To commemorate the upcoming completion of the Revelations and Translations series, which includes the breadth of Joseph Smith’s revelation and translation projects, the Joseph Smith Papers Project will host the fifth annual Joseph Smith Papers Conference on September 10, 2021. The conference will be broadcast digitally to allow for both local and global participation from presenters and audience members. (This was also the format of the 2020 conference.) The theme for this year’s conference is “Joseph Smith and Sacred Text in Nineteenth-Century America.”
This event is free to attend, but space is limited. Please register only if you plan to attend; your courtesy will help us keep this conference series free.
Yesterday, acclaimed actress Cicley Tyson passed away at the age of 96. Among the many roles she played in her groundbreaking and lengthy career was that of Binta, Kunta Kinte’s mother, in Alex Haley’s sensational television series, Roots. Coincidentally, the end of January also marks 44 years since Roots premiered on TV in 1977. The sights and sounds of Tyson portraying Binta’s labor and the birth of Kunta form the opening scenes of the series. There is much that has and can be said about Roots and the way that it brought Black family history and depictions of slavery to the forefront of American entertainment in commanding fashion. Indeed, it was the most watched television event to date in America.[1] Scholars have shed light on how the Roots phenomenon created unprecedented interest in family history for African Americans and captured the nation’s attention.[2] But one aspect of this fascinating story that has not been widely studied is Alex Haley’s relationship with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and how the Church sought to ride the huge momentum for genealogy research created by Roots in its programs and messaging.
Tyson as Binta, Kunta’s mother, in Roots, episode one. Maya Angelou played the role of a midwife. Photo credit: ABC Photos Archive.
Haley’s interaction with Church leaders and his use of the Church’s genealogical resources is significant, especially in light of the Church’s priesthood and temple restrictions to people of Black African descent were still in place. About seven months after Roots premiered, BYU invited Alex Haley to its summer 1977 commencement exercises to award him an honorary doctorate degree in the humanities. On that occasion, Haley praised the Church’s genealogy library and said that if he had known about it before writing his book, he would have booked a flight to Salt Lake City right away, as it was the best in the world. On that trip to Utah, Haley also met with N. Eldon Tanner and Marion G. Romney, two members of the First Presidency of the Church. President Tanner credited Haley with inspiring people to go back even further in their genealogy research: “We’ve been trying for years to get people to go back to the fourth and fifth generations; you come along with one book and they do it.” Haley was apparently pleased to hear that and smiled.[3]
Haley shaking the hand of President N. Eldon Tanner. Photo credit: Deseret News Archive.
Three years later, the Church held its second World Conference on Records, a genealogy and family history symposium. A family history fervor had swept the United States in part because of the popularity of television series and book and interest had increased since the first conference in 1969.[4] As one of the preeminent speakers, Haley spoke to the Church News in advance of the conference. He was glad to see that his book had inspired families throughout the world to have family reunions and hoped to work with the Church to encourage more families to follow suit. He thought that such reunions could contribute to world peace.[5]
As a religious institution with a sacred prerogative to do family history research, the LDS Church was in step with popular genealogy movements in the twentieth century United States. Partnering with Alex Haley and the high-profile Roots book and TV series was mutually beneficial and represented a unique bridge between the Church and Black family history at time when Black Latter-day Saints could not perform ordinances for their ancestors in temples. This is just a start and the potential to discover more illuminating details in this story remains.
[1] About 100 million people watched the series finale and about 85 percent of American households tuned in. Matthew F. Delmont, Making Roots: A Nation Captivated (Oakland, CA: University of California Press, 2016), 175 and Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Foreword, Reconsidering Roots: Race, Politics, and Memory, ed Erica L. Ball and Kellie Carter Jackson (Athens, GA: University of Georgia Press, 2017), xi.
[2] See, for example, Francesca Morgan, “‘My Furthest-Back Person’: Black Genealogy Before and After Roots,” Reconsidering Roots, 63-80 and Delmont, Making Roots, 153-180.
[3] Gerry Avant, “Faith Kept Him Going, ‘Roots’ Author Says,” Church News, 27 August 1977.
[4] “World Conference on Records,” Church News, 2 August 1969.
[5] Jim Boardman, “Author Encourages Histories, Reunions,” Church News, 9 August 1980.
