Terryl C. Givens
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195167115
- eISBN:
- 9780199785599
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195167115.003.0017
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Film has largely replaced theater as the dramatic medium for Mormon artists. Film was early employed in the anti-Mormon campaign, and Mormons learned early to use it for their own purposes. ...
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Film has largely replaced theater as the dramatic medium for Mormon artists. Film was early employed in the anti-Mormon campaign, and Mormons learned early to use it for their own purposes. Evangelistic (missionary films) and public relations varieties (Homefront series) have given way to a recent generation of talented filmmakers who are creating two kinds: one is an insider genre, while the other explores ways of informing popular film with a Mormon sensibility.Less
Film has largely replaced theater as the dramatic medium for Mormon artists. Film was early employed in the anti-Mormon campaign, and Mormons learned early to use it for their own purposes. Evangelistic (missionary films) and public relations varieties (Homefront series) have given way to a recent generation of talented filmmakers who are creating two kinds: one is an insider genre, while the other explores ways of informing popular film with a Mormon sensibility.
Grant Hardy
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199731701
- eISBN:
- 9780199777167
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199731701.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Literature, World Religions
While the significance of the Book of Mormon in American history and religion is universally acknowledged, its complicated narrative can be bewildering to outsiders. In addition, controversy over its ...
More
While the significance of the Book of Mormon in American history and religion is universally acknowledged, its complicated narrative can be bewildering to outsiders. In addition, controversy over its historical claims tends to overshadow its contents. This book argues that whether the Book of Mormon is approached as history, fiction, or scripture, focusing on its narrative structure, and in particular on the contributions of the major narrators, allows for more comprehensive, detailed readings. The Book of Mormon is nearly unique among recent world scriptures in that it is presented as a lengthy, integrated narrative rather than a series of doctrinal expositions, moral exhortations, or devotional hymns. Joseph Smith, whether regarded as an author or translator, never speaks in his own voice in the text; nearly everything is mediated through the narrators Nephi, Mormon, and Moroni. This study takes readers through the basic characters, events, and ideas in the Book of Mormon by focusing on each of the major narrators in turn and identifying their characteristic literary techniques. Critics and believers alike can agree that someone, sometime, decided how to tell the story—where to employ direct dialogue, embedded documents, parallel narratives, allusions, and so forth. This introduction sets aside questions of ultimate authorship in order to examine how the text operates, how it makes its points, and what its message is. Despite its sometimes awkward style, the Book of Mormon has more coherence and literary interest than is often assumed.Less
While the significance of the Book of Mormon in American history and religion is universally acknowledged, its complicated narrative can be bewildering to outsiders. In addition, controversy over its historical claims tends to overshadow its contents. This book argues that whether the Book of Mormon is approached as history, fiction, or scripture, focusing on its narrative structure, and in particular on the contributions of the major narrators, allows for more comprehensive, detailed readings. The Book of Mormon is nearly unique among recent world scriptures in that it is presented as a lengthy, integrated narrative rather than a series of doctrinal expositions, moral exhortations, or devotional hymns. Joseph Smith, whether regarded as an author or translator, never speaks in his own voice in the text; nearly everything is mediated through the narrators Nephi, Mormon, and Moroni. This study takes readers through the basic characters, events, and ideas in the Book of Mormon by focusing on each of the major narrators in turn and identifying their characteristic literary techniques. Critics and believers alike can agree that someone, sometime, decided how to tell the story—where to employ direct dialogue, embedded documents, parallel narratives, allusions, and so forth. This introduction sets aside questions of ultimate authorship in order to examine how the text operates, how it makes its points, and what its message is. Despite its sometimes awkward style, the Book of Mormon has more coherence and literary interest than is often assumed.
Terryl C. Givens
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195167115
- eISBN:
- 9780199785599
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195167115.003.0016
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Mormon music is a forum where originality and assimilation compete vigorously. Hymnody began by borrowing but also by employing the first original Mormon artistic productions. The Tabernacle Choir is ...
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Mormon music is a forum where originality and assimilation compete vigorously. Hymnody began by borrowing but also by employing the first original Mormon artistic productions. The Tabernacle Choir is still the most famous face of Mormon music today. Oratorios have given way to popular musicals.Less
Mormon music is a forum where originality and assimilation compete vigorously. Hymnody began by borrowing but also by employing the first original Mormon artistic productions. The Tabernacle Choir is still the most famous face of Mormon music today. Oratorios have given way to popular musicals.
