Was Joseph Smith bipolar?

[Elgin]

Joseph Smith's life reads like the DSM IV-TR criteria for manic episodes of bipolar disorder.
1) Risk Taking - he took so many risks that he was killed in jail by a mob
2) Hypersexuality - 51 wives
3) Hyperreligiousity - founded a new religion
4) Delusions of Granduer
5) Flight of ideas / racing thoughts
6) Prolific production of work in a short period - Book of Mormon
7) Calls friends in the middle of the night - 116 pages
8) Audible hallucinations - revelations
9) Anger management issues
10) Talkativeness / pressured speech
This would indicate that "god" did not reveal anything to Joseph Smith, he was experiencing manic and mixed bipolar episodes. If this is true, the Book of Mormon and the First Vision are simply delusions of someone with bipolar in a manic episode.

[Yuan]

Do we know what meds he was taking?

I wonder if he needed Viagra back in the day as well?

[Elgin]

Fortunately for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Zyprexa didn't exist in 1830, or Joseph Smith would have been put on it and the Book of Mormon never would have been written.

[Larry]

Elgin wrote:

Joseph Smith's life reads like the DSM IV-TR criteria for manic episodes of bipolar disorder.
1) Risk Taking - he took so many risks that he was killed in jail by a mob
2) Hypersexuality - 51 wives
3) Hyperreligiousity - founded a new religion
4) Delusions of Granduer
5) Flight of ideas / racing thoughts
6) Prolific production of work in a short period - Book of Mormon
7) Calls friends in the middle of the night - 116 pages
8) Audible hallucinations - revelations
9) Anger management issues
10) Talkativeness / pressured speech
This would indicate that "god" did not reveal anything to Joseph Smith, he was experiencing manic and mixed bipolar episodes. If this is true, the Book of Mormon and the First Vision are simply delusions of someone with bipolar in a manic episode.

the same arguments could be made for every Bible prophet as well as Jesus Christ. So you must either Dissmiss ALL Bible prophets or accept that Joseph just might be a Prophet

[CHUANG-MU]

I say we opt for the Dismissal of all bible prophets as well as Joseph Smith.

Smoke some hash out of your hookah and I am sure you will will have revelations as well.

[Michael Motta]

I agree Chuang-Mu; I think Larry made his own bed there. He acts as if it's so well-established that Biblical prophets are "real" that it would force us to opt against Joe Smith's having suffering from delusions and/or hallucinations.

Besides, they wouldn't all have to suffer from bipolar disorder. There are plenty of other diagnoses to spread around, ranging from personality disorders to schizophrenia. Then there's just the plain old snake oil salesman diagnosis.

[Rhyno]

Larry wrote:

<quoted text>
the same arguments could be made for every Bible prophet as well as Jesus Christ. So you must either Dissmiss ALL Bible prophets or accept that Joseph just might be a Prophet

i didn't know Jesus Moses, Elijah, Paul or Isaiah had 51 wives, were workaholics or founded a new religion? Sure one could argue Jesus started Christianity, but when you think about it, its just a fullfilment of Judaism.

[Robert Fields]

I doubt Joseph Smith suffered from hyper-sexuality. Certainly if he was un-moderate in his sexual practices with his plural wives he would have tons of children via his reputed wives. So far the rumors of children i have studied looks like old wives rumor tales to me. 5 on a list of twelve have been proven not his. One current DNA studies can't confirm the claim. the other five remaining candidate children are undergoing some ongoing DNA studies.

I found a BYU Studies Review of Joseph Smith: The Making of a Prophet by Dan Vogel. It deals a bit with the bi-polar issue.

http://byustudies.byu.edu/Reviews/Pages/revie...

[not ashamed]

Elgin wrote:

Joseph Smith's life reads like the DSM IV-TR criteria for manic episodes of bipolar disorder.
1) Risk Taking - he took so many risks that he was killed in jail by a mob
2) Hypersexuality - 51 wives
3) Hyperreligiousity - founded a new religion
4) Delusions of Granduer
5) Flight of ideas / racing thoughts
6) Prolific production of work in a short period - Book of Mormon
7) Calls friends in the middle of the night - 116 pages
8) Audible hallucinations - revelations
9) Anger management issues
10) Talkativeness / pressured speech
This would indicate that "god" did not reveal anything to Joseph Smith, he was experiencing manic and mixed bipolar episodes. If this is true, the Book of Mormon and the First Vision are simply delusions of someone with bipolar in a manic episode.

his experiences must not have been too mixed up considering his words were unwavering his testimony never changing from the time he was 14 until his death. i know many people who are bipolar my brother being one and i can tell you their mood behavior and words change constantly. this argument is just ridiculous.

[Robert Fields]

I am aware of the so-called contradictory accounts of the First Vision critics point to. FAIR and FARMS has dealt with all the issues the critics felt invalidated Joseph Smiths testimony.

The sexuality issue in Joseph Smiths plural marriage is interesting. I became convinced a number of these sealings to the 33 were just marriages for the eternity, but that he never clearly lived with them as wives. Lets consider the case of Patty Sessions. She continued to live with her husband after this sealing to Joseph Smith. No doubt she knew the time wording Joseph Smith and her said was meaningless for time. Todd Compton decided Joseph Smith and her never had a sexual relationship.

