Jason W. Briggs
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Jason William Briggs (June 25, 1821 – January 11, 1899) was a leader in the early history of the
Latter Day Saint movement The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by ...
and was instrumental in bringing about the 1860 "Reorganization" of the church, which resulted in the establishment of the
Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Community of Christ, known legally and from 1872 to 2001 as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS), is an American-based international church, and is the second-largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement ...
.


Early membership

Briggs was born on June 25, 1821, in
Pompey, New York Pompey is a town in the southeast part of Onondaga County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 7,080. The town was named after the Roman general and political leader Pompey by a late 18th-century clerk interested in ...
, to Hugh Lackey Briggs and Polly Briggs (née Damon). In 1841 at
Potosi, Wisconsin Potosi is a village in Grant County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 646 at the 2020 census. The village is in the Town of Potosi. History Potosi is located where Wisconsin's lead ore belt intersects with the Mississippi. The pos ...
, he was baptized into the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian restorationist Christian denomination and the largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement. Founded dur ...
by William O. Clark. By 1842, Briggs had been ordained an elder of the church and he organized and became the head of a
branch A branch, also called a ramus in botany, is a stem that grows off from another stem, or when structures like veins in leaves are divided into smaller veins. History and etymology In Old English, there are numerous words for branch, includ ...
in
Beloit, Wisconsin Beloit ( ) is a city in Rock County, Wisconsin, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 36,657 people. Beloit is a principal city of the Janesville, Wisconsin, Janesville–Beloit metropolitan statistical area (Rock Co ...
. By 1843, Briggs had organized a second branch in
Waukesha, Wisconsin Waukesha ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Waukesha County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 71,158 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located along the Fox River (Illinois River tributary), Fox River adjacent to th ...
. In 1844, the movement's founder,
Joseph Smith Joseph Smith Jr. (December 23, 1805June 27, 1844) was an American religious and political leader and the founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. Publishing the Book of Mormon at the age of 24, Smith attracted tens of thou ...
, was
killed Killing, Killings, or The Killing may refer to: Types of killing *-cide, a suffix that refers to types of killing (see List of types of killing), such as: ** Homicide, one human killing another *** Murder, unlawful killing of another human without ...
and a
succession crisis A succession crisis is a crisis that arises when an order of succession fails, for example when a monarch dies without an indisputable heir. It may result in a war of succession. Examples include (see List of wars of succession): * The Wars of Th ...
ensued.
Brigham Young Brigham Young ( ; June 1, 1801August 29, 1877) was an American religious leader and politician. He was the second President of the Church (LDS Church), president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1847 until h ...
, president of the
Quorum of the Twelve Apostles A quorum is the minimum number of members of a group necessary to constitute the group at a meeting. In a deliberative assembly (a body that uses parliamentary procedure, such as a legislature), a quorum is necessary to conduct the business of ...
, assumed control of the church's headquarters in
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. Briggs became convinced that Young's organization had fallen into
apostasy Apostasy (; ) is the formal religious disaffiliation, disaffiliation from, abandonment of, or renunciation of a religion by a person. It can also be defined within the broader context of embracing an opinion that is contrary to one's previous re ...
and by 1846 he and his branches affiliated with
James J. Strang James may refer to: People * James (given name) * James (surname) * James (musician), aka Faruq Mahfuz Anam James, (born 1964), Bollywood musician * James, brother of Jesus * King James (disambiguation), various kings named James * Prince Ja ...
, who had organized a new church headquarters in nearby
Voree, Wisconsin Voree (/vɔːriː/) is an unincorporated community in the Town of Spring Prairie in Walworth County, Wisconsin, United States. It is best known as the headquarters of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite), a denominati ...
. Briggs was a fervent opponent of
polygamy Polygamy (from Late Greek , "state of marriage to many spouses") is the practice of marriage, marrying multiple spouses. When a man is married to more than one wife at the same time, it is called polygyny. When a woman is married to more tha ...
, and when Strang began to practice
plural marriage Polygamy (called plural marriage by Latter-day Saints in the 19th century or the Principle by modern fundamentalist practitioners of polygamy) was practiced by leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) for more ...
openly, Briggs broke with his
organization An organization or organisation (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English; American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), see spelling differences) is an legal entity, entity—such as ...
. He affiliated briefly with William Smith's organization of the church before learning that William, too, had been practicing plural marriage.


