Patriarchal Blessings-A Passport to Peace

 “Your patriarchal blessing is your passport to peace in this life. 

It is a Liahona of light 

to guide you unerringly to your heavenly home.”  

Thomas S. Monson

Patriarchal Blessings given to George Ogden Chase.

 I have created a notebook containing the Patriarchal blessings of many of our family's Latter-day Saint ancestors. So far I have about 14 of them. It is a privilege to read and reflect on the promises given to these faithful men and women.

In a letter to stake presidents the First Presidency wrote:

“Patriarchal blessings contemplate an inspired declaration of the lineage of the recipient and, when so moved upon by the Spirit, an inspired and prophetic statement of the life mission of the recipient, together with such blessings, cautions and admonitions as the patriarch may be prompted to give for the accomplishment of such life’s mission, it being always made clear that the realization of all promised blessings is conditioned upon faithfulness to the gospel of our Lord, whose servant the patriarch is.”

(First Presidency Letter to stake presidents, 28 June 1958)

I received my Patriarchal Blessing when I was seventeen years old while living in Portland, Oregon.  It has blessed my life and brought comfort and peace to me.  I actually pasted it into my scriptures under the letter “P” in the Bible Dictionary.  Once I rewrote my blessings in the first person present tense.

President Thomas S. Monson has stated:

Your patriarchal blessing is yours and yours alone. It may be brief or lengthy, simple or profound. Length and language do not a patriarchal blessing make. It is the Spirit that conveys the true meaning. Your blessing is not to be folded neatly and tucked away. It is not to be framed or published. Rather, it is to be read. It is to be loved. It is to be followed. Your patriarchal blessing will see you through the darkest night. It will guide you through life’s dangers. …Your patriarchal blessing is to you a personal Liahona to chart your course and guide your way.  

https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1986/10/your-patriarchal-blessing-a-liahona-of-light?lang=eng

James A. Owen received his Patriarchal Blessing when 25 years of age.

My father, James A. Owen's blessing was given to him on July 26, 1946.  He was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Feb 28, 1944 at the age of 23.   He and an army buddy drove 1000 miles to Salt Lake City, UT from Sioux Falls, South Dakota to receive his blessing when he was 25 years old.   

A. William Lund, Patriarch who pronounced blessing on James A. Owen.

Patriarch A. William Lund, pronounced my father’s Patriarchal Blessing.  Patriarch Lund was also the Assistant Historian to the Church.  

You may request Patriarchal Blessings of your ancestors from the Church History Library.

Patriarchal Blessings are available online through the LDS Church History department (https://history.lds.org/article/chl-pb?lang=eng) so I have been collecting them over the years.   (Contact Cyndy at cyndyweiss@gmail.com if you would like to help me request additional blessings. I have a list of 9 direct line ancestors that we have yet to find.)

John Croft received two Patriarchal Blessings.

 Sometimes when there was a big change in life (mission, death of loved one, difficult trials) and an additional  blessing was sought and received.  The number noted in parentheses shows how many patriarchal blessings I have found and have in my notebook.

Isaac Chase (2)

George Ogden Chase (3)

John Croft (2)

Amelia Croft (2)

Joseph Moulton

Jensine Marie Jensen

Hannah Mary Cummings

Henry Clegg

Margaret A. Griffiths Clegg (2)

Hyrum Smith gave this Patriarchal Blessing to Issac Chase.

My husband’s ancestor, Isaac Chase received multiple blessings with the first being given when he was 51 years old and lived in Nauvoo, Illinois (Feb 9, 1842).  The Patriarch pronouncing the blessing was the prophet Joseph Smith’s brother, Hyrum Smith.  Later at age 59 he received a second blessing pronounced by “Uncle John” Smith.  One line from this 1850 blessing promises “a numerous posterity to bear his name in remembrance”.  We are evidence of the fulfillment of that promise.

"Uncle John" Smith-4th Presiding Patriarch of the LDS Church. Uncle of Joseph Smith

Isaac’s son, George Ogden Chase likewise received multiple blessings, the first two were pronounced by John Smith when George was 31 and 35, and the third was by William J. Smith when George was 48 years of age. 

There were two Patriarchs named John Smith.  The older John was the Uncle to the Prophet Joseph and known at “Uncle John”.  Uncle John was Joseph Smith, Senior’s brother and served as Patriarch after the death of Patriarch Hyrum Smith in 1844.  

John Smith-5th Presiding Patriarch of the LDS Church.  Nephew of Joseph Smith.

In February 1855, the younger John Smith succeeded his great uncle ("Uncle John" Smith) as Presiding Patriarch of the LDS Church, following the latter's death. The younger John Smith was the son of Hyrum Smith and the nephew to the Prophet Joseph.  He became the longest-serving Presiding Patriarch in LDS Church history, remaining in that position for 56 years, until his death in 1911 in Salt Lake City.  He is buried in the Salt Lake City Cemetery. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Smith_%28nephew_of_Joseph_Smith%29)

Jensine Marie Jensen’s blessing (Vol. 48, page 600) must have brought comfort to her in the difficult challenges she faced as she essentially raised her family alone after the 1890 Manifesto brought an end to polygamy.   Hannah Mary Clegg Cummings blessing (Vol. 524, page 54) reminds her of her “noble parentage.”  All these Patriarchal blessings share in common the blessings of coming through the family of Abraham and of coming forth in the future “Resurrection of the Just”. 

In a BYU Fireside given March 3, 1980, President James E. Faust made an interesting point about the declaration of lineage and we have seen this in our own family.

"Since families are of mixed lineage, it occasionally happens that members of the same family have blessings declaring them to be of different lineage. There has been an intermixture of the tribes one with another. One child may be of Ephraim, another in the same family of Manasseh, Judah, or one of the other tribes. The blood of one tribe, therefore, may be dominant in one child and the blood of another tribe dominant in another child, so children from the same parents could belong to different tribes."

President Faust also said:  "The patriarch has no blessing of his own to give; the blessing is the Lord’s to give. God knows our spirits; he knows our strengths and weaknesses. He knows our capabilities and our potential. Our patriarchal blessings indicate what the Lord expects of us and what our potential can be. Our blessings can encourage us when we are discouraged, strengthen us when we are fearful, comfort us when we sorrow, give us courage when we are filled with anxiety, lift us up when we are weak in spirit." http://speeches.byu.edu/?act=viewitem&id=850

Pres. Thomas S. Monson stated: A patriarchal blessing is a revelation to the recipient, even a white line down the middle of the road, to protect, inspire, and motivate activity and righteousness. A patriarchal blessing literally contains chapters from your book of eternal possibilities. I say eternal, for just as life is eternal, so is a patriarchal blessing. What may not come to fulfillment in this life may occur in the next. We do not govern God’s timetable.   https://www.lds.org/general-conference/1986/10/your-patriarchal-blessing-a-liahona-of-light?lang=eng

I am thankful for the insights that have come as I have studied the Patriarch Blessings of my ancestors.  It is evidence to me that God delights to pour out blessings upon the heads of his faithful children.  You are welcome to come and read my notebook collection anytime.