Joseph Smith — "I am not a sectarian, but a lover of truth."
I am not a sectarian, but a lover of truth.
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Understanding this quote
What it means
Someone who is sectarian defines themselves by their denomination and defends its boundaries above all else. This quote rejects that identity. The speaker claims loyalty belongs to truth itself — not to any single tradition, creed, or religious camp. It is a declaration of intellectual and spiritual independence: I follow where truth leads, not where my tribe points. Belief is personal conviction, not inherited institutional allegiance.
Relevance to Joseph Smith
Smith grew up amid the Second Great Awakening's warring Protestant denominations in upstate New York, each claiming sole legitimacy. His founding narrative — a vision telling him all existing churches were wrong — embodies this exact stance. He didn't reform an existing sect; he claimed to restore original Christianity from scratch. His theology centered personal revelation over inherited creed, making this self-portrait as truth-seeker over sectarian loyalist central to his identity and mission.
The era
The early 19th century American frontier was saturated with competing revival movements — Methodists, Baptists, Presbyterians, and dozens of splinter groups conducting fierce camp meetings and claiming exclusive divine sanction. This Second Great Awakening created intense sectarian tribalism. In this environment, claiming to transcend denominational boundaries was both radical and rhetorically powerful. Smith's church emerged from this contested landscape, positioning itself not as another sect but as a restoration of original truth above all competing claims.
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