January 3

1835 – During the month of January the Prophet Joseph was involved with the school of the Elders and in preparing the lectures on theology (known today as the Lectures on Faith) for publication as part of the Doctrine and Covenants.

1837 – During the winter months, the Temple at Kirtland, Ohio, was constantly in use for both secular and theological studies. Even the Kirtland High School met in the attic and had a “public examination’ in January and the students progress was found to be of the highest order.

1838 – Apostasy and bitterness continued to grow in Kirtland, Ohio, bringing with it a danger to the Prophet Joseph and the other leaders of the Church living there.

1843 – The Prophet Joseph, in Springfield, Illinois, visited a Sister Crane and blessed her baby boy, Joseph Smith Crane and then spent most of the day discussing his case with the brethren and his lawyers in preparation for his trial the next day. He prophesied that “no formidable opposition would be raised at my trial on the morrow’ (History of the Church, 5:220).

1845 – Elder Wilford Woodruff landed in Liverpool, England, with his companions to begin their mission in the British Isles.

1885 – President John Taylor, along with other Church leaders, begins touring the southern settlements of the Saints. As part of the trip, President Taylor explored sites in northern Mexico for possible settlements. Several Mormon colonies would later be built.

1960 – President David O. McKay held the first in a series of firesides for the youth of the Church. Sent by telephone wire transmission, he spoke to some two hundred thousand youth in 290 stake centers. The series would continue on Sunday evenings for three months.

1976 – Foreign language missionaries began reporting directly to the Language Training Mission in Provo, Utah, instead of reporting to the Missionary Home in Salt Lake City, Utah.

2005 – Bishop Richard C. Edgley, first counselor in the Presiding Bishopric, visits Indonesia and Sri Lanka from January 3-10 to assess the Church’s immediate humanitarian response to the tsunami disaster