Terryl C. Givens
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195167115
- eISBN:
- 9780199785599
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195167115.003.0009
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Unlike most Christians, Mormons have always loved music and dance. From the Nauvoo Brass Band to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, music has been culturally central. Hymnody incorporates some of the very ...
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Unlike most Christians, Mormons have always loved music and dance. From the Nauvoo Brass Band to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, music has been culturally central. Hymnody incorporates some of the very first instances of Mormon cultural expression. Dancing schools were common in early Utah. The church's support for music not directed to a worship function has been slight.Less
Unlike most Christians, Mormons have always loved music and dance. From the Nauvoo Brass Band to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, music has been culturally central. Hymnody incorporates some of the very first instances of Mormon cultural expression. Dancing schools were common in early Utah. The church's support for music not directed to a worship function has been slight.
Terryl C. Givens
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195167115
- eISBN:
- 9780199785599
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195167115.003.0015
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Turn of the century Mormon architecture could be daring and magnificent. World-wide growth, economic constraints, and fierce pragmatism have more recently given to modern Mormon architecture a bland ...
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Turn of the century Mormon architecture could be daring and magnificent. World-wide growth, economic constraints, and fierce pragmatism have more recently given to modern Mormon architecture a bland and uniform appearance, with occasional exceptions. Even temples have succumbed to corporate requirements, along with meethinghouses (chapels) and beautiful tabernacles have given way to the generic stake center.Less
Turn of the century Mormon architecture could be daring and magnificent. World-wide growth, economic constraints, and fierce pragmatism have more recently given to modern Mormon architecture a bland and uniform appearance, with occasional exceptions. Even temples have succumbed to corporate requirements, along with meethinghouses (chapels) and beautiful tabernacles have given way to the generic stake center.
Terryl C. Givens
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195167115
- eISBN:
- 9780199785599
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195167115.003.0019
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
The Paris Art Mission introduced European developments and training into Utah art at the turn of the century. Today, loose alliances like the New York Mormon Artists Group have supplanted efforts to ...
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The Paris Art Mission introduced European developments and training into Utah art at the turn of the century. Today, loose alliances like the New York Mormon Artists Group have supplanted efforts to create a self conscious style (as with the Art and Belief Movement). World class sculptors as well as prominent painters emerged by mid-century. A regular international art competition is the major vehicle for opening the church to cultural influences from beyond the United States.Less
The Paris Art Mission introduced European developments and training into Utah art at the turn of the century. Today, loose alliances like the New York Mormon Artists Group have supplanted efforts to create a self conscious style (as with the Art and Belief Movement). World class sculptors as well as prominent painters emerged by mid-century. A regular international art competition is the major vehicle for opening the church to cultural influences from beyond the United States.
Terryl C. Givens
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195167115
- eISBN:
- 9780199785599
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195167115.003.0020
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Ultimately, the challenge of Mormon culture is to assert individualism without elitism, and to embrace universalism without compromise. Mormonism must ultimately represent the best of what is human. ...
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Ultimately, the challenge of Mormon culture is to assert individualism without elitism, and to embrace universalism without compromise. Mormonism must ultimately represent the best of what is human. The question is: how can a Mormon aesthetic capture be both particular and universal, capturing the essence of Mormonism while reaching for transcendence?Less
Ultimately, the challenge of Mormon culture is to assert individualism without elitism, and to embrace universalism without compromise. Mormonism must ultimately represent the best of what is human. The question is: how can a Mormon aesthetic capture be both particular and universal, capturing the essence of Mormonism while reaching for transcendence?
Terryl C. Givens
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195167115
- eISBN:
- 9780199785599
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195167115.003.0002
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
The Mormon church is authoritarian, hierarchical, and rigid. Priesthood correlation and obedience are watchwords. Politics and individualism can collide. The Prophet is absolute spiritual leader. ...
