When Joseph Smith Jr. was 17 years old, his older brother
Alvin began building a new frame house for their
struggling family.
Joseph looked up to his brother, who was a friend and
mentor to him.
Late in the fall of 1823, work on the new house suddenly
stopped as Alvin fell ill.
The local doctor could do nothing.
After only five days of failing health, Alvin died.
Though devoutly Christian, several of the Smiths,
including Alvin, had long refused to
join a specific church.
Now the minister at Alvin's funeral used stern language.
"The minister preached my brother's funeral sermon and
intimated very strongly that he had gone to hell, for Alvin
was not a church member."
Joseph Sr. felt the sharp sting of this harsh judgment
on his eldest son.
But what was Alvin's fate?
Would a merciful God truly damn him simply because he
wasn't baptized?
On the other hand, would a just God alter the laws of
salvation even for a good man?
Five years later, as Joseph Smith translated the Book of
Mormon, he was taught anew the absolute necessity of baptism.
"He commandeth all men that they must repent, and be
baptized in his name ...
or they cannot be saved in the kingdom of God."
This essential truth was further reinforced in other
revelations Joseph received.
The Smith family would remain uncertain regarding Alvin's
status for 13 years.
Their uncertainty would turn to joy in early 1836.
Joseph and others gathered in the newly
completed Kirtland Temple.
The Prophet saw a vision of the celestial kingdom and the
righteous who dwelt there.
To his amazement, Alvin stood among them.
"I ...
marveled how it was that he had obtained an inheritance in
that kingdom, seeing that he ... had not been baptized for
the remission of sins."
The revelation showed God's mercy.
Heaven would not be denied for good people.
But if the Lord required baptism, how
could Alvin be admitted?
The answer came four years later in Illinois.
The bustling city of Nauvoo was beginning to take shape,
and hopeful Saints were gathering in great numbers.
Amid optimism and excitement, the community grieved to learn
that local Church leader Seymour Brunson had died.
Hundreds turned out as Joseph delivered a funeral service
for his friend.
Simon Baker stood in the congregation that day.
He remembered that the Prophet spoke of the joy of the gospel
and read long passages from the New Testament.
"Then he remarked that he saw a widow in that congregation
that had a son who died without being baptized."
But unlike those spoken at Alvin's funeral, these words
were not meant to sting.
"He then said that this widow should have glad tiding. ...
People could now act for their friends who had departed this
life."
The widow that the Prophet singled out may well have been
Jane Nyman.
She became the first documented person to be
baptized for a deceased loved one, as she was baptized on
behalf of her child.
The Holy Ghost moved the Saints of Nauvoo to turn their
hearts to their beloved ancestors.
"I saw the elders baptizing for the dead in the
Mississippi River. ...
Brother Joseph on the banks holding a child in his arms."
"All the inhabitants [of Nauvoo]
met on the banks of the Mississippi River, just behind
the Smith house, for the purpose of baptizing for the
dead."
"The moment I heard of it, my soul leaped for joy."
The Saints performed thousands of baptisms
for their dead relatives.
With a sense of urgency, the Saints throughout Nauvoo
sought after their dead kin.
They found names in family Bibles or sent letters to
living relatives pleading for names of
deceased family members.
"We can be baptized for our dead and become saviors on
Mount Zion ...
my dear mother ...
I want to know what your father's and mother's names
are."
"Send me a list of father's relations ...
I am determined to do all I can."
"I want you should write me the given names of all of our
connections ...
as far back as grandfather's and grandmother's at any rate.
I intend to do what I can to save my friends."
For several months, the Saints throughout the Church
performed baptisms for the dead in nearby rivers.
Then Joseph received further instructions.
"For a baptismal font there is not upon the earth, that they,
my saints, may be baptized for those who are dead--for this
ordinance belongeth to my house."
Baptisms for the dead were to be performed
in the Lord's temples.
Only a month after Joseph preached at Brunson's funeral,
his own father lay on his deathbed.
Joseph offered him comfort.
He told his father that the Saints now had the privilege
to be baptized on behalf of their dead.
His father asked that Joseph perform the work for Alvin
immediately.
Before passing, his eyes brightened, and he softly
whispered, "I see Alvin."
Rising from the pain and sorrow of Alvin's death,
Joseph Smith became the means for offering comfort and hope
to countless others.
Today, Latter-day Saints around the world rejoice in
the simple beauty of this glorious doctrine as they turn
their hearts to their ancestors, gather their family
history, and perform temple baptisms on their behalf.