Working With Joseph Fielding Smith's Doctrines Of Salvation
I spent a long time compiling references from Joseph Fielding Smith's teachings when I was putting together my own study notes. The material is dense, sometimes repetitive, and honestly not always easy to navigate if you don't know what you're looking for. That's why people look for the complete collection in one place. This compilation pulls together material that was originally published across multiple volumes. Smith was a General Authority in the LDS Church and served as president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. His sermons covered everything from the plan of salvation to modern revelation, and the three-volume set organizes them by topic rather than chronology. That matters because it changes how you use the material. The first volume focuses on foundational doctrines like the nature of God, the fall of Adam, and the Atonement. Volume two digs into the afterlife and the degrees of glory. Volume three covers more practical and contemporary topics, including commandments, covenants, and church history. The organization makes topical study straightforward but can be misleading if you assume the order reflects when Smith taught each doctrine. He didn't. Many of these sermons were given decades apart and later compiled by editors.
Here's the thing most people miss. The compilation removes the original context of when and why Smith said certain things. I found this out the hard way when I was cross-referencing a quote about premortal existence with the original broadcast recording. The published version had been trimmed and slightly rearranged. It wasn't a major change but it shifted the emphasis enough that I nearly cited it incorrectly in a lesson I was preparing. My workaround was simple. I stopped relying on the compiled text for precise wording and started going back to the original sermon transcripts or audio when accuracy mattered. The Doctrines Of Salvation compilation works fine for general study and understanding Smith's doctrinal positions. It is less reliable if you need exact quotes for publication or formal discussion. Another nuance that trips people up is the difference between Smith's personal teachings and official church doctrine. He was clear about his opinions on subjects like evolution and race, and he stated those opinions forcefully in these sermons. But strong opinions are not the same as established doctrine. I've seen people cite passages from the three-volume set as if they were binding church teaching when Smith himself often qualified his statements as personal views. That distinction matters in practice, even if it doesn't always matter in casual study. If you're looking to actually use this work productively, here's what helps. Read slowly. Take notes. Don't assume every statement is equally weighted. Pay attention to where Smith says "I believe" versus where he presents something as established fact. The compilation is valuable but it requires an active reader. A passive read will leave you with a collection of interesting statements and not much coherent framework.
There are also gaps in the compilation. Some sermons are missing, and certain topics that Smith addressed extensively elsewhere don't appear in these volumes. If your interest is narrow, like the details of the telestial kingdom or Smith's views on specific modern issues, you may need to supplement this collection with his other published works like Church Progress and Personal Destiny or Doctrines of Redemption. The good news is that the complete three-volume set is available through several channels. LDS Bookstores carry it, and it's also available through various online retailers. Some digital versions exist as well, though the quality of those varies considerably. If you're studying seriously, the physical copies tend to hold up better for reference work since the pagination stays consistent across editions. I keep my set on a bookshelf and use it more for browsing than linear reading. The index is helpful but not comprehensive. If you know roughly what topic you want to explore, flip to the relevant section. If you're looking for something specific, you'll likely spend more time searching than you expect. That's just how it is with this kind of compilation.
The work remains one of the more useful single resources for understanding LDS theological perspectives from a mid-twentieth century apostle. It's not perfect. No single compilation ever is. But for anyone working through doctrine or preparing lessons, it comes up often enough that having it on hand makes sense.
