In January 2021, Latter-day Saints will commence a year-long study of the Doctrine and Covenants. The revelations found in this book of scripture can be challenging to understand because much of their historical context is missing. One resource that can help fill in these contextual gaps is the Joseph Smith Papers.

Chase Kirkham is a historian with the Church History Department in Salt Lake City, Utah, where he works as a documentary editor on the Joseph Smith Papers Project. Kirkham’s work, which involves annotating letters, Council of Fifty documents, and sermons, will appear in Documents, Volume 15. While at the project, Kirkham has also chaired the annual Joseph Smith Papers conference in 2019 and 2020. He graduated from Claremont Graduate University in 2018, earning a PhD in religious studies. His dissertation examined how early American prophets created time.