The Joseph Smith Papers Project is looking to fill two editorial assistant positions. See job posting below:
UNITED STATES | UT-Salt Lake City ID 245661, Type: Temporary Full-Time POSTING INFO Posting Dates: 10/23/2019 – 11/06/2019 Job Family: Editorial, Writing & Language Department: Church History Department
PURPOSES
The purpose of this job is to assist the Church History Department in helping God’s children make and keep sacred covenants—specifically by helping prepare Church history materials for publication.
RESPONSIBILITIES
The Church History Department seeks an Editorial Assistant to help with the important work of publishing The Joseph Smith Papers and other department publications intended for scholars and/or members of the Church. This is a temporary, one-year position, with the possibility of being extended for an additional year based on performance and need. The Editorial Assistant will work on the editorial team as part of a large team of historians, archivists, and other editors. The primary responsibility of the Editorial Assistant will be checking facts, sources, and source citations for print and web publication. In this capacity, the Editorial Assistant checks facts for accuracy; analyzes sources to determine whether they have been used appropriately; checks quotations from original sources, making sure spelling, punctuation, and capitalization are correct; makes and files copies of sources; uses a number of databases and other resources to find sources; formats citations according to the Chicago Manual of Style and internal style guides; and corresponds with historians and editors through multiple correction cycles. Other responsibilities of the Editorial Assistant may include proofreading, copyediting, coding documents in the project’s XML database, and assisting with producing transcripts of documents. This is a great opportunity to participate in various aspects of the publishing process, to hone your skills, and to learn more about Church history.
QUALIFICATIONS
Bachelor’s degree in English or related field College-level coursework in editing preferred Some professional editing experience preferred Copyediting and proofreading ability Familiarity with Chicago Manual of Style (seventeenth edition) Ability to research in nineteenth-century sources; experience working with primary sources a plus Ability to work collaboratively with a wide variety of people Ability to give scrupulous attention to detail and sustain concentration for long periods of time with the highest level of accuracy Ability to perform repetitive tasks Ability to manage time effectively, be dependable, and regularly meet deadlines Ability to learn new technology and processes Must be a critical thinker and have a natural curiosity Experience with text markup languages (such as XML or HTML) and software (especially Oxygen) a plus Knowledge of early Church history WORTHINESS QUALIFICATION
Must be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and currently temple worthy.
POSTING NOTICE/MORE INFO.
Please Note: All positions are subject to close without notice.
Find out more about the many benefits of Church Employment at http://careers.churchofjesuschrist.org.
The Church History Library is seeking a candidate for a one-year, full-time (40 hours/week) paid internship opportunity working with archivists in arranging, describing, and preparing records for digitization which are related to the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its members.
RESPONSIBILITIES
Process archival records in paper, audiovisual, and/or electronic form.
Participate in intake activities of newly acquired collections.
Create finding aids using the EAD register and rendering tool.
Assist in preparing paper and electronic records for digital preservation.
Assist in workflow management of records from acquisitions and processing to digitization and storage.
Review/edit cataloging work of others.
Develop expertise with the cataloging system to capture descriptive metadata, adhering to internal and professional standards.
Contribute to a collegial and professional atmosphere that incorporates the highest standards of behavior and cooperation, promoting teamwork and group purposes.
QUALIFICATIONS
Required: Bachelor’s degree in history, humanities, or related field
Preferred: Master’s (earned or in process) in archival studies, library science, or history
Understanding of archival theory and practices
Proficient in Microsoft Office suite
Strong organizational and time management skills
Highly detail-oriented with excellent writing and editing skills
Willingness to dress and present oneself appropriately
Experience teaching and/or training (in any setting)
Knowledge of the historiography and sources of Church history
Proficiency in working both independently and in a team setting
Experience conducting research and/or working in an archive, including arranging and describing archival collections
WORTHINESS QUALIFICATION
Must be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and currently temple worthy.
POSTING NOTICE/MORE INFO.
Please Note: All positions are subject to close without notice.
Quincy Newell’s biography of Jane Manning James is a significant and important piece of scholarship, not only for the field of Latter-day Saint history, but also for African American, women’s, Western, and the larger field of American religious history. Newell carefully takes readers through these histories and shows how Jane’s life connects all of them. This is a critical aspect of Newell’s methodology because even though Jane’s life is fairly well-documented, scholars must necessarily rely on the historical context of Jane’s life to help tell her story. Fortunately for her readers, this is something that Newell excels at. As J Stuart pointed out in an earlier round table post, Newell uses words like “perhaps” and “likely” when describing possible interpretations of the events in Jane’s life rather than imposing her own narrative. Indeed, Newell’s work serves as an example of how historians should approach subjects with limited documentary evidence while still connecting that subject to wide historical developments.