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The Mormon church is authoritarian, hierarchical, and rigid. Priesthood correlation and obedience are watchwords. Politics and individualism can collide. The Prophet is absolute spiritual leader. Mormon theology, on the other hand, emphasizes moral agency, human freedom, individual initiative, and spiritual independence.Less
The Mormon church is authoritarian, hierarchical, and rigid. Priesthood correlation and obedience are watchwords. Politics and individualism can collide. The Prophet is absolute spiritual leader. Mormon theology, on the other hand, emphasizes moral agency, human freedom, individual initiative, and spiritual independence.
Terryl C. Givens
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195167115
- eISBN:
- 9780199785599
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195167115.003.0007
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Education is fundamental in Mormonism. Joseph Smith studied Hebrew, and established a School of the Prophets and the University of Nauvoo. Print culture was central to the Mormon church, and early ...
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Education is fundamental in Mormonism. Joseph Smith studied Hebrew, and established a School of the Prophets and the University of Nauvoo. Print culture was central to the Mormon church, and early leaders like Orson Pratt and Parley Pratt laid the foundations for an intellectual tradition. Early Mormon intellectual culture was capacious enough to accommodate Darwin and evolution, though that would change.Less
Education is fundamental in Mormonism. Joseph Smith studied Hebrew, and established a School of the Prophets and the University of Nauvoo. Print culture was central to the Mormon church, and early leaders like Orson Pratt and Parley Pratt laid the foundations for an intellectual tradition. Early Mormon intellectual culture was capacious enough to accommodate Darwin and evolution, though that would change.
Grant Hardy
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199731701
- eISBN:
- 9780199777167
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199731701.003.0004
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Literature, World Religions
The majority of the Book of Mormon is narrated by Mormon, who is supposed to have lived at the end of Nephite history, in the fourth century AD. Whether one regards him as a historical figure or a ...
More
The majority of the Book of Mormon is narrated by Mormon, who is supposed to have lived at the end of Nephite history, in the fourth century AD. Whether one regards him as a historical figure or a fictional construct, he structures his story in characteristic ways. Clues to his character can be found in his autobiographical chapters, two letters and a sermon reproduced verbatim, and especially in the hundred or so brief editorial comments he makes throughout the history he narrates. These passages show Mormon in three modes: 1) as a conscientious historian concerned with names, dates, and documentary sources; 2) as a literary artist who shapes the narrative with aesthetic parallels, significant phrasing, and focused selection; and 3) as a moral guide who explicitly points out the fulfillment of prophecies as well as spiritual lessons. The story of the destruction of the city of Ammonihah is analyzed as an example of what happens when these three agendas are at odds with each other.Less
The majority of the Book of Mormon is narrated by Mormon, who is supposed to have lived at the end of Nephite history, in the fourth century AD. Whether one regards him as a historical figure or a fictional construct, he structures his story in characteristic ways. Clues to his character can be found in his autobiographical chapters, two letters and a sermon reproduced verbatim, and especially in the hundred or so brief editorial comments he makes throughout the history he narrates. These passages show Mormon in three modes: 1) as a conscientious historian concerned with names, dates, and documentary sources; 2) as a literary artist who shapes the narrative with aesthetic parallels, significant phrasing, and focused selection; and 3) as a moral guide who explicitly points out the fulfillment of prophecies as well as spiritual lessons. The story of the destruction of the city of Ammonihah is analyzed as an example of what happens when these three agendas are at odds with each other.
Chris Beneke
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780195305555
- eISBN:
- 9780199784899
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195305558.003.0006
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
The conclusion delineates the 19th-century boundaries of American religious pluralism. Those limits emerged most clearly in the persistence of anti-Semitism, the violence inflicted upon Mormons in ...
