The Prophet Joseph Smith was martyred; but even as Emma and Brigham mourn his loss, his successor looks to heaven for the courage and inspiration to carry on.
The Prophet Joseph Smith was murdered in cold blood by a ruthless mob while being held in the Carthage jail on trumped-up charges. His detractors boasted that once Joseph was killed that ‘Mormonism’ would falter and die. Quite the opposite has proven to be true.
Rather than focusing on the martyrdom as a scene of bloodshed the sculptor has felt to depict the bitter anguish of Joseph’s followers through Emma, as she weeps uncontrollably at the table. The soon-to-be Prophet leader, Brigham Young, is seen offering solace and comfort to Joseph’s sorrowing widow while, in a moment of anxious introspection, he looks to heaven for guidance and courage to face what is yet to come;
At the far end of the table sits an empty chair—Joseph’s chair—symbolizing all the Prophets whose lives have come to an end. While Emma and Brigham symbolize the surety that—however great the tribulation and sorrow at their loss—the Lord will never leave His righteous saints without Prophetic leadership to guide them.
Whenever someone sees this sculpture for the first time they almost invariably ask the question:
“Brigham Young and Emma were enemies, were they not? Are you certain that an event such as this could have taken place?”
In answer, I must admit that there is no historical evidence that such a meeting as this ever occurred; but after the martyrdom and the sustaining of Brigham Young, as Joseph’s successor, Heber C. Kimball noted that Brigham Young and the brethren:
“met in council at Sister Emma Smith’s [home] … and expressed our feelings to her and [what] our intention were. She seemed to be pleased with our course. It seemed like old times”. (Journal of Heber C. Kimball, Oct. 4, 1844, LDS Church Archives, Salt Lake City).
Because there is a record of this pleasant meeting between Emma, Brigham Young and others of the Quorum of the Twelve, it would seem not only proper, but likely, that Brigham Young, Joseph’s successor, would be considerate enough to comfort Emma in her time of despair.