"New Organization"

After these set-backs, Briggs despaired that the Latter Day Saint movement had irrevocably fallen into iniquity. He later reported that on November 18, 1851, on the prairie near Beloit, he was pondering this concern when the "Spirit of the Lord" came upon him and spoke, saying: :Verily, verily, saith the Lord, even Jesus Christ unto his servant, Jason W. Briggs, concerning the church: Behold I have not cast off my people; neither have I changed in regard to Zion. Yea, verily, my people shall be redeemed, and my law shall be kept which I revealed unto my servant Joseph Smith... According to Briggs, the Lord further explained that "in mine own due time will I call upon the seed of Joseph Smith," (i.e., one of his sons), "and will bring one forth, and he shall be mighty and strong, and he shall preside over the high priesthood of my Church...". And finally, Briggs said the Lord assured him "that which ye received as my celestial law," (i.e., plural marriage), "is not of me, but is the doctrine of Baalam." After reporting that he received this guidance, Briggs began to coordinate with leaders of branches in Wisconsin and Illinois, including Zenas H. Gurley Sr. who resolved with him to wait for a leader to be raised up "from the seed of Joseph." They began to establish a "New Organization" of the church and Briggs was called to preside over its first conference on June 12, 1852, in Beloit. In 1853, Briggs was called as an
apostle An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary. The word is derived from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", itself derived from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to se ...
and sustained as President of the Quorum of the Twelve and as the "Representative President of the Church." Important leaders, including William Marks and Aaron Smith (former leader of a Strangite schismatic group), joined the movement. On April 6, 1860, at a General Conference of the New Organization of the church in
Amboy, Illinois Amboy is a city in Lee County, Illinois, United States, along the Green River. The population was 2,500 at the 2010 census. The chain of Carson Pirie Scott & Co. began in Amboy when Samuel Carson opened his first dry goods store there in 1854 ...
,
Joseph Smith III Joseph Smith III (November 6, 1832 – December 10, 1914) was the eldest surviving son of Joseph Smith (founder of the Latter Day Saint movement) and Emma Hale Smith. Joseph Smith III was the Prophet-President of what became the Reorganized Chu ...
joined with the group and was sustained to follow in his father's role as
President of the Church In the Latter Day Saint movement, the president of the Church is generally considered to be the highest office of the church. It was the office held by Joseph Smith, founder of the movement, and the office assumed by many of Smith's claimed succe ...
.


Disagreements and disfellowship

By 1885, Briggs was out of harmony with Joseph Smith III. Briggs was theological liberal and was aware of "
higher criticism Historical criticism (also known as the historical-critical method (HCM) or higher criticism, in contrast to lower criticism or textual criticism) is a branch of criticism that investigates the origins of ancient texts to understand "the world b ...
" of the Bible being taught at the time in German universities. Like these
German scholars German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
, Briggs believed that scripture was contextually understood and that revelation was never a final process, but progressively revealed over time. Such views angered more conservative members. Briggs also attacked the idea of the
pre-existence Pre-existence, premortal existence, beforelife, or life before birth, is the belief that each individual human soul existed before mortal conception, and at some point before birth enters or is placed into the body. Concepts of pre-existence c ...
of souls, then a cherished doctrine; he also questioned whether the church should again attempt a gathered community due to the disastrous results in Joseph Smith's lifetime. While many of Joseph Smith III's actual positions mirrored Briggs's thoughts, Briggs presented them more stridently than Smith ever did. Furthermore, Briggs angered Joseph Smith III by his constant reminders that Joseph Smith had practiced polygamy, contrary to what Joseph Smith III believed. In addition, Briggs sparred with Smith over who should be allowed to print their views in the RLDS periodical, the '' True Latter Day Saints' Herald''.. At the 1885 RLDS conference, Briggs was not sustained in his position as Apostle and in 1886 he withdrew from the Reorganization. Briggs died on January 11, 1899, near
Denver, Colorado Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...
.


See also

* Edmund C. Briggs


Notes


References

* *


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Briggs, Jason W. 1821 births 1899 deaths American Latter Day Saint missionaries American leaders of the Community of Christ Apostles of the Community of Christ Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite) members Community of Christ missionaries Doctrine and Covenants people Latter Day Saint missionaries in the United States People from Grant County, Wisconsin People from Pompey, New York Presidents of the Council of Twelve Apostles (Community of Christ)