one purpose: to enable His sons and daughters to inherit immortality and exaltation in eternal family units.[13]

Bishop L. Todd Budge

God created the earth for the use of man, and each one of us is accountable to God for how we use it. This trust is not a matter of what we have the right to do to the earth, but the responsibility to care for the earth. The earth is a gift to care for, not a possession to keep. . . . If we act as good stewards, there are plenty of resources for the needs of our brothers and sisters around the globe, but not in excess and not to hoard from the poor. . . . When it comes to taking care of the earth, we cannot afford to think only of today. The consequences of our actions, for better or worse, accumulate into the future and are sometimes felt only generations later. Stewardship requires feet and hands at work in the present with a gaze fixed on the future. . . .

We have an obligation, to be good stewards, to pass to future generations an earth better than we found it through the habits and values of wise stewardship. We have the power within us to not only maintain, but to be co-creators with God in beautifying and replenishing the earth. In doing so, we not only show our reverence and love for God, the Creator, but love for His greatest creation — each of us, humankind.[14]

Bishop H. David Burton

It’s about creating a place of worship that works in harmony with the environment. . . . For decades we have looked for innovative ways to use natural resources in our meetinghouses that reflect our commitment as wise stewards of God’s creations. . . . As the Church continues to grow globally, and there is a greater demand for meetinghouses, more than ever we need to engage in wise construction practices to benefit both the environment and our members.[15]

Church Statement

We have a responsibility to care for and gratefully use what God has given, avoid wasting resources and wisely use the bounty of the earth to care for one another. . . . We all play a part in preserving the critical resources needed to sustain life — especially water — and we invite others to join us in reducing water use wherever possible.[16]

Additional Statements

Additional statements from Church leaders, along with related scriptures, are available in "Selected Scriptures and Church Leader Statements on Environmental Stewardship and Conservation," Newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org.


Notes

  1. ↑ "Environmental Stewardship and Conservation", Gospel Topics, accessed 4 September 2022.
  2. ↑ "The Importance of Water Conservation" Newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org, 22 June 2022.
  3. ↑ "The Importance of Water Conservation" Newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org, 22 June 2022.
  4. ↑ "Solar-Powered Construction Design Gets “Green” Light from Church Leaders" Newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org, 27 April 2010
  5. ↑ "Environmental Stewardship and Conservation", Gospel Topics, accessed 4 September 2022.
  6. ↑ Russell M. Nelson, "The Creation," April 2000 general conference.
  7. ↑ The Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, 645, as cited in Steven E. Snow, "The Moral Imperative of Environmental Stewardship," address given at an environmental stewardship symposium at Utah State University on 10 October 2018.
  8. ↑ D. Todd Christofferson, "Honoring the Creator," address given at the Florianópolis Brazil Seminario SudAmericano 2023 (an environmental stewardship conference) in Florianópolis, Brazil, on Friday, October 20, 2023 (see Newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org).
  9. ↑ Marcus B. Nash, "Righteous Dominion and Compassion for the Earth," Newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org, 2013
  10. ↑ Massimo De Feo, "Elder De Feo participates in Conference on the Future of Europe session," The Church News, 20 Jan 2022
  11. ↑ Steven E. Snow, "The Moral Imperative of Environmental Stewardship," address given at an environmental stewardship symposium at Utah State University on 10 October 2018.
  12. ↑ Gerald Causse, "Our Earthly Stewardship," October 2022 general conference.
  13. ↑ Gérald Caussé, "Caring for God’s Creations: A Duty of Love," address given at the Florianópolis Brazil Seminario SudAmericano 2023 (an environmental stewardship conference) in Florianópolis, Brazil, on Wednesday, October 18, 2023 (see Newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org).
  14. ↑ L. Todd Budge, "The Divine Gift of Creation: Our Sacred Duty to Care for the Earth," address given at “Why it Matters: The 1st International Academic Conference on the Sustainable Development Goals,” Utah Valley University, on October 5, 2022.
  15. ↑ H. David Burton, "Solar-Powered Construction Design Gets “Green” Light from Church Leaders" Newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org, 27 April 2010
  16. ↑ "The Importance of Water Conservation" Newsroom.ChurchofJesusChrist.org, 22 June 2022.
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