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The conclusion delineates the 19th-century boundaries of American religious pluralism. Those limits emerged most clearly in the persistence of anti-Semitism, the violence inflicted upon Mormons in western New York, Illinois, and Missouri, and the vitriolic common school debates of 1840 and 1841, which pitted New York’s Roman Catholic leaders against the Protestant-dominated Public School Society. In the case of the Mormons and the Catholics, especially, the 18th-century formula of equal rights for private worship and public inclusion failed. Anonymous living in the increasingly populous cities and the vast expanses of cheap land in the west allowed religious groups to avoid integration. Meanwhile, the continued dominance of Calvinist Protestantism made such isolation attractive. Yet, an important precedent had already been set. The success that early Americans had in maintaining civil peace and encouraging cooperative endeavors between different religious groups provided a reassuring template for future encounters with diversity.Less
The conclusion delineates the 19th-century boundaries of American religious pluralism. Those limits emerged most clearly in the persistence of anti-Semitism, the violence inflicted upon Mormons in western New York, Illinois, and Missouri, and the vitriolic common school debates of 1840 and 1841, which pitted New York’s Roman Catholic leaders against the Protestant-dominated Public School Society. In the case of the Mormons and the Catholics, especially, the 18th-century formula of equal rights for private worship and public inclusion failed. Anonymous living in the increasingly populous cities and the vast expanses of cheap land in the west allowed religious groups to avoid integration. Meanwhile, the continued dominance of Calvinist Protestantism made such isolation attractive. Yet, an important precedent had already been set. The success that early Americans had in maintaining civil peace and encouraging cooperative endeavors between different religious groups provided a reassuring template for future encounters with diversity.
Grant Hardy
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199731701
- eISBN:
- 9780199777167
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199731701.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Literature, World Religions
One important feature of Mormon's narration is his insertion of purported primary source documents into his history. Bernard Duyfhuizen's theories of “narratives of transmission” are applied to the ...
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One important feature of Mormon's narration is his insertion of purported primary source documents into his history. Bernard Duyfhuizen's theories of “narratives of transmission” are applied to the Book of Mormon. Several examples of embedded documents are examined in detail, including a memoir of Zeniff, sermons of both King Benjamin and Alma the Younger, and letters of Helaman. In addition, this chapter looks at how such documents are integrated into the narrative. Mormon's editorial tactics can be analyzed in terms of “coherence,” “avoidance,” and “resonance,” all of which describe ways that the embedded documents are connected to larger storylines.Less
One important feature of Mormon's narration is his insertion of purported primary source documents into his history. Bernard Duyfhuizen's theories of “narratives of transmission” are applied to the Book of Mormon. Several examples of embedded documents are examined in detail, including a memoir of Zeniff, sermons of both King Benjamin and Alma the Younger, and letters of Helaman. In addition, this chapter looks at how such documents are integrated into the narrative. Mormon's editorial tactics can be analyzed in terms of “coherence,” “avoidance,” and “resonance,” all of which describe ways that the embedded documents are connected to larger storylines.
Grant Hardy
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199731701
- eISBN:
- 9780199777167
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199731701.003.0006
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Literature, World Religions
In the Book of Mormon, many narratives have parallels. These include 1) simple parallels, such as Abinadi's story being like that of Moses, 2) complex parallels in which a single story has multiple ...
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In the Book of Mormon, many narratives have parallels. These include 1) simple parallels, such as Abinadi's story being like that of Moses, 2) complex parallels in which a single story has multiple referents, as happens with Nephi and Lehi's deliverance from prison, and 3) contrastive narratives in series. Examples of the last category can be found in three pairs of incidents in which a remarkable success wrought by ordinary competence is immediately followed by a much more spectacular achievement brought about through faith. Mormon has employed selection, arrangement, and phrasing to construct these parallel narratives, but he wants to show that these are actual historical patterns rather than clever impositions by the narrator.Less
In the Book of Mormon, many narratives have parallels. These include 1) simple parallels, such as Abinadi's story being like that of Moses, 2) complex parallels in which a single story has multiple referents, as happens with Nephi and Lehi's deliverance from prison, and 3) contrastive narratives in series. Examples of the last category can be found in three pairs of incidents in which a remarkable success wrought by ordinary competence is immediately followed by a much more spectacular achievement brought about through faith. Mormon has employed selection, arrangement, and phrasing to construct these parallel narratives, but he wants to show that these are actual historical patterns rather than clever impositions by the narrator.
Grant Hardy
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199731701
- eISBN:
- 9780199777167
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199731701.003.0007
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Literature, World Religions
The story of Jesus’ post-resurrection appearance in the New World is the climax of the Book of Mormon, but in some ways it is disappointing. It doesn’t fit well into the larger narrative and Jesus’ ...
