On 15 May 1829, Joseph and Oliver went into the nearby woods along the Susquehanna River to pray. Oliver described the scene that followed: “On a sudden, as from the midst of eternity, the voice of the Redeemer spake peace to us, while the veil was parted and the angel of God came down clothed with glory, and delivered the anxiously looked for message, and the keys of the gospel of repentance!—What joy! what wonder! what amazement! While the world were racked and distracted . . . our eyes beheld—our ears heard.”
The angel introduced himself as “John, the same that is called John the Baptist in the New Testament, and [told them] that he acted under the direction of Peter, James, and John” (Joseph Smith—History 1:72). He laid his hands upon Joseph and Oliver and said, “Upon you my fellow servants, in the name of Messiah, I confer the Priesthood of Aaron, which holds the keys of the ministering of angels, and of the gospel of repentance, and of baptism by immersion for the remission of sins” (Joseph Smith—History 1:69; see also D&C 13:1). John explained that the Melchizedek Priesthood would be bestowed upon them at a later time. For the first time in centuries, the priesthood was again on the earth.
Soon afterward Joseph and Oliver went to Colesville. On their retrun trip near the end of May 1829, the Lord’s chief Apostles, Peter, James, and John, appeared to them on the banks of the Susquehanna River (see D&C 128:20). The angelic visitors conferred upon Joseph and Oliver the holy Melchizedek Priesthood and the keys of the apostleship (see D&C 27:12). Joseph and Oliver now had the authority to act as legal agents for the Lord in building the kingdom of God upon the earth.
Elmira College stop on the way to Kirtland, OH. Mark Twain wrote many of his works here.
Historic Kirtland
Between the end of January and the middle of May 1831, most of the New York Saints sold their possessions, packed their most precious material goods, and migrated to Kirtland and the adjacent areas.
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