Emma Smith: The First Wife of Joseph Smith and Founder of the Relief Society

Early Life and Marriage to Joseph Smith

Emma Hale was born July 10, 1804, in Harmony, Pennsylvania, to a well-to-do family. She was educated, intelligent, and accomplished — her family was skeptical of Joseph Smith when he arrived in Harmony, but Emma's conviction about his divine calling eventually convinced them. She married Joseph Smith on January 18, 1827, in defiance of her parents' wishes. From the beginning, Emma was deeply involved in Joseph's religious work. She witnessed his spiritual experiences, supported his translation of sacred texts, and stood by him through poverty, rejection, and persecution. In 1829, while living in Harmony, she served as a scribe during the translation of the Book of Mormon, writing down portions of the text as Joseph dictated it. Her contribution to the Book of Mormon, though often overlooked, was essential — she was a primary witness to the translation process.

Revelation to Emma: Doctrine and Covenants 25

In July 1830, Joseph Smith received a revelation specifically directed to Emma, now recorded as Doctrine and Covenants 25. In this revelation, she is called an "elect lady" — a title of honor and spiritual significance in the context of early Latter-day Saint theology. She was instructed to "be a comfort unto my servant, Joseph Smith, Jun., thy husband, in his afflictions, with consoling words, in the spirit of meekness" and to "lay aside the things of this world, and seek for the things of a better." She was also commanded to compile a hymnbook for the church. Emma took this assignment seriously and produced the first Latter-day Saint hymnbook in 1835, which set the pattern for all hymnals that followed. This revelation placed Emma in a unique position of spiritual leadership — she was recognized by the prophet as a woman of divine purpose, not merely as a wife supporting her husband's work, though that support was also emphasized.

Founding the Relief Society

On March 17, 1842, in Nauvoo, Illinois, Emma Smith founded and became the first president of the Relief Society, an organization for women in the church. The Relief Society began as a practical response to the needs of poor and widowed women in the growing Nauvoo community, but it quickly became something larger: a space where women could exercise spiritual authority, serve one another, and develop their own leadership. Emma's vision for the Relief Society was radical for its time — women organized, led by women, with clear purposes and structures. The Relief Society still exists today as one of the largest women's organizations in the world, and its foundational principles trace directly to Emma's leadership. Her work in establishing the Relief Society represents one of her most enduring contributions to the church, one that continues to shape how women participate in Latter-day Saint religious life.

After Joseph's Death

When Joseph Smith was murdered in Carthage, Illinois, in 1844, Emma faced impossible decisions. The church had been teaching polygamy, though the doctrine had been kept secret from many members, including Emma for years. After she discovered Joseph's plural marriages, her faith was shaken. When Brigham Young and the majority of the church migrated west to Utah in 1846, Emma made the momentous decision to remain in Nauvoo with her children. She did not follow Brigham Young or embrace the westward migration that defined Latter-day Saint identity. Instead, she eventually joined the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (now called the Community of Christ), a smaller denomination that had split from the main church. For the rest of her life, Emma insisted that Joseph Smith had not practiced polygamy, though modern church scholarship and the church's official acknowledgments have documented that he did. She died on April 30, 1879, in Nauvoo, having never left the place where she and Joseph had built their life together.

Emma's Complex Legacy

Emma Smith's legacy is profound and complicated. She was a translator and scribe, a revelation recipient, a founder of women's religious organization, a mother of eleven children, and a woman who navigated extraordinary spiritual and personal turbulence. Modern Latter-day Saints honor her contributions to early church history while acknowledging the deep pain she experienced, particularly around the issue of Joseph's polygamy. She deserves to be remembered not as a footnote to Joseph Smith's story, but as a remarkable woman in her own right — faithful, intelligent, courageous, and deeply committed to God's work, even when that work became heartbreaking and confusing. Her legacy reminds the church that women's contributions to faith and community are foundational and irreplaceable.