More
The story of Jesus’ post-resurrection appearance in the New World is the climax of the Book of Mormon, but in some ways it is disappointing. It doesn’t fit well into the larger narrative and Jesus’ words consist, in large measure, of lengthy quotations from Isaiah, Micah, and the Sermon on the Mount. When examined from the perspective of the narrator, however, several key themes emerge. In Mormon's account, the issue of prophecy and fulfillment comes to the forefront, in both Samuel the Lamanite's predictions of the birth and death of Christ, and also in Jesus’ own prophecies concerning the destiny of the House of Israel and the fulfillment of the Law of Moses. The general flow of the narrative is punctuated by four significant editorial interruptions, and with the last of these, Mormon himself undergoes a literary transformation from historian to prophet.Less
The story of Jesus’ post-resurrection appearance in the New World is the climax of the Book of Mormon, but in some ways it is disappointing. It doesn’t fit well into the larger narrative and Jesus’ words consist, in large measure, of lengthy quotations from Isaiah, Micah, and the Sermon on the Mount. When examined from the perspective of the narrator, however, several key themes emerge. In Mormon's account, the issue of prophecy and fulfillment comes to the forefront, in both Samuel the Lamanite's predictions of the birth and death of Christ, and also in Jesus’ own prophecies concerning the destiny of the House of Israel and the fulfillment of the Law of Moses. The general flow of the narrative is punctuated by four significant editorial interruptions, and with the last of these, Mormon himself undergoes a literary transformation from historian to prophet.
Stephen Macedo
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691166483
- eISBN:
- 9781400865857
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691166483.003.0008
- Subject:
- Law, Family Law
This chapter examines the different forms of plural marriage and provides some historical background and context, focusing on the long-running conflict around polygamy in the Mormon Church in North ...
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This chapter examines the different forms of plural marriage and provides some historical background and context, focusing on the long-running conflict around polygamy in the Mormon Church in North America. It asks whether we can justify prohibiting or denying recognition to polygamous marriages, whether we ought to drop restrictions based on numbers and focus on the quality of people's relationships, and on what grounds nonrecognition and discouragement of polygamy can be justified. It also considers the so-called “polyamory” and argues that same-sex marriage and polygamy have little in common, aside from being deviations from “traditional” monogamy. Finally, it explores plural marriage as a doctrinal tenet of the Mormons and the 1947 Supreme Court case Reynolds v. United States.Less
This chapter examines the different forms of plural marriage and provides some historical background and context, focusing on the long-running conflict around polygamy in the Mormon Church in North America. It asks whether we can justify prohibiting or denying recognition to polygamous marriages, whether we ought to drop restrictions based on numbers and focus on the quality of people's relationships, and on what grounds nonrecognition and discouragement of polygamy can be justified. It also considers the so-called “polyamory” and argues that same-sex marriage and polygamy have little in common, aside from being deviations from “traditional” monogamy. Finally, it explores plural marriage as a doctrinal tenet of the Mormons and the 1947 Supreme Court case Reynolds v. United States.
Reid L. Neilson and Terryl L. Givens (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- January 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780195369786
- eISBN:
- 9780199871292
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195369786.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Mormon founder Joseph Smith is one of the most controversial figures of 19th-century American history, and a virtually inexhaustible subject for analysis. In this book, fifteen scholars offer their ...
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Mormon founder Joseph Smith is one of the most controversial figures of 19th-century American history, and a virtually inexhaustible subject for analysis. In this book, fifteen scholars offer their thoughts on how to interpret and understand Smith and his legacy. Including chapters by both Mormons and non-Mormons, this collection is a survey of contemporary scholarly opinion on the extraordinary man who started one of the fastest growing religious traditions in the modern world.Less
Mormon founder Joseph Smith is one of the most controversial figures of 19th-century American history, and a virtually inexhaustible subject for analysis. In this book, fifteen scholars offer their thoughts on how to interpret and understand Smith and his legacy. Including chapters by both Mormons and non-Mormons, this collection is a survey of contemporary scholarly opinion on the extraordinary man who started one of the fastest growing religious traditions in the modern world.
Terryl L. Givens
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195138184
- eISBN:
- 9780199834211
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/019513818X.003.0003
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
The Book of Mormon narrates how Lehi, a Jewish prophet, migrated to the Western Hemisphere with his clan and established a colony there, whose leaders maintained a history of their religious, ...
