Learn more about the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, including historical findings about Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, and more.
Benjamin E. Park is an assistant professor of history at Sam Houston University and the author of “American Nationalisms: Imagining Union in the Age of Revolutions, 1783-1833.” He has also written about the political culture of Navuoo in the 1840s, and previously served as a Visiting Fellow with the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Studies at BYU.
The 1978 priesthood revelation extended the blessings of the Melchizedek priesthood regardless of race. Elder Bruce R. McConkie of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles afterward recorded his account of “a great Pentecostal outpouring of the Spirit such as none of those present had ever before experienced.” Dennis B. Horne provided the following description drawn from his book, I Know He Lives: I Know He lives: How 13 Special Witnesses Came to Know Jesus Christ.
Leonard J. Arrington is often known as the “Father of Latter-day Saint” history. In this interview, Gary J. Bergera discusses Leonard Arrington’s journals, including the historian’s encounters with Latter-day Saint leaders like Bruce R. McConkie and Ezra Taft Benson.
Dennis B. Horne is the author of several books, including a biography of Elder Bruce R. McConkie of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Horne’s writing can also be found on sites such as The Interpreter Foundation, LDS Living, and FAIR.
Donald G. Godfrey shares background from his life and insights from his Brigham Young University Religious Studies book, “In Their Footsteps: Mormon Pioneers of Faith.”
SALT LAKE CITY — From the gold plates and the Book of Mormon to the Nauvoo Female Relief Society Leadership and Minute Book to several of the Prophet Joseph Smith’s journals and letters, the collection of 13 essays in “Foundational Texts of Mormonism: Examining Major Early Sources” (Oxford University Press, $74, 448 pages) utilizes insights from the Joseph Smith Papers and a focus on historical context to more fully understand foundational texts of Mormonism.
The Joseph Smith Papers recently published its 17th volume associated with the life and works of Joseph Smith. The project, which began with the work of a single individual, has grown in scope and influence over its first decade.
Along the way, the project has changed in numerous ways, overcome challenges, garnered unprecedented popularity, secured academic prestige, and set the stage for a new era of Mormon history.
The Joseph Smith Papers Project publishes documents from the life of Joseph Smith—but the team doesn’t collect them. Instead, the Joseph Smith Papers team uses archivists like Sharalyn Howcroft to scope out new manuscripts for inclusion in the groundbreaking academic papers project.
The history of Joseph Smith and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been told many times—often using the same sources. But the context of these critical documents have rarely been considered. In this interview, Latter-day Saint scholars Mark Ashurst McGee, Robin Scott Jensen, and Sharalyn D. Howcroft talk about placing important sources in their historical contexts.
Jenny Oaks Baker is a Juilliard-trained musician and the daughter of President Dallin H. Oaks. Her musical talents have led to her being known as “America’s violinist.” Jenny Oaks Baker recently released her 14th solo album, “The Spirit of God.”