D.&C. 132 is a very anti-polyandry document. The only way Patty sessions could be appointed to be with Joseph Smith is if her husband were guilty of adultury. But she would have to be divorced. Then marry Joseph Smith. Then divorce Joseph Smith, or she would be guilty of adultury when she went to live with her husband after the ceremony. So i decided they indended this marriage to begin in the eternity only after the existing marriage had disolved in death.

The Helen Mar Kimball sealing is also of this platonic nature. Todd Compton who wrote In Sacred Lonliness concluded that.

[Howie in Holland]

CHUANG-MU wrote:

I say we opt for the Dismissal of all bible prophets as well as Joseph Smith.
Smoke some hash out of your hookah and I am sure you will will have revelations as well.

Now this is FUNNY!!!!!

[Robert Fields]

The most responsible list of Joseph Smiths plural wives is 33. And even that number is to high for me. I consider Patty Sessions and Helen Mar Kimball only married to Joseph Smith for eternity. So i myself would not list them as earthly plural wives of Joseph Smith. The reason is there was no sexuality between them and Joseph Smith. I did not say it Todd Compton suggested it first.

[Robert Fields]

"The interview had convinced me that the statement made in an affidavite of this Melissa Lot Willis,published by Joseph F. Smith along with others of similar import to the effect that she had been married to Joseph Smith, was not true, provided the word married be construed as conveying the right of living together as man and wife, a relation she had unequivocally denied in my presence. I was convinced that wherever the word married or sealed occurred in such testimonials-To be continued in next post.

[Robert Fields]

regarding my father it meant nothing more than that possibly those women had gone through some ceremony or covenant which they intended as an arrangement for association in the world to come. and could by no means have any reference whatever to marital rights in the flesh."(The Memoirs of President Joseph Smith (1832-1914), Mary Anderson pg.559)

I see this explanation fitting well the Patty Sessions and Helen Mar Kimball marriages to Joseph Smith.

[Dyann PACA West- CA]

Robert Fields wrote:

I am aware of the so-called contradictory accounts of the First Vision critics point to. FAIR and FARMS has dealt with all the issues the critics felt invalidated Joseph Smiths testimony.
The sexuality issue in Joseph Smiths plural marriage is interesting. I became convinced a number of these sealings to the 33 were just marriages for the eternity, but that he never clearly lived with them as wives. Lets consider the case of Patty Sessions. She continued to live with her husband after this sealing to Joseph Smith. No doubt she knew the time wording Joseph Smith and her said was meaningless for time. Todd Compton decided Joseph Smith and her never had a sexual relationship.
D.&C. 132 is a very anti-polyandry document. The only way Patty sessions could be appointed to be with Joseph Smith is if her husband were guilty of adultury. But she would have to be divorced. Then marry Joseph Smith. Then divorce Joseph Smith, or she would be guilty of adultury when she went to live with her husband after the ceremony. So i decided they indended this marriage to begin in the eternity only after the existing marriage had disolved in death.
The Helen Mar Kimball sealing is also of this platonic nature. Todd Compton who wrote In Sacred Lonliness concluded that.

Sounds pretty freakin' complicated for "Revalation". I have never read anything in the BIBLE that complicated.
BTW, isn't complication and confusion a tool of Satan?

[Robert Fields]

Its not complicated just a repeat of Matthew 19 regarding divorce. My Community of Christ/RLDS does not consider it a true revelation. Joseph Smith knew his revelations needed to be tested in the First Presidency, the twelve,seventy before going to the people. We felt the process was ignored as the sealing practice was put into effect. We feel revelations can be of man, the Devil, or God. The LDS Church accepted it we did not. It is not complicated, but it does require interpretation like any other document.

[Dyann PACA West- CA]

Robert Fields wrote:

Its not complicated just a repeat of Matthew 19 regarding divorce. My Community of Christ/RLDS does not consider it a true revelation. Joseph Smith knew his revelations needed to be tested in the First Presidency, the twelve,seventy before going to the people. We felt the process was ignored as the sealing practice was put into effect. We feel revelations can be of man, the Devil, or God. The LDS Church accepted it we did not. It is not complicated, but it does require interpretation like any other document.

Why does it require interpretation?
Didn't Jesus say there was no intercessor between God and Man except for Himself?
What qualifies one to be an interpretor?

[Dyann PACA West- CA]

I'm not being argumentative.
Just inquisitive as to the bottom line.
When Holy Scripture is added to by Modern Man, I need to know how it is justified.

[Dyann PACA West- CA]

not ashamed wrote:

<quoted text>his experiences must not have been too mixed up considering his words were unwavering his testimony never changing from the time he was 14 until his death. i know many people who are bipolar my brother being one and i can tell you their mood behavior and words change constantly. this argument is just ridiculous.

Wow, according to the DSM... Elgin's got a valid diagnosis.
Do you have a MD for that?

[not ashamed]

Dyann PACA West- CA wrote:

<quoted text>
Wow, according to the DSM... Elgin's got a valid diagnosis.
Do you have a MD for that?

I don't need one and that is very impressing that Elgin and you can diagnose someone you've never met.Why are you so angry. contention is of the devil.