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The Book of Mormon narrates how Lehi, a Jewish prophet, migrated to the Western Hemisphere with his clan and established a colony there, whose leaders maintained a history of their religious, political, and military history for the next thousand years. Eventually the followers of Christ, Nephites, were exterminated by their apostate brethren the Lamanites, while being led by Mormon and Moroni, great generals and final record keepers of the gold plates. The Book is structurally complex, and suffused with references to and teachings about Jesus Christ, even recording his visit to the Americas after his Jerusalem resurrection. Initial reception of the Book of Mormon was tepid.Less
The Book of Mormon narrates how Lehi, a Jewish prophet, migrated to the Western Hemisphere with his clan and established a colony there, whose leaders maintained a history of their religious, political, and military history for the next thousand years. Eventually the followers of Christ, Nephites, were exterminated by their apostate brethren the Lamanites, while being led by Mormon and Moroni, great generals and final record keepers of the gold plates. The Book is structurally complex, and suffused with references to and teachings about Jesus Christ, even recording his visit to the Americas after his Jerusalem resurrection. Initial reception of the Book of Mormon was tepid.
Margaret Barker and Kevin Christensen
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- January 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780195369786
- eISBN:
- 9780199871292
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195369786.003.010
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter comes to Mormonism as something only tangentially related to this chapter's author's own work in radically reformulating our understanding of ancient Jewish religion. The author of this ...
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This chapter comes to Mormonism as something only tangentially related to this chapter's author's own work in radically reformulating our understanding of ancient Jewish religion. The author of this chapter has elsewhere assessed the Book of Mormon in the context of pre-exilic Israelite religion. Here, that interest is extended here by considering the temple world view of early Israel before the reforms of King Josiah. Noting the primacy of this same temple-dominated vision in the prophetic career of Joseph Smith, the first part of this chapter concentrates on that subject. From his translation of the Book of Mormon through the corpus of his own visions, Joseph established continuity with the Bible as text and Jerusalem as sacred space. Equally important is the pattern in Joseph Smith of both chronicling sacred theophanies and urging their possibility in contemporary religious practice. That is why it has been argued that Joseph Smith's restoration converges on the key time, place, institutions, and issues involved in this chapter's reconstruction.Less
This chapter comes to Mormonism as something only tangentially related to this chapter's author's own work in radically reformulating our understanding of ancient Jewish religion. The author of this chapter has elsewhere assessed the Book of Mormon in the context of pre-exilic Israelite religion. Here, that interest is extended here by considering the temple world view of early Israel before the reforms of King Josiah. Noting the primacy of this same temple-dominated vision in the prophetic career of Joseph Smith, the first part of this chapter concentrates on that subject. From his translation of the Book of Mormon through the corpus of his own visions, Joseph established continuity with the Bible as text and Jerusalem as sacred space. Equally important is the pattern in Joseph Smith of both chronicling sacred theophanies and urging their possibility in contemporary religious practice. That is why it has been argued that Joseph Smith's restoration converges on the key time, place, institutions, and issues involved in this chapter's reconstruction.
Laurie F. Maffly-Kipp
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- January 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780195369786
- eISBN:
- 9780199871292
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195369786.003.011
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter furthers the project of an intellectually richer account of Mormonism by offering a critique of the centrality of sympathy in the polemics that have engulfed Mormon historical studies ...
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This chapter furthers the project of an intellectually richer account of Mormonism by offering a critique of the centrality of sympathy in the polemics that have engulfed Mormon historical studies from their inception, and proposing an alternative. The critique is situated in a largely postmodern, anti-essentialist conception of identity as a malleable and fluid concept. At the same time, it notes in Smith's own turn to ritual a validation of appearances over essence, doing over being. A focus on the epic of Mormonism's narrative rather than its characters, on popular rather than elite Mormon history, and on the geographical varieties with their correspondingly different accounts of Mormonism—all are presented here as powerful antidotes to the snares of an approach that links, and therefore reduces Joseph Smith and the religion he founded to an irresolvable debate over human motives.Less
This chapter furthers the project of an intellectually richer account of Mormonism by offering a critique of the centrality of sympathy in the polemics that have engulfed Mormon historical studies from their inception, and proposing an alternative. The critique is situated in a largely postmodern, anti-essentialist conception of identity as a malleable and fluid concept. At the same time, it notes in Smith's own turn to ritual a validation of appearances over essence, doing over being. A focus on the epic of Mormonism's narrative rather than its characters, on popular rather than elite Mormon history, and on the geographical varieties with their correspondingly different accounts of Mormonism—all are presented here as powerful antidotes to the snares of an approach that links, and therefore reduces Joseph Smith and the religion he founded to an irresolvable debate over human motives.
