Rather than attacking Harmony with a lot of empty ad hom's, why not try making a substantial argument based on substance? In what way is her knowledge of LDS doctrine "utterly primitive"? Point to the scriptures and reference where Joseph organized utilizing the Melchizedek Priesthood.
Because, Liz, substantial argument with Harmony is useless. She has never been here to engage in it herself or accept it from others. All the apologists here, and at ZLMB have tried, and all have failed.
On what basis do you think Joseph didn't have the Melchizedek Priesthood? Documentary historical sources would seem to imply otherwise. Let's look at the FAIR Wiki overview of the subject:
Similar to this origination complication of baptism and membership, the ordination to the office of Elder via the higher priesthood could not occur until the church had been established. After the church was officially established we have the following evidences that Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery had already received the higher priesthood:
1. Aug 1830, the Lord spoke to the Prophet Joseph Smith of “Peter, and James, and John, whom I have sent unto you, by whom I have ordained you and confirmed you to be apostles, and especial witnesses of my name, and bear the keys of your ministry and of the same things which I revealed unto them.” D&C 27:12
2. Apr 1830, “And to Oliver Cowdery, who was also called of God, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to be the second elder of this church, and ordained under his hand.” D&C 20:2-3
3. “Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery sought after this higher authority, and the Lord gave it to them, before the rise of this Church, sending to them Peter, James and John. What for? To bestow upon them the Apostleship.” -Elder Parley P. Pratt [4]
4. Hiram Page, a son-in-law of Peter Whitmer Sr., and one who was present on the day of the Church’s 6 April 1830 organization, later confirmed that “Peter, James and John” had come and bestowed the Holy Priesthood “before the 6th of April 1830.” [5]
5. “I know that Joseph received his Apostleship from Peter, James, and John, before a revelation on the subject was printed, and he never had a right to organize a Church before he was an Apostle.” -Brigham Young [6]
[b]Narrow Window
Knowing that the prophet already had the Melchizedek priesthood prior to the organization of the church we can look at the following clues of the May 15 to 30, 1829 ordination window in order of progressively narrowed parameters:
1. Year 1829: There is a manuscript in Oliver Cowdery’s handwriting recording part of D&C 18: saying, “Written in the year of our Lord & Saviour 1829.” [7]
2. June 1829: In D&C 18:9 we read “And now, Oliver Cowdery, I speak unto you, and also unto David Whitmer, by the way of commandment; for, behold, I command all men everywhere to repent, and I speak unto you, even as unto Paul mine apostle, for you are called even with that same calling with which he was called.”
3. Before June 14, 1829: Oliver Cowdery wrote a letter to Hyrum Smith. The letter has some wording that quotes and refers to section 18 in the D&C. [8]
4. Before June 1, 1829:
* Joseph Smith said that he, Emma, Oliver and David Whitmer traveled to the home of Peter Whitmer Sr. “In the beginning of the month of June.” [9]
* David Whitmer is quoted as saying “The translation at my father’s farm, Fayette Township, Seneca County, New York occupied about one month, that is from June 1, to July 1, 1829.” [10] If those dates are exact then the Prophet was in New York during the entire month of June.
* Orson Pratt asked David Whitmer, “Can you tell the date of the bestowal of the Apostleship upon Joseph, by Peter, James and John?” To which he replied: “I do not know, Joseph never told me.” From this we can tell that the visitation either:
1. Happened during the traveling when Joseph and Oliver were away from David and did not tell him about the occurrence (their trusted friend with whom they shared many other events).
2. Happened at another time than their travel from Harmony to Fayette.
As shown above, after receiving the priesthood they were not yet allowed to ordain each other to the offices within that priesthood. They were told to “defer this our ordination until such times as it should be practicable to have our brethren, who had been and who should be baptized, assembled together, when we must have their sanction to our proceeding to ordain each other.” [13]
There are many times when Oliver confirmed without error that the sequence of events occurred as shown above. [14] [15]
Conclusion
All doubts about this question are washed away when the whole collection of documented evidence surrounding the restoration of the Melchizedek priesthood is seen. Although the exact date is not known, the window that is known is small enough to preclude a later fabrication of events by the Prophet to "increase his authority."
But why even quibble about such things Liz? Harmony doesn't believe in any such concept as the Melchizidek Priesthood in the first instance, so augments and evidence such as the above, which would require at the very minimum an assumption of some benefit of the doubt toward the concept, and toward Joseph as a true Prophet of the Lord, an idea which we also know Harmony does not subscribe to, are nothing but filler.
Harmony is here to project her personal neurosis, unresolved life issues, and feminist derived notions of power struggle between the sexes onto the Church and its defenders, not to endure 'substantial argument".