Stephen Post (January 3, 1810 – December 18, 1879) was an early member of the

Latter Day Saint movement The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by J ...

who became

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Sidney Rigdon Sidney Rigdon (February 19, 1793 – July 14, 1876) was a leader during the early history of the Latter Day Saint movement. Biography Early life Rigdon was born in St. Clair Township, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, on February 19, 1793. He was ...

Rigdonite A Rigdonite is a member of the Latter Day Saint movement who accepts Sidney Rigdon as the successor in the church presidency to the movement's founder, Joseph Smith Jr. The early history of the Rigdonite movement is shared with the history of the ...

church (formerly the Church of Jesus Christ of the Children of Zion) after Rigdon's death in 1876.. Post converted to

Joseph Smith Joseph Smith Jr. (December 23, 1805June 27, 1844) was an American religious leader and founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. When he was 24, Smith published the Book of Mormon. By the time of his death, 14 years later, ...

's Church of the Latter Day Saints in

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

in 1835, and obtained his license to preach in

Kirtland, Ohio Kirtland is a city in Lake County, Ohio, United States. The population was 6,937 at the 2020 census. Kirtland is known for being the early headquarters of the Latter Day Saint movement from 1831 to 1837 and is the site of the movement's first t ...

, in 1836, becoming a member of the Second Quorum of the Seventy. By July 1837, he estimated that he had "traveled 544 miles and preached forty-three sermons." After Smith's

martyrdom A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

in 1844 precipitated a succession crisis in the church, Post initially demurred from affiliating with any of the resulting sects, instead continuing to preach as an independent believer. In 1850, he briefly joined

James Strang James Jesse Strang (March 21, 1813 – July 9, 1856) was an American religious leader, politician and self-proclaimed monarch. In 1844 he claimed to have been appointed to be the successor of Joseph Smith as leader of the Church of Jesus Christ o ...

's Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, within which his younger brother Warren became an

apostle An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary, from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to send off". The purpose of such sending ...

, but he soon became disenchanted with Strang's practice of plural marriage and left the church. In January 1856, Post wrote to

, Smith's former counselor, about the disordered state of

Mormonism Mormonism is the religious tradition and theology of the Latter Day Saint movement of Restorationist Christianity started by Joseph Smith in Western New York in the 1820s and 1830s. As a label, Mormonism has been applied to various aspects of ...

. Rigdon had briefly led his own church following Smith's martyrdom, but it had collapsed in 1848. In March, Rigdon responded to Post's letter with a revelation commanding him to assist in reestablishing the

organization. Post eagerly embraced Rigdon's prophetic claims and became an able advocate of his cause, with an 1866 revelation designating him Rigdon's "spokesman." Post's non-Mormon wife, Jane, converted to the Rigdonite church in 1865 and was ordained an elder in 1868. In 1871, Post was sent on a mission to

Manitoba , image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg , map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , capital = Winn ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, where he spent the rest of his life. After Rigdon's death in July 1876, Post succeeded him as leader of the church, but died three years later after an extended illness. He was succeeded in 1880 by Andrew J. Hinkle, the son of early Mormon schismatic George M. Hinkle. However, Hinkle soon became a believer in

Joseph Smith III Joseph Smith III (November 6, 1832 – December 10, 1914) was the eldest surviving son of Joseph Smith (founder of the Latter Day Saint movement) and Emma Hale Smith. Joseph Smith III was the Prophet-President of what became the Reorganized Chu ...

Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints The Community of Christ, known from 1872 to 2001 as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS), is an American-based international church, and is the second-largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement. The churc ...

, and the few remaining Rigdonites replaced him as President of the Church with Post's widow Jane in February 1882. Shortly after the death of "Mother Post," the Rigdonite organization permanently disbanded.Van Wagoner, Richard S. (1994), ''Sidney Rigdon: A Portrait of Religious Excess'', Salt Lake City: Signature Books, 455.

Notes

References

*. * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Post, Stephen 1810 births 1879 deaths American Latter Day Saint leaders American Latter Day Saint missionaries Canadian Latter Day Saints Latter Day Saint missionaries in Canada Rigdonites

See also

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References