Joseph Fielding Smith (presiding patriarch)

__NOTOC__Joseph Fielding Smith (30 January 1899 – 29 August 1964) was presiding patriarch and a general authority of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1942 until 1946.

Smith should not be confused with his grandfather, Joseph F. Smith, nor his uncle, Joseph Fielding Smith, both of whom served as apostles and later as presidents of the church.

Smith was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, the son of LDS Church apostle Hyrum M. Smith and Ida Elizabeth Bowman. He went to school at the University of Utah, where he majored in Theater. In 1929, he married Ruth Pingree. [ [http://gaynewsingreek.blogspot.com/2006_02_01_archive.html ΤΟ ΑΠΕΝΑΝΤΙ ΠΕΖΟΔΡΟΜΙΟ: 02.2006 ] ] Together they had 7 children, Ruth, Lynne, Ida, Joe, Denis, Hyrum and Pauline. [ [http://www.codyenterprise.com/articles/2007/05/10/obituaries/april_2004/obit959-1084.txt Lynne Esther Smith Partridge] ] .

At the age of 43, Smith was ordained a high priest and Patriarch to the Church on 8 October 1942 by Church President Heber J. Grant. He served but four years before it was reported by the church that he had requested to be released from his position. His request was granted by Church President George Albert Smith on 6 October 1946, with the church announcing that Smith was released for reasons of "ill health." ["Patriarch to the Church: Released from Duties", "Improvement Era" 49 (Nov. 1946), 685, 708.] After Smith's death it was discovered that the patriarch had been involved in a homosexual affair with a 21-year-old U.S. Navy sailor, who was also a Latter-day Saint. [cite book | last = Quinn | first = D. Michael | title = Same-Sex Dynamics among Nineteenth-Century Americans: A Mormon Example | pages = p. 370 | location = Urbana | publisher = University of Illinois Press | year = 2001 | isbn= 978-0-252-06958-1 ]

After being released, Smith took his family to Honolulu, Hawaii, where he continued to raise his family. For a time, Smith was not allowed to hold any position in the church, but reportedly was "treated with compassion." [ [http://farms.byu.edu/display.php?table=review&id=280 A Response to D. Michael Quinn's Homosexual Distortion of Latter-day Saint History] ] In 1957, Smith was again allowed to serve in the church after he had forsaken his homosexual behavior. [ [http://www.affirmation.org/memorial/joseph_fielding_smith.shtml Chronology of Events on Patriarch Joseph Fielding Smith’s Homosexuality] ] Shortly thereafter, Smith's wife Ruth wrote a letter to Church President David O. McKay expressing her gratitude for the church's help, stating, "I know, better than anyone else, the trial our family has been to you and to the authorities." [April 13, 1958 [http://www.affirmation.org/memorial/joseph_fielding_smith.shtml Ruth P. Smith to McKay letter] (also misfiled under 1959)] In 1957 and after, Smith served as a member of his stake's high council.

Smith died and was buried in Salt Lake City, Utah.

See also

* Lineal Succession (Latter Day Saints)
* Patriarch (Latter Day Saints)
* Patriarchal Priesthood
* Patriarchal blessing
* Homosexuality and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Notes

References

* Irene M. Bates and E. Gary Smith (1996). "Lost Legacy: The Mormon Office of Presiding Patriarch." Urbana: University of Illinois Press.
* D. Michael Quinn (2001). "Same-Sex Dynamics among Nineteenth-Century Americans: A Mormon Example". Urbana: University of Illinois Press.

External links

* [http://www.affirmation.org/memorial/joseph_fielding_smith.shtml Chronology of Events on Patriarch Joseph Fielding Smith’s Homosexuality]
* [http://www.josephfandruthpsmithfamily.com Family Website]