“If a man had been blinded, he would hardly have known if it were not Joseph.” — Howard Egan¹

On August 8, 1844, during a meeting in Nauvoo, Brigham Young spoke to the Saints, addressing concerns about leadership after Joseph Smith’s death. Prior to Brigham's speech, Sidney Rigdon had spoken to the Saints, offering to be the Church’s guardian. A strong wind blew through the meeting and made Sidney difficult to hear at times.² During Brigham's speech, many reported that he appeared to take on the voice and appearance of Joseph Smith.¹ The earliest known report of this story came in July 1857.³ Sixty-eight people would produce firsthand documents about witnessing this transfiguration experience.⁴ It was reported that this event convinced the majority of the Saints that Brigham Young was the rightful leader, solidifying his role as head of the Church and securing the authority of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.⁵

1. “Succession of Church Leadership,” churchofjesuschrist.org

2. Saints, Volume 1, Chapter 45, 563-564

3. Lynne Watkins Jorgensen, “The Mantle of the Prophet Joseph Passes to Brother Brigham: One Hundred Twenty-nine Testimonies of a Collective Spiritual Witness,” in Opening the Heavens: Accounts of Divine Manifestations, 1820-1844, ed. John W. Welch, 382.

4. Jorgensen, “The Mantle of the Prophet,” 407.

5. Ronald W. Walker, “Six Days in August: Brigham Young and the Succession Crisis of 1844,” A Firm Foundation: Church Organization and Administration, rsc.byu.edu