Healing of a woman possessed by an evil spirit in Richland
Published October 5, 2026 at 5:48 AM
Contributed by
Millennial Star Research
While at a conference in Richland, Oswego County, Wilford Woodruff and three others laid hands on a woman who was possessed by the devil and mute. Upon being commanded in the name of Jesus Christ to leave her, the spirit departed and she was made whole.
In Their Own Words
“At the close of the meeting we were called upon to administer to a woman who was possessed of the devil. At times she was dumb, and greatly afflicted with the evil spirits that dwelt in her. She believed in Jesus and us as His servants, and wished us to administer to her. Four of us laid our hands upon her head and commanded the devil in the name of Jesus to come out of her. It was done, and immediately the woman arose and gave thanks and praise unto God, and according to her faith, she was made whole from that hour.”
— Wilford Woodruff, Journal entry dated March 26, 1837
Sources & References
The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star (Manchester, later Liverpool, England, May 1840–1970), 1 August 1881 (Vol. 43, No. 31). https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1881-08-01_43_31 (account extracted verbatim from the issue's Internet Archive OCR text; research confidence: high) Full first-person account: Wilford Woodruff Papers, Journal (December 29, 1833 – January 3, 1838), March 26, 1837 https://wilfordwoodruffpapers.org/documents/b048a7c5-6b6b-438a-bce7-262d5ba297d8/page/dc005b65-646e-4a12-b384-75b6984ca459
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