The Articles of Faith by James E. Talmage
The Articles of Faith: A Series of Lectures on the Principal Doctrines of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a book by James E. Talmage about the doctrines of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
- In 1842, in response to a specific request from John Wentworth (editor of the Chicago Democrat ), Joseph Smith sent a succinct overview of his own religious experiences and the History of the Church over which he presided. At the end of the historical sketch, he appended a list summarizing the "faith of the Latter-day Saints.”[1]
- Later titled "Articles of Faith," these thirteen items were first published in the Nauvoo Times and Seasons in March 1842 and were later included in the 1851 British Mission pamphlet The Pearl of Great Price, compiled by Elder Franklin D. Richards. That pamphlet was revised in 1878 and again in 1880. In 1880, a general conference of the Church voted to add the Pearl of Great Price to the standard works of the Church, thus including the thirteen articles. The Articles of Faith do not constitute a summation of all LDS beliefs, and they are not a creed in the traditional Christian sense, but they do provide a useful authoritative summary of fundamental LDS scriptures and beliefs.[2]
When the First Presidency of the Church asked Talmage to prepare a work on theology for use as a textbook in Church schools, he turned to Joseph Smith’s 1842 Articles of Faith for the outline of his volume.
Talmage's Articles of Faith was first published in 1899 and is still in print today. “In twenty-four chapters, Talmage elaborates on the themes in Joseph Smith’s list and provides extensive commentary and scriptural references regarding each of the concepts mentioned in the thirteen articles, plus sections on the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper and resurrection . . . , and finally a section on practical religion (benevolence, tithes and offerings, consecration, social order within the Church, eternal marriage, sanctity of the body, and keeping the Sabbath day holy).[3]
