Levi Lewis as an Accuser

Levi Lewis, the son of Emma’s uncle Nathaniel Lewis, a Methodist minister, was generally friendly to Joseph Smith. However, his brothers were not very kind to him.

On May 1, 1834, portions of a statement from Levi were published in the Susquehanna Register and Northern Pennsylvanian:

Levi Lewis states, that he has “been acquainted with Joseph Smith Jr. and Martin Harris, and that he has heard them both say, adultery was no crime. Harris said he did not blame Smith for his (Smith’s) attempt to seduce Eliza Winters &c.;”… “With regard to the plates, Smith said God had deceived him – which was the reason he (Smith) did not show them.” [1]

Several problems are obvious with Levi's reported claims, which undermine his credibility. First, there are problems with the recollection that "he has heard them both say, adultery was no crime." Such a recollection greatly contrasts numerous other public and private evidences showing Joseph Smith taught and practiced a different moral standard. Also, that such hypocrisy would have been unnoticed by others would be surprising. The Book of Mormon sexual standard that placed extra-marital relations next to murder in severity (Alma 39:5) was well known to Latter-day Saints in 1843.

Second, a problematic part of the quote is that Joseph Smith “did not show” the golden plates to others. Three witnesses reported seeing the plates and an angel. Eight other men reported that they "did handle with [their] hands."[2] This statement is blatantly false.

Third, it is unclear whether Levi Lewis was ever positioned to witness the two men making declarations that they would later contradict on numerous other occasions throughout their lives. Neither is anything known about the circumstances through which Martin might have become privy to sensitive information regarding Joseph Smith’s alleged immoral behavior with Eliza.

Beyond these obvious observations, little more is known about Levi Lewis and his relationship to Joseph Smith in the late 1830s.

[1] “Mormonism,” Susquehanna Register, and Northern Pennsylvanian, May 1, 1834 quoted in E. D. Howe, Mormonism Unveiled, Painesville: by the author, 1834, 268-69 and Dan Vogel, Early Mormon Documents, Salt Lake City: Signature Books, 2002, 4:296-97.

[2] See the “Testimony of the Three Witnesses” and “Testimony of the Eight Witnesses” in the front matter of current editions of the Book of Mormon. In the 1830 version, the testimonies were printed at the end of the book, on pages corresponding to 589-590.