Holy Ghost / Guidance and Direction

John Parry's whisper of Joseph Smith's divine status

Published October 5, 2026 at 6:01 AM

1840s · 1844
North Wales

Contributed by

Millennial Star Research

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In 1844, upon hearing of the deaths of Joseph and Hyrum Smith, John Parry, who had previously been prejudiced against the Latter-day Saints, felt a sudden whisper that 'He was a servant of God,' which began his conversion process.

Fuller account of this event (as retold in The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star, Vol. 44, No. 24, 12 June 1882):

In the year 1844 he learned from one of his friends that Joseph and Hyrum Smith were killed. He had heard false reports about Joseph Smith and the 'Mormons' before this, and was somewhat prejudiced against them. As soon as the news was told him of Joseph Smith’s death, something whispered to him, 'He was a servant of God.' This made a deep impression on his mind, and he began to think that there must be something in the religion of the Latter-day Saints, and he felt a desire to know more about them.

In Their Own Words

“In the year 1844 he learned from one of his friends that Joseph and Hyrum Smith were killed. He hud heard false reports about Joseph Smith and the ‘Mormons’ before this, and wus somewhat prejudiced against them. As soon as the news was told him of Joseph Smith’s death, something whispered to him, ‘He was a servant of God.’ — Millennial Star 44:24”

Sources & References

The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star (Manchester, later Liverpool, England, May 1840–1970), 12 June 1882 (Vol. 44, No. 24). https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1882-06-12_44_24 (account extracted verbatim from the issue's Internet Archive OCR text; research confidence: high) Fuller account: The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star, Vol. 44, No. 24, 12 June 1882 https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1882-06-12_44_24

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