One of the merits of Newell’s work is that she provides us a view of Mormonism through Jane’s life, which in and of itself is a “history of Mormonism from below” (pg. 135). Mormon history has been told and retold through the lives and tenures of its leaders—important white males—and by subverting that structure, Newell illuminates the lived religious experience of an African American woman who made the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints her religious home in spite of all that she went through. This “from below” approach encourages research centering on how women of any and all races participated in Mormonism from the nineteenth century to the present. As Newell and others have demonstrated, scholars are only beginning to scratch the surface of Latter-day Saint history that incorporates source content created by women, particularly as it relates to women of color.
Newell’s Your Sister in the Gospel is not the final word on Jane’s story. Instead, it is a foundational monograph for future studies on other Latter-day Saints who were not in powerful leadership positions and whose experience as a member of the church was impacted by their race and gender. Indeed, the appendices included in the back of the book (including two patriarchal blessings) make it more of an initiative or starting point than an exhaustive conclusion. It’s fair to say that Newell hopes that these primary sources will help other scholars interested in black Latter-day Saints in the nineteenth century and that scholars in other fields will benefit from the eased accessibility of these documents.
In the epilogue, Newell briefly mentions how Jane has been remembered by Latter-day Saints in the last few decades and especially in the last three years. Jane is a very interesting historical subject, but so is her legacy and the narratives that are claimed and told (or performed) about her at certain moments in time. I’m particularly intrigued by the possibilities for studies on the memory of Jane and how both black Latter-day Saints and the church at large have utilized her connection to the life of Joseph Smith and early church history. Your Sister in the Gospel provides a sound historical basis for such studies and will inform further memory projects about Jane in the future. And in its own way, Newell’s book is as much a presentation of historical research as it is a part of the zeitgeist in Mormon studies and more recent popular trends in Latter-day Saint culture. This timely biography of Jane Manning James succeeds in informing and participating in current memory-making developments.
In June 1978, President Spencer W. Kimball announced that “all worthy males” were eligible for priesthood ordination in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Although President Kimball made no mention of “worthy women,” Black women were now finally permitted to attend the temple and participate in ordinances that they had previously been barred from. Like Black men, Black women were also now eligible for missionary service.
Steve Fleming on Study and Faith, 5:: “The burden of proof is on the claim of there BEING Nephites. From a scholarly point of view, the burden of proof is on the…”
Eric on Study and Faith, 5:: “But that's not what I was saying about the nature of evidence of an unknown civilization. I am talking about linguistics, not ruins. …”
Steve Fleming on Study and Faith, 5:: “Large civilizations leave behind evidence of their existence. For instance, I just read that scholars estimate the kingdom of Judah to have been around 110,000…”
Eric on Study and Faith, 5:: “I have always understood the key to issues with Nephite archeology to be language. Besides the fact that there is vastly more to Mesoamerican…”
Steven Borup on In Memoriam: James B.: “Bro Allen was the lead coordinator in 1980 for the BYU Washington, DC Seminar and added valuable insights into American history as we also toured…”
David G. on In Memoriam: James B.: “Jim was a legend who impacted so many through his scholarship and kind mentoring. He'll be missed.”
Recent Comments
Steve Fleming on Study and Faith, 5:: “The burden of proof is on the claim of there BEING Nephites. From a scholarly point of view, the burden of proof is on the…”
Eric on Study and Faith, 5:: “But that's not what I was saying about the nature of evidence of an unknown civilization. I am talking about linguistics, not ruins. …”
Steve Fleming on Study and Faith, 5:: “Large civilizations leave behind evidence of their existence. For instance, I just read that scholars estimate the kingdom of Judah to have been around 110,000…”
Eric on Study and Faith, 5:: “I have always understood the key to issues with Nephite archeology to be language. Besides the fact that there is vastly more to Mesoamerican…”
Steven Borup on In Memoriam: James B.: “Bro Allen was the lead coordinator in 1980 for the BYU Washington, DC Seminar and added valuable insights into American history as we also toured…”
David G. on In Memoriam: James B.: “Jim was a legend who impacted so many through his scholarship and kind mentoring. He'll be missed.”