A Very Short Tribute to Joseph Smith

Let others howl that our respect for Joseph Smith borders on worship. Hogwash!! A great but flawed man lived a flawed but great life - and we should never hesitate to make that point clear. What I love most about Joseph is precisely the constant beatings he took (from man, but, more importantly, from God) - and that he recorded those beatings for all of us to see.

I don’t want a sanitized saint. I want a bloodied and conflicted and agonized and noble and bombastic and gentle and loving prophet - someone whom I can try to emulate, since I see in him not only my potential but also my griefs and sorrows and failings. Truly, "Praise to the man who communed with Jehovah."