Reid Neilson
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780195384031
- eISBN:
- 9780199918324
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195384031.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Church History
The 1893 Columbian Exposition, also known as the Chicago World’s Fair, presented the Latter‐day Saints with their first post‐polygamy opportunity to exhibit the best of Mormonism for a national and ...
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The 1893 Columbian Exposition, also known as the Chicago World’s Fair, presented the Latter‐day Saints with their first post‐polygamy opportunity to exhibit the best of Mormonism for a national and an international audience. The Columbian Exposition also marked the dramatic reengagement of the LDS Church with the non‐Mormon world after decades of seclusion in the Great Basin. Between May and October 1893, over seven thousand Latter‐day Saints from Utah attended the international spectacle popularly described as the “White City.” While many traveled as tourists, oblivious to the opportunities to “exhibit” Mormonism, others actively participated to improve their church’s public image. Hundreds of congregants helped create, manage, and staff their territory’s impressive exhibit hall; most believed their besieged religion would benefit from Utah’s increased national profile. Moreover, a good number of Latter‐day Saint women represented the female interests and achievements of both Utah and its dominant religion. These women hoped to use the Chicago World’s Fair as a platform to improve the social status of their gender and their religion. That summer two hundred and fifty of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir’s best singers competed in a Welsh eisteddfod, a musical competition held in conjunction with the Chicago World’s Fair, and Mormon apologist Brigham H. Roberts sought to gain LDS representation at the affiliated Parliament of Religions. My book explores how Latter‐day Saints attempted to “exhibit” themselves to the outside world before, during, and after the Columbian Exposition. Indeed, I argue that their participation in the 1893 Columbian Exposition was a watershed moment in the Mormon migration to the American mainstream and its leadership’s discovery of public relations efforts. The exposition marked the dramatic reengagement of the LDS Church with the outside, non-Mormon world after decades of isolation in America’s Great Basin desert. After 1893, Mormon leaders sought to exhibit their faith rather than be exhibited by others.Less
The 1893 Columbian Exposition, also known as the Chicago World’s Fair, presented the Latter‐day Saints with their first post‐polygamy opportunity to exhibit the best of Mormonism for a national and an international audience. The Columbian Exposition also marked the dramatic reengagement of the LDS Church with the non‐Mormon world after decades of seclusion in the Great Basin. Between May and October 1893, over seven thousand Latter‐day Saints from Utah attended the international spectacle popularly described as the “White City.” While many traveled as tourists, oblivious to the opportunities to “exhibit” Mormonism, others actively participated to improve their church’s public image. Hundreds of congregants helped create, manage, and staff their territory’s impressive exhibit hall; most believed their besieged religion would benefit from Utah’s increased national profile. Moreover, a good number of Latter‐day Saint women represented the female interests and achievements of both Utah and its dominant religion. These women hoped to use the Chicago World’s Fair as a platform to improve the social status of their gender and their religion. That summer two hundred and fifty of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir’s best singers competed in a Welsh eisteddfod, a musical competition held in conjunction with the Chicago World’s Fair, and Mormon apologist Brigham H. Roberts sought to gain LDS representation at the affiliated Parliament of Religions. My book explores how Latter‐day Saints attempted to “exhibit” themselves to the outside world before, during, and after the Columbian Exposition. Indeed, I argue that their participation in the 1893 Columbian Exposition was a watershed moment in the Mormon migration to the American mainstream and its leadership’s discovery of public relations efforts. The exposition marked the dramatic reengagement of the LDS Church with the outside, non-Mormon world after decades of isolation in America’s Great Basin desert. After 1893, Mormon leaders sought to exhibit their faith rather than be exhibited by others.
