D&C 41: The First Bishop and the Law of the Church
I spent a Saturday last month trying to match a dovetail joint. The pins were cut and the tails were cut. I held the two pieces together and they did not line up. I sat back on my stool and looked at it for a while.
The problem was not the cut. The problem was the layout. I had drawn the pins by eye against the wrong reference edge. Every measurement after that was off. The joint looked tight at each step until the moment it was supposed to fit.
I thought about that Saturday when I read D&C 41 this week. The whole section is about alignment. The dovetail kind I can measure on a bench. The other kind is where a person's inside matches their outside.
Historical Context of D&C 41 in Kirtland, Ohio
February 1831. Joseph Smith had just arrived in Kirtland from New York. The Church was small and scattered. The first members were still figuring out what it meant to be organized. Leman Copley offered his house to Joseph and Sidney Rigdon. And in that setting the Lord gave a short revelation about how things were going to work.
The section has eleven verses. It does not waste any of them.
And I give unto you a commandment, that ye shall assemble yourselves together to agree upon my word; and by the prayer of your faith ye shall receive my law, that ye may know how to govern my church and have all things right before me.
Notice the phrase "agree upon my word." The law was not handed down in a vacuum. It was received through the prayer of faith when the elders assembled together. Collective alignment came first. The details came after.
I think about that when I read section 42 soon after, which gives the actual law. Section 41 sets the stage. It says: get together, agree, pray, and then you will receive. The order matters.
Who Was Edward Partridge, the First Bishop
Edward Partridge was a hatter from Painesville, Ohio. He ran a successful business making and selling hats. He had never led a church or managed a congregation. He had no seminary degree because there was no such thing. What he had was a heart the Lord described as pure.
And let him be appointed by the voice of the church unto the office of my servant Edward Partridge, whom I have called unto my ministry. And again, I say unto you, my servant Edward Partridge, and my servant Sidney Rigdon, and my servant Joseph Smith, shall sit in council with the saints which are in Zion. And I say unto you, that my servant Edward Partridge shall stand in the office of bishop unto my church, saith the Lord, and shall receive the offerings of my church, and shall administer the laws of my church.
He was called to leave his merchandise and spend all his time in the labors of the Church. That is not a small ask. A man with a business and a family was told to close the shop and take on a role nobody had held before. There was no job description. There was no pension. There was just the Lord saying "I have a work for you."
What Defines a Disciple in Doctrine and Covenants 41
Verse 5 is the one I keep coming back to.
And he that receiveth my law and doeth it, the same is my disciple; and he that saith he receiveth it and doeth it not, the same is not my disciple, and shall be cast out from among you.
The definition is simple. A disciple is someone who receives the law and does it. He is not someone who merely admires the law or discusses it at length. He is someone who does it.
That standard sits in sharp contrast to the careful systems we build. Systems where we can study the law for years without ever putting it into practice. The Lord cuts through all of that in a single verse.
I made a joint that did not fit because I drew the layout wrong. The fix was not studying the wood harder. The fix was cutting a new piece and starting from the right reference edge.
The Meaning of No Guile in D&C 41
The Lord compares Edward Partridge to Nathanael of old, "in whom is no guile." That phrase from John 1:47 has been sitting with me all week.
Guile means deception, craftiness, a hidden angle. A person with no guile does not have a backup plan for what they want you to see. What you see is what you get. Their outside matches their inside.
A person without guile makes mistakes like everyone else. The difference is they do not hide their real intentions. When they say something, you do not have to wonder what they mean. When they agree to something, they mean it.
The bishop manages the temporal resources of the Church. He handles the funds, the welfare, the distribution of goods to the poor. That role requires a man whose heart is pure because the system can be abused. The Lord knew that. So He chose a man who could not be bought.
I wrote about related themes in D&C 39: The Call of James Covill and the Courage to Start Again. Covill was called to a great work but did not follow through. Partridge was called to a different kind of work and said yes. The difference was not talent. It was the state of the heart.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why was Edward Partridge called as the first bishop?
The Lord called him because his heart was pure and he was like Nathanael of old, a man without guile. The Church needed someone who could be trusted with the temporal and spiritual welfare of the members, and Partridge met that standard.
What does D&C 41 say about how to become a true disciple?
Verse 5 says a true disciple is someone who receives the Lord's law and does it. Discipleship is defined by action, not by profession. Claiming to follow the law does not make someone a disciple.
What was required of Edward Partridge when he was called as bishop?
He was commanded to leave his business and devote all his time to the Church. It was a total change of direction for his life and career.
What does it mean to have no guile?
Guile means deception or hidden intent. A person with no guile is honest through and through. Their words and their heart are the same thing.
How does D&C 41 connect to D&C 42?
Section 41 is the introduction. It tells the elders to assemble in agreement and pray so they can receive the law. Section 42 gives the law itself and the two belong together.
The joint did not fit, so I cut a new piece and started over. It took another afternoon, but the second one lined up. The pins slipped into the tails the way they were supposed to. I set it on the bench and left it there overnight. Sometimes the fix is not complicated. The fix is picking the right edge and starting again.
— D.