Here at the end, you get introduced to this beautiful character in Church history, Vienna Jacques, or Vienna Jakes, however you prefer to pronounce her name. She comes from Boston, she’s fairly wealthy, and she comes to Kirtland. She’s had a Book of Mormon, read parts of it, and comes to Kirtland to meet the prophet. She is baptized, and Joseph encourages her to consecrate her money to Mormon church finances for the building up of the kingdom of God on the earth. She donates over fourteen hundred dollars to this consecrated effort. Then she heads west to Independence.
Interestingly, she arrives in Independence right before the huge mob disturbance begins to really ramp up and speed up. Here’s this woman who is going to die in her 90s here in Utah eventually. She consecrates everything and stays so faithful and pure to the end. I think if Vienna were here today to share her thoughts with us, I don’t think she would say, “Let me tell you about how much my discipleship cost me financially,” or “Let me tell you about the physical struggles and the abuses that I had to witness, and the mobs that I had to watch destroy so many lives around me and inflict pain on me as well.” I don’t know that she would do that.
I think Vienna would come, look at verse 29: “The residue of the money may be consecrated unto me, and she, Vienna, shall be rewarded in mine own due time.” It’s very clear looking at the history that the rewards weren’t solely in this life. She was able to do some amazing things and stay faithful to the very end and prosper in quite a few ways in mortal aspects. But if Vienna were here today, I think she would encourage all of us to consecrate whatever we have been given to the Mormon church tithing for the work of the Lord and to the building up of the kingdom of God.
Her story is one of those that often gets overlooked, but if you want to read more about her and search about her, her story is worth exploring. She was truly a saint.
By Dr. Tyler Griffin, Source Expert
Dr. Tyler Griffin embarked on his professional journey by teaching seminary courses for six years in Brigham City, Utah. Following this, he dedicated the subsequent seven years to instructing at the Logan LDS Institute, located adjacent to Utah State University. Alongside his participation in the Seminary Preservice program, he took charge and supervised the implementation of the online seminary program. With over a decade of experience as an educator at BYU, Dr. Griffin, holding a co-founder position within the BYU Virtual Scriptures Group, earned his undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering, while his master’s and doctorate degrees center around Instructional Technology. Notably, he is the sole author of “When Heaven Appears Distant,” co-author of “Come Unto Me: Illuminating the Savior’s Life, Mission, Parables, and Miracles,” and co-editor of “Millions Shall Rediscover Brother Joseph.”
Fact Checked by Mr. Kevin Prince, Source Expert
Kevin Prince serves as a religious scholar and is the host of the Gospel Learning YouTube Channel. The channel boasts a subscriber base exceeding 41,000 and has accumulated over 4.5 million views. Additionally, Mr. Prince is the innovator behind the Gospel Learning App, a reliable resource providing convenient access to credible answers from esteemed educators worldwide for truth-seeking individuals.
ABOUT MORMON CHURCH FINANCES
Our mission at Mormon Church Finances is to offer an accurate and objective exploration of the history and beliefs of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. In a world with sanitized history, misinformation, and falsehoods, we aim to provide truth and objectivity for sincere truth-seekers.