Call for Applicants: Write for the Church History Department

And the CHL’s empire expands….

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Job Title: Web Content Strategy Manager

Job Description: The Web Content Strategy Manager will hold a leadership position responsible for developing, planning and delivering all aspects of the written and visual content for the Church History Department website (history.lds.org). The website is a central hub for the various divisions of the Church History Department, including Collections, Preservation, Historic Sites, Publications, the Church History Library, and the Church History Museum. The Church History Department is seeking to aggressively expand its Internet presence through the development of new and unique historical content that will serve Church members and interested outsiders, including researchers and academics. The successful applicant will be deeply versed in Latter-day Saint Church history as well as website strategy and development, and also possess strong writing and analytical skills.

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The First Vision Gets Sunstoned

There has been a lot of books and articles on the First Vision. But the recent article by our own Steve Taysom, which appeared in the newest issue of Sunstone, may be the first that references Mircea Eliade, Jean-Francois Lyotard, and Stephen King. Indeed, Steve’s article is a fresh perspective in a debate that grows old quickly, and he demonstrates how theory—and, more generally, tools borrowed from the interdisciplinary nature of religious studies—can give us important insights on traditional narratives. Part of Sunstone’s “Mapping Mormon Issues” series, where they sponsor a researcher to examine and explain controversial aspects in Mormon history, “Approaching the First Vision Saga” attempts to do three things: first, detail the famous accounts and circumstances surrounding Smith’s 1820 theophany; second, outline how past historians, scholars, and amateurs have approached the topic; and third, hint to what a possibly more insightful framework might be.

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From the Archives: “American Independence Declared Over Again”

John Adams imagined that America would always celebrate July 1776 as the beginning point of American freedom, but he was off a few days. “The Second Day of July 1776,” he wrote, “will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by solemn Acts of Devotion to God Almighty.” If Adams was mistaken on the exact date, he was prescient concerning the celebrations. “It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade with shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this continent to the other from this Time forward forever more.” Witnessing the pompous proceedings that surround Independence day—especially here in Utah County—reminds me that Adams was certainly at least half-right.

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A New Framework for a New Generation of Mormon Studies: The Conclusion from my Bushman Tribute Conference Paper

What follows is the conclusion from my paper “On Mormon Thought and its Context(s): Joseph Smith, Thomas Dick, and the Tricky Task of Determining Influence,” presented at the conference in honor of Richard Bushman a few weeks ago. The paper spends most of its time outlining how the question of Thomas Dick’s influence has been handled in Mormon historiography, the problems with past approaches, and then demonstrates a possibly more fruitful approach. (A very early version of the paper is found here.) Then, in this conclusion, I use the topic as an example of how new frameworks are needed, specifically when engaging the development of LDS thought, in the next stage of Mormon studies. This topic—and even much of my message—has been trumpeted of late (both by myself as well as others), including Richard Bushman’s own concluding remarks at the conference, but it is still an important enough message that it is worth repeating.

The Age of Cultural Power: Reflections on “Mormonism in Cultural Contexts: A Symposium in Honor of Richard Bushman”

What follows are my reflections on “Mormonism in Cultural Contexts,” a conference that took place on Saturday, June 18, 2011, in honor of Richard Bushman’s 80th birthday. The organizers—Steve Harper, Spencer Fluhman, Reid Neilson, and Jed Woodworth—deserve many congratulations for putting together such a great event.

Call for Papers: Women and Creativity

CALL FOR PAPERS

Brigham Young University
Women?s Studies

Invites proposals for the conference:

WOMEN AND CREATIVITY

Conference date: November 3-5, 2011

Throughout history, women have strived to demonstrate their ability to create lasting literary or artistic works, to find new ways of expressing themselves, to better our world through valuable research and innovative thinking. This inter-disciplinary conference seeks to examine issues related broadly to women and creativity and to bring together faculty and advanced students interested in sharing research on women in the arts, literature and sciences. We invite proposals from literature, visual and performing arts, philosophy, religion, law, social studies, anthropology, sciences, and public health.

