Prior to his martyrdom, Joseph Smith had THREE prophetic and highly symbolic last dreams…
To read the full account of Joseph Smith’s Last Dream, please click here.
To read a short bio on Paul Thomas Smith (the narrator of this video), please click here.
To read some of the parallels between Joseph Smith’s First Vision and Last Dream, please click here.
In the summer of 2007, while working for retired church history instructor and author, Paul Thomas Smith, I came across this little-known account of Joseph Smith. Few pieces of literature have ever touched my mind and soul as deeply as this has and I’ve longed to share this account with others.
That being said, I am profoundly grateful for the help of Paul Thomas Smith, Rob Gardner, Jon McNaughton and Bruce Newbold for their help in creating this video.
Here is a video narrated by author and former church history instructor, Paul Thomas Smith, concerning some of the symbolism and meaning behind Joseph Smith’s last dreams.
For additional background on this dream, please visit: http://sethadamsmith.blogspot.com/2011/06/joseph-smiths-last-dream.html
A cabinet minister in Egypt, aware of the common ground shared by Muslims and Latter-day Saints, once remarked to President Howard W. Hunter of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles that “if a bridge is ever built between Christianity and Islam it must be built by the Mormon Church.”
The Book of Mormon teaches that Heavenly Father “is mindful of every people, whatsoever land they may be in; and his bowels of mercy are over all the earth” (Alma 26:37; see also 1 Nephi 1:14).
“The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints expresses special love and concern for the eternal welfare of all men and women, regardless of religious belief, race, or nationality, knowing that we are truly brothers and sisters because we are sons and daughters of the same Eternal Father.”
“We believe that the great religious leaders of the world such as Mohammad, Confucius, and the Reformers, as well as philosophers including Socrates, Plato, and others, received a portion of Gods light. Moral truths were given to them by God to enlighten whole nations and to bring a higher level of understanding to individuals.”
The Story Behind the Video:
I took a class on the Middle East in the Winter of 2010. I entered the classroom with a fairly clean slate. I didn’t know much about the Middle East and I was open to the idea that perhaps my opinions about it were incorrect. What I learned astounded me.
My Middle East instructor was an LDS man who had taught in Egypt for several years. He shared many of his own personal experiences and coupled his comments with gospel doctrines and remarkable insights. As a result of what I was learning, I stopped seeing the people of the Middle East as simply “Muslims” or “Arabs” and I started seeing them as human beings. I started to see them as people who were not unlike myself—as people with hopes, dreams and feelings just as real as mine.
Every time I left the class I felt enlightened and inspired. I found myself overwhelmed with ideas. I wanted to know how I could publish what I was learning and share it with others. After talking with my instructor, he and I both agreed that making a video (using text and audio clips from Mormon Church General Authorities) would be the best approach.
My Muslims and Mormons video as the cover story on Meridian Magazine.
My instructor provided me with pictures he had taken on his travels and music a friend of his in Cairo had given him. I then made several video drafts. By the end of the semester, we had completed the video and presented it to the class. After that, the video’s viral growth (an positive feedback) has been spectacular.
Using YouTube insight, I could see that the video was being watched not only in America, but in all the countries of Europe, in South American countries, in Asian countries and yes, in the Middle East—every country in the Middle East (except for Iran).
Not only was it featured on Meridian Magazine as the cover story but it was also mentioned and posted on several popular blogs and websites.
Interestingly enough, my teacher of the Middle East is primarily an instructor of Psychology. He told me that when the idea of a class on the Middle East came to our University, he said he felt compelled to teach it. He said he thought it would be worth it if he could perhaps change some minds about the people of the Middle East. We both hope that the work we’ve put into this video has been worth it and that it’ll change the minds of the people who watch it. Seeing others as real people with needs just as real as ours is a life-changing thing.
Making this video (and watching it’s continued growth in countries all over the world) has been a miracle and I’m grateful for the chance I had to attend a class from a teacher who was inspired and prepared. His insight and preparation has created a conversation which will hopefully spur on the construction of the “bridge” between Christianity and the Muslim world.
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Additional Links:
A Latter-day Saint Perspective on Mohammed
The Gospel: A Global Faith – President Howard W. Hunter (Parts 1 & 2)
