Original sentence: " Following the death of Smith's first-born son and the loss of 116 pages of the Book of Mormon manuscript, Smith asked to be enrolled in a Methodist class in Harmony, Pennsylvania." Nevertheless, Smith attended the meetings of several denominations, particularly those of the Methodists, "as often as occasion would permit" and may have even spoken during some Methodist meetings because he was described by an associate as a "very passable exhorter
Edited sentence: " Nevertheless, Smith attended the meetings of several denominations, particularly those of the Methodists, "as often as occasion would permit" and may have even spoken during some Methodist meetings— he was described by an associate as a "very passable exhorter," which several historians have interpreted to mean as a "very passable" Methodist exhorter, though this interpretation is disputed.Following the death of Smith's first-born son and the loss of 116 pages of the Book of Mormon manuscript, Smith asked to be enrolled in a Methodist class in Harmony, Pennsylvania.Whether or not he acted as a Methodist exhorter, Joseph Smith was not a Methodist