Joseph Smith's First Vision accounts

Hi everyone,
My friend Richard and I recently did another interview and this one was about the many versions of Joseph Smith's First Vision.  As with the other interviews, we had way too much material for the hour, in spite of trying to squeeze in as much data as possible.  It was a real education, even though I had looked at the different versions before.  What leaped out at me this time was the fact that the first few versions of Smith's First Vision were essentially what one might call "evangelical" in nature.  What do I mean?  First of all, Smith claimed initially that it was through long and diligent study of the Bible that he became convinced that all churches were in error, much in the same way that other restoration-type churches came to similar conclusions and then as a result attempted to "restore" authentic Christianity through their teachings.  Also, in the early versions of the First Vision, Jesus tells Smith that his sins are forgiven and he is very happy for it, though he soon has a lapse and falls back into his sin-filled life.  But none of this is how the currently accepted and canonized version of the First Vision reads.  Why?  It's very simple - if Smith had indeed relied solely on the Bible to tell him that all churches were in error, then there wouldn't be any need at all for the Book of Mormon, no exclusivity of Mormonism over any other restoration-type church, in short, nothing to make Mormonism special enough for Smith to use it as his ultimate scam.

The latest interview is available at the KFUO AM archives of the show called Studio A, hosted by Roland Lettner.

Thoughts and/or comments?

Art