Joseph Smith: The Making of a Prophet
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| Author | Dan Vogel |
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| Subject | Joseph Smith |
| Publisher | Signature Books |
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Publication date
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2004 |
| Pages | 715 pp. |
| ISBN | |
| OCLC | 54079485 |
Joseph Smith: The Making of a Prophet is a biography of the formative years of the founder of Mormonism written by Dan Vogel. The book covers the period of Smith’s life up until 1831. Vogel casts Smith in the role of a magician, who perhaps believes in his own ability to perform magic while using fraud to support his position: a charlatan that came to believe that he was called of God. The author assumes Smith to be the author of the Book of Mormon and takes the position that the book may be used as a "primary source document" that represents a reflection of Smith’s own life. Events portrayed in the Book of Mormon are compared to specific events in Smith’s life to illustrate similarities and to deduce Smith’s thoughts and aspirations during these periods.
Vogel’s stated purpose in the book is to integrate various pieces of information to explain Smith’s complex personality, particularly the opposing perceptions that Smith was a “man of God” and a “fraud who exploited his followers for his own purposes.” The author proposes that Smith was a “pious deceiver” or “sincere fraud,” although the author states that he applies the term fraud when describing only some of Smith’s activities. Vogel states that “Smith believed he was called of God, yet occasionally engaged in fraudulent activities to preach God’s word as effectively as possible.” The portrayal of Smith as actually being religious is contrasted with the irreligious portrayal of him presented by Fawn Brodie in her 1945 biography of Smith No Man Knows My History: The Life of Joseph Smith the Mormon Prophet. Vogel states that previous authors who have attempted to describe Smith’s motives do not go far enough to “explore the inner moral conflicts of an individual who deceives in God’s name while holding sincere religious beliefs.” The author states that “No biographer is completely free of bias. As is no doubt apparent, my inclination is to interpret any claim of the paranormal-precognition, clairvoyance, telekinesis, telepathy-as delusion or fraud.” Regarding Smith’s role as a prophet, the author states that Smith was not acting in a malicious or selfish manner, but instead was attempting to elevate others in order to elevate himself.
Vogel states that he believes that the significance of treasure seeking in Smith’s early life deserves greater emphasis than has been given in previous biographies, and presents Smith as “a leader among the treasure seers of Manchester, New York.” Regarding these activities, it is suggested that “Smith was both convinced of his ability and also deceptive” and that “Smith may have believed himself to be inspired and may have at times heard voices or experienced visions but still used some deception to convince others.” In order to support the thesis of Smith’s primary focus in life being treasure hunting, the author makes extensive use of the Hurlbut affidavits originally published in E. D. Howe’s exposé Mormonism Unvailed and other early anti-Mormon publications.
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