Palmyra

I (Erik) had the opportunity to interview with a program in Rochester, New York, recently.  It was great to spend time with my brother and his family.  The trip also meant I had a chance to visit nearby Palmyra.  I have wanted to go there for years!  For those who don't know, Palmyra is an important place in LDS Church history.  This was where Joseph Smith had a vision of God the Father and Jesus Christ, where the Book of Mormon was shown to Joseph Smith, and where the first copies of the Book of Mormon were printed.


Every summer the LDS Church does a pageant on the hill where Joseph was given the Book of Mormon and thousands of people attend each performance and visit the surrounding areas.  While I was visiting the different sights I saw only two other tourists.  I guess the last day of November in upstate New York is not prime tourist season.  

 Replica of Smith home

 View out of Smith home towards grove of trees where Joseph had his first vision

View of Palmyra Temple from near Smith home.  It was built on some of the Smith's original property 

Joseph hid the Gold Plates containing the Book of Mormon under these stones during a search by a mob.

I had stormy weather. It actually hailed on me a couple of times. 

These next pictures are all from the grove of trees where, at age 14, Joseph prayed for forgiveness of his sins and to know which church to join.  We believe that God the Father and Jesus Christ appeared to him in answer to his prayer.

This is a monument commemorating the messenger that revealed the location of the gold plates containing the Book of Mormon.  It is on top of a hill called Cumorah. 

This is the Grandin Building in "downtown" Palmyra where the first copies of the Book of Mormon were printed.  They had a nice little tour where they showed how the book was put together.  The first printing was for 5,000 copies. Now there have been over 100 million copies printed in over 100 languages.

 One of the original 5,000 copies.

During my time visiting the sights I started to think about why I appreciated these places and what difference the sacred events there have made in my life. The events that occurred near Palmyra and the Book of Mormon, along with the Bible, have taught me  about God and His Son and how to know and worship them. It was a refreshing experience for me to be able to reevaluate myself and look for changes that need to be made.  I don't intend for this post to be preachy, just a way of sharing a good experience I had with you people who are important to me!