The Magical World View
The magical world view held by the Smith family and some others of their time, interestingly aligns with the Book of Mormon’s narrative. Joseph’s reputation as a seer evolved from seeking hidden treasure in a seer stone into a seer and translator of ancient things. In a BYU article titled “Moroni as Angel and Treasure Guardian” by Mark Ash-hurst McGee he describes the scene of Joseph Smith’s treasure digs by saying “Gathering at the designated spot, the treasure seekers staked out magical circles around the treasure. They used Bible passages and hymns, prayers and, ritual swords and other magical items, or even propitiatory animal sacrifices to appease or fend off pre-ternatural guardians of the treasure. These spirit guardians could be ancient inhabitants, once living, but now charged to keep guardianship over the buried treasure. For one reason or another, the treasure seekers would always return home empty-handed.
Historian D Michael Qinn expounds, The guardian spirit of cumorahs treasure later becomes known, “by the year 1830, by Smith and Latter-day Saint followers as an angel named Moroni who had lived on the American continent anciently as a soldier, prophet, historian, and the one who buried the ancient records...said to be written on gold plates and buried in the Hill Comorah of Palmyra New York. Early Latter-day Saints linked treasure seeking with Smith’s religiously defied visions of September 1823. Early Latter-day Saint leader Brigham Young often refers to the plates as “the treasure.” Many other early latter-day Saints refer to the gold plates as “Comorahs Treasure.” This background information is important when striving to better understand Joseph Smith as a visionary. The magical world view of the day, combined with the fact that nearly all 19 century American conversion narratives mention angelic visitations and claimed visions of Deity are some of the things that set the stage for the angelic influence of the Latter-day Saint movement.
Pictured is an 1832 oil on canvas by John Quidor titled “The Money Diggers” displayed in The Brooklyn Museum.