The Articles and Covenants: Section 20

Section 20 of the Doctrine in Covenants outlines the basic tenets of church.  It was written mostly by Oliver Cowdery and edited through revelation by Joseph Smith. Joseph asked Oliver to create the document, basing it primarily on principles found in the Book of Mormon.  Oliver was particularly suited to do this because he was in the process of recopying the Book of Mormon manuscript so they would have a second copy to give to the printer. 

Oliver was an educated man and understood the different beliefs of the competing religions.  In this chapter he and Joseph clearly delineate where this new church fell in important questions of debate of the day. 

I got a lot of my ideas about this from the different podcasts that I listened to, but I wanted to write down the ideas so I could reference them the next time we go through the D&C. Here are some of the theological questions of the day.

The nature of the Godhead. The idea of the trinity was established at the Council of Nicaea in 325.  Since that time, no major Christian church contested the idea, even during the protestant reformation. Joseph Smith knows that the Godhead consists of three separate beings, but interestingly he does not state it overtly in this section, but he does suggest it in v. 2 when he states that he was called of God, and ordained by Jesus Christ. We know from the Lectures on Faith, written in 1835, that Joseph didn't yet understand that the Holy Ghost was also a separate being.

Ongoing Revelation: The idea that the leader of a church could receive new revelation on how to guide the church was a main point of division between the Catholics and the Protestants.  Catholics believed that the pope received revelation for the church, even after Jesus' and the apostles' deaths.  Protestants believed that all revelation was contained in the Bible, and that there was no need for further visitation of angels or visions etc. In v. 6, 11 Joseph declares that he had received the visitation of angels, and is inspired by God. 

Closed Cannon: Catholics and Protestants both believe in a closed cannon, though Catholics include more books in their cannon than Protestants do.  Joseph Smith departs from both groups by proclaiming that he had brought forth new scripture in v 8-11.

Unconditional Election: Calvinist believed that, because God knows the beginning from the end, he already knows who will be saved.  There is nothing anyone can do to change that, so your good works might show that you are elected, but they don't lead to your election. Joseph Smith refutes this idea in v 14-15 where he clearly states that people have a choice to receive or reject the gospel.

Universal Salvation: There was another religion called Universalist that believed that God is able to do his work and that everyone would be eventually saved after they had suffered the consequences of their sins.  Joseph Smith Senior was a Universalist earlier in his life, and that is why he had never been baptized. In v 29 refutes the idea of universal salvation, because it states that people must do certain things to be saved, and in v. 32 which states that man may fall from grace. 

Requirements for Baptism: Some churches of the day believed that baptism was the start of the journey to Christ and so there should be no requirements to qualify for baptism.  This was a view held by Oliver Cowdery, and he did not write this verse when he put together the Articles and Covenants.  This verse was added by Joseph Smith and it made Oliver Cowdery very upset. He convinced David Whitmer that they were in error as well, and Joseph had to travel to the Whitmer's home and convince both of them that this verse came as revelation from the Lord.  It was perhaps the beginning of Oliver's eventual split with the church.

Hierarchal Priesthood: The Catholics and Episcopalians believed that priesthood authority was essential and hierarchal.  In other words, in order to receive priesthood authority you had to be ordained by someone who already had that authority.  The Methodists, however, believed in universal priesthood.  Anyone who felt moved upon by the spirit to become a minister, could become a minister. In v. 38-67 the importance of a hierarchal priesthood organization. 

Baptism by Immersion: The importance of baptism by immersion was a point of contention between Catholics and some protestant religions, and Baptists.  Joseph is declaring here that he sides with the Baptists.

It is interesting to see the section within historical context, but that doesn't diminish its importance in the church today.  Although the way we administer the offices of the priesthood has been refined since 1830, the basic guidelines remain the same, as do the basic beliefs.