Sunday Tidbits—Re-baptism

1.      What was the initial reasoning for the Saints to be re-baptized when they entered the Salt Lake Valley?

a.      Lost or destroyed records made it difficult for members to point to their membership

b.      Too much swearing on the trail west

c.       Too many missed Sabbaths on the trail west

d.      A recommitment to their original baptismal covenants

2.      Where did the idea of re-baptism originate?

a.      Joseph Smith

b.      The Savior when visiting the Nephites

c.       The Savior at the time of his earthly ministry

d.      Paul at the time of his ministry

Yesterday’s answer:

a.      Fear

George Washington Brown, a member of Brigham Young’s 1847 vanguard company, recalled how Shoshones in the Salt Lake Valley cautiously welcomed the newcomers with food. Initially, wrote Brown, “the Indians seemed to be afraid of us. . . . It wasn’t many days before some of them came into camp and gave the men some dried service berries and crickets to eat.”

Nearly Everything Imaginable, Walker, Ronald W., Doris R. Dant ed., (Provo, Utah: BYU Press, 1999), 223.