“A Society of Protection”: The Relief Society’s Original Purpose and Emma Smith’s Defense of the Women of Nauvoo

The Relief Society of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is celebrated today for global humanitarian service, but its origins reveal a far sharper, more defensive purpose: to protect the women of Nauvoo from predatory men, deceptive doctrines, and sexual exploitation.

And no figure looms larger in this mission than Emma Hale Smith, the “Elect Lady” (D&C 25:3), whose courage shaped the Society into a spiritual shield.

Far from a simple benevolent society, the early Relief Society arose because Nauvoo’s women were being targeted by men who cloaked immorality in religious rhetoric. The Society’s founding documents and public statements leave no ambiguity: its earliest purpose was to defend virtue.

The Nauvoo Crisis: “Secret Wives,” Deception, and Predatory Men

By 1841–42, Nauvoo faced a crisis. Men—most notoriously John C. Bennett—were seducing women by claiming that illicit relationships were sanctioned by Church leaders or existed as secret doctrines. Bennett called this teaching “spiritual wifery,” and used it to justify adultery.

This abuse was exposed publicly in:

• Times and Seasons, July 1, 1842, p. 839: “We have heard of individuals… teaching that illicit intercourse… is a doctrine believed by this Church. This is false—positively false.”
• Times and Seasons, June 15, 1842, p. 820:“[Bennett] has seduced… innocent females under the pretext of divine authority.”

Women were confused, frightened, and vulnerable. The community needed a united, authoritative organization to protect them and expose these men.

Emma Smith: Called by Revelation, Stepping Into Crisis

When the Relief Society was organized on March 17, 1842, Joseph Smith declared that Emma—identified earlier as the “Elect Lady” in Doctrine and Covenants 25—was chosen to lead it:

• Relief Society Minutes, March 17, 1842: Joseph Smith: “I now turn the key to you in the name of God.”

As president, Emma’s first priority was not sewing, not fundraising, but protecting women from deception and immorality.

The minutes show this emphasis immediately: 

• Relief Society Minutes, March 17, 1842: Emma Smith said the Society was formed “for the prevention of iniquity.”
• Relief Society Minutes, April 28, 1842: Emma urged the sisters to “deal frankly” and “root out every species of iniquity.”

This was not a passive committee.
It was a moral defense corps.

The Relief Society’s Public Declaration: Denouncing “Spiritual Wifery”

One of the Society’s first major acts was to issue a published statement condemning predatory sexual teachings, drafted by Emma and the leadership, and printed with Joseph’s approval.

• Times and Seasons, March 15, 1842, p. 732 (Relief Society Address): “…we [denounce] the practice of spiritual wifery, plural wives, and illicit intercourse…We declare that no such doctrine is taught here.”

This was a bold, public rebuke of men like Bennett. It put Nauvoo on notice:

• The daughters of Zion will not be preyed upon.
• The Relief Society was, from its inception, a fortress for female virtue.

Emma Smith’s Leadership: A Blend of Tenderness and Steel

Emma’s leadership style is unmistakable in the Nauvoo minutes. She was nurturing, spiritually wise, and protective—but also direct and fearless.

• Relief Society Minutes, April 28, 1842: “The Society is not only to relieve the poor but to save souls.”
• Relief Society Minutes, May 12, 1842:Emma warned against men who “creep in unawares,” echoing Jude 1:4, urging the sisters to vigilance.

Emma saw clearly that the quickest way to protect the Church was to protect the women—and the quickest way to protect the women was to unite them.

Why the Relief Society Was Formed: Charity and Protection, But First—Virtue

Though charitable relief was part of its mission, the actual minutes repeatedly emphasize the Society’s role in policing morality, exposing wrongdoing, and shielding women:

• Relief Society Minutes, April 28, 1842:“It is high time for mothers to watch over their daughters, and exhort them to keep the path of virtue.”

This is the Relief Society’s DNA:
a women-led guard against moral corruption.

It existed to:

• defend female virtue
• unify women against predators
• expose false doctrines
• support righteous families

This wasn’t merely social.
It was structural spiritual protection.

Emma’s Resolve: No Sister Left Alone

The formation of the Relief Society created something that Nauvoo desperately needed:
a collective voice strong enough to oppose powerful, deceptive men.

Emma understood that:

• isolated women = vulnerable
• united women = powerful

Her Relief Society created a setting where women could warn one another, testify, protect one another’s reputations, and identify the signs of predatory manipulation.

Her leadership turned the Relief Society into one of the earliest organized female defenses against sexual exploitation in American religious history.

Conclusion: Emma Smith’s Relief Society—A Shield of Virtue and Truth

The Relief Society began as a spiritual fortress—a unified stand against the predatory men and dangerous doctrines circulating in Nauvoo. Its own records and publications leave no ambiguity: its original purpose was the protection of women and the defense of virtue.

Emma Smith shaped the Society into:

• a protectorate for the vulnerable
• a defender of moral purity
• a watchdog against deception
• a sisterhood grounded in righteousness

Charity came afterward.
Protection came first.

Emma forged the Relief Society into a shield for the daughters of Zion.
And that shield continues to guard women across the world today.