Significance of D&C 25 – Emma Smith, an elect lady

This is the first revelation given directly to a woman. Even though the revelation is coming to Emma through Joseph, that doesn’t mean it is coming from Joseph. The revelation is from the Lord. Joseph is just the mouthpiece.

In order to take this revelation in context, we need to know a little about the roles of women in the nineteenth century. According to Answers.com, “The roles of women in the 1800’s were to take care of the house, the children, and the husband. The man owned the woman, and therefore the woman was under the control of the man. Even girls had to learn how to take care of the household at an early age. They cooked, sewed, knitted, weaved, milked the cows and took care of the children.” In this context, D&C 25 is huge. It dramatically expands the role of women in the church. Here is a small summary of some of the changes in perspective it brings.

The Lord addresses Emma as “Emma my daughter.” This is reminiscent of Joseph’s 1832 account of the 1^st vision when the Lord says “Joseph my son, thy sins are forgiven thee” (Note: Our modern D&C says “Emma Smith, my daughter” but the original just says “Emma.” The Smith was added later for clarity.) The Lord addresses them both by their first name. He knows both men and women personally, and he loves them equally.

“And thou shalt be ordained under his hand to expound scriptures, and to exhort the church, according as it shall be given thee by my Spirit.” Emma was ordained to expound scriptures and exhort the church – something that had been exclusively a man’s role. She was also supposed to dedicate her time to “writing, and to learning much.”

She is to comfort her husband in his calling as prophet (verse 5), and husband is to support her in the church (verse 9). Again, we see the different roles, but still a certain equality.

In verse 11, Emma is called to make a compilation of hymns to be sung in church. This is a huge responsibility. The “song of the righteous” (verse 12) is a prayer to the Lord and is therefore comparable to scripture. We may not always quote the Doctrine and Covenants or other books of scripture in our church meetings, but we always sing at least three hymns.

The instructions given to Emma extend to all the women in the church. “This is my voice unto all” (verse 16). Obviously the specific callings to comfort her husband the prophet, and to compile a hymn book are directed to Emma and to no one else, but the rest of the revelation applies to all of the women in the church.

Lastly, as I mentioned earlier, Joseph is not part of this revelation. This is between Emma and the Lord. She is a free agent, and can choose for herself, independent of her husband.