Possible themes:

• Literature by women authors
• Women artists, women in the arts
• The Muse
• Creativity transmitted by women
• Representations of women authors or artists in literature, visual arts, popular culture
• Women as promoters of scientific progress
• Women in modernity
• Women in education/pedagogy
• Women and nursing
• Social/Historical perspectives

We invite faculty interested in the conference to submit 300-word abstracts for individual papers on these subjects or other related themes. Advanced students should submit both a 100-word abstract, and an 8-10-page paper. Submissions should be sent by August 15, 2011 to womenscreativityconference@byu.edu.

Submissions should include: a) author(s), b) academic affiliation, c) email address, d) title of abstract, e) body of abstract, f) (for students) an 8-10 page paper. E-mails should include in the subject box: WSC Abstract Submission.

Each presenter will have 20 minutes for the presentation, followed by 10 minutes for discussions. Selected papers may be developed for publication in a themed hard copy volume.

Call for Papers: Mormon Scholars in the Humanities

Call for Papers

Conference Theme: Economies and Humanities
Conference Date: May 18?19, 2012
Proposal Deadline: February 15, 2012

Human beings have material needs. We claim, use, and trade the physical resources of earth and seas. We produce goods and services that we use or, not being self-sufficient, exchange. To the ancient Greeks, the consumer?the ?we??was a household. (The term ?economy? derives from Greek, meaning management of household labor and material resources.) Today the household remains the unit responsible for consumption decisions, and its internal roles adapt to external demands for members? labor.

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Digitizing Mormon History: Update, Potential, and Pitfalls

To say that the study of Mormon history has entered the digital age would be a drastic understatement. Last friday, representatives from the LDS Church History Library gave what appears to be an exhilarating introduction to new web content for both the Library itself as well as the Joseph Smith Papers. (A Mormon Times article last week also highlighted the JSP’s emphasis shift from print to web, though there will still be much printed goodness.) The awesomeness of these sites and their online content cannot be overstated. I fear that if I tried to outline the positive aspects of this I would merely be stating the obvious. Regardless, I drone on. I’d like to outline what some of the best online digital sources are, what the positive impact may be within the Church and the academy, and finish with a few words of caution.

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MHA 2011 Conference Preview: Paper Abstracts from JI Presenters

In case anyone needed more motivation to attend. (Or, in my case, more regret at not being able to attend.)

What follows are short abstracts of the MHA papers being presented by Juvenile Instructor contributors, just to give you a sampling. There are numerous other Mormon history and bloggernacle celebrities taking part in the conference (including JI’s friends Sam Brown, Brittany Chapman, Rob Jensen, Janiece Johnson, and Margaret Young, to name a few), so keep your eyes peeled to the online program.

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The Claremont Journal of Mormon Studies: Inaugural Issue Hot off the Press (sort of)

Since we announced the journal’s first CFP, we are happy to broadcast their first issue. (Plus, the issue includes JI’s own Jordan W.!)

The Claremont Journal of Mormon Studies, the latest of the myriad of solid Mormon journals, has posted the first three articles in what will hopefully be a long and productive periodical and outlet for quality graduate work. Headed by qualified editors Dave Golding and Loyd Ericson, the journal describes itself as “a student-run online reviewed academic journal committed to the advancement of the field of Mormon studies and produced by the Claremont Mormon Studies Student Association in Claremont, California…The purpose of this journal is to establish a proficient and easily accessible forum for ongoing research in Mormon studies by qualified graduate students, exemplifying new research being done in various fields.” The first issue demonstrates their sophisticated, interdisciplinary, and intriguing potential.

Articles in the issue are:

• “The Inspired Fictionalization of the 1835 United Firm Revelations” by Christopher C. Smith
• “The Great God, the Divine Mind, and the Ideal Absolute: Orson Pratt’s Intelligent-Matter Theory and the Gods of Emerson and James” by Jordan Watkins
• “Prolegomena to Any Future Study of Isaiah in the Book of Mormon” by Joseph M. Spencer

The entire issue can be downloaded here.

The future is bright in Mormon studies!