By ChristopherFebruary 25, 2008
The Juvenile Instructor is pleased to introduce its newest guest blogger, Jordan Watkins. Jordan has long been friends with many of the bloggers here at JI, and is an aspiring young scholar interested in Mormon and American Religious History. He describes himself thus:
My name is Jordan Watkins and I’m pretty awesome…and objective:) I was born and raised in Alpine, Utah in the heart of “Happy Valley” where above 95% of the population is LDS. I served an LDS mission in Leon, Mexico. I received my BA in history at BYU. I am in my second semester at Claremont Graduate University in the MA history program, emphasizing in 19th Century US Religious History as best I can (small history faculty, none specializing in US Religious History). I have no wife, no kids, and no pets. I realize this should translate into a large number of brilliant publications and conference presentations, but alas, I think I like watching movies and sleeping too much.
We should add that he has, indeed, presented a few fascinating papers at academic conferences and his work has been published, including a recent article he co-authored in BYU Studies. Please join us in welcoming Jordan to the Juvenile Instructor.
By David G.February 25, 2008
After months years of anticipation, the Joseph Smith Papers Project has finally announced a publisher…The Church Historian’s Press. If you haven’t heard of this press before it’s because it hasn’t existed prior to now. There have been high hopes that a University press (other than BYU’s) would agree to be the publisher, but apparently those hopes have been in vain. Let’s just say that this is disappointing news.
The Project has also launched a project website, which looks to be a great site that will include transcri
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By StanFebruary 24, 2008
(continued from Part I)
Brigham Henry Roberts (1857-1933), LDS general authority, historian, and theologian–twice nominated as “the most eminent intellectual in Mormon history”[1]–owned copies of at least five of James’s works: Psychology, Pragmatism, A Pluralistic Universe, The Meaning of Truth, and Some Problems of Philosophy. Of those books, Roberts first read Pragmatism, which he finished reading, as indicated by an inscription on the last page of Roberts’s personal copy of the book, on the morning of March 16, 1908. In July of that same year he purchased A Pluralistic Universe and in October, Psychology.[2] These five books are now housed as part of the B. H. Roberts Memorial Library in the archives of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah. Due to Roberts’s habit of writing in the margins of his books, an examination of the collection can be revealing of how he read, particularly where he saw resonance with Mormon thought and where he parted ways with certain ideas.
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By StanFebruary 23, 2008
In the spring of 1914, at a bi-annual general conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Elder Levi Edgar Young, a relative of Brigham Young, stood at the pulpit of the Mormon tabernacle in Salt Lake City and declared that “if Dr. William James, of Harvard College, had come to Utah before he died, he would have found a society that, above all other human societies, illustrates better the theory of pragmatism, brought about by that great psychologist[,] than any other society on earth today.” [1] James almost had the chance to do just that-to visit Utah-having been invited by Brigham Young Academy president Benjamin Cluff to come to Provo, Utah, to lecture-an invitation James unfortunately had to decline due to his poor health. [2] But even though James never had the chance to see pragmatism in action in the Mormon West, he was no stranger to the faith. He had had several Mormon students at Harvard, including Levi Edgar Young, and had on one occasion dined with Benjamin Cluff during Cluff’s visit to Cambridge in 1892.
In his diary, Cluff described the conversation that took place during his dinner engagement with the renowned professor. “During the conversation,” writes Cluff,
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By HeidiFebruary 22, 2008
As my final act as guest poster, I’m offering another selection from my GEA collection paper about how these compositions were framed (thought a sensational post title might attract a few more readers ;-).
I look forward to joining you more permanently at the end of March! Thanks for the invite future fellow Instructors!
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By David G.February 22, 2008
Ed Blum over at Religion in American History asks
[W]hat are the best titles in American religious history? Not the best books, but the best literary titles – and why.
I want to ask the same question here, but adapted to a Mormon history context. What does everyone think?
By David G.February 20, 2008
We’ve heard rumors that other blogs have been conspiring to nab Heidi, our latest guest blogger, to be a permablogger elsewhere. Not to burst anyone’s bubble, but such conspiracies are bound to fail. Heidi has accepted our invitation to stay with us as, in her words, the “first Juvenile Instructoress.” Unfortunately, she has made some kind of strange pact for Lent about giving up blogging, and so we must wait until March 22 for her to start as an official permablogger (although she assures us that she will finish out her guest stint). But regardless, we wanted to let everyone know and begin the congratulations process.
By GuestFebruary 20, 2008
Margaret Young has graciously agreed to provide us a multi-part commentary on the making of the film, Nobody Knows: The Untold Story of Black Mormons. She needs little introduction, as she has blogged at various sites, including Times and Seasons, Mormon Mentality, and By Common Consent. She is, in a word, prolific.
Journal: Nobody Knows: The Untold Story of Black Mormons
Margaret Young
Next showing (and the only screening currently scheduled in Utah):
Saturday March 8th at 11:00 a.m.
Egyptian Theater, Ogden
Part of the Foursite Film Festival (www.foursitefilmfest.com ).
David Grua suggested I detail the miraculous way this documentary came to be. This particular post will sim
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By David G.February 20, 2008
I’m SC Taysom is currently drafting an encyclopedia article on Mormon history from 1830-1844. The essay is supposed to pick up right after the founding of the Church in April 1830 and conclude with the Martyrdom. For my opening paragraph, I want to summarize in 150-200 words the major themes of the period. I have my ideas for this paragraph, which I may post at some point below, but I’d like to see how others would draft this paragraph.
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By HeidiFebruary 20, 2008
The props coal county women chose to include in their valuable portraits reveal deepening layers of their concept of gender and equality. The traveling tent studio could not afford the space to transport fashionable or particularly exceptional props to the mining towns. Subsequently, patrons often brought their own valuables, and thus their own values, to include in their framed lives as particularly cherished objects.
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Recent Comments
Steve Fleming on BH Roberts on Plato: “Interesting, Jack. But just to reiterate, I think JS saw the SUPPRESSION of Platonic ideas as creating the loss of truth and not the addition.…”
Jack on BH Roberts on Plato: “Thanks for your insights--you've really got me thinking. I can't get away from the notion that the formation of the Great and Abominable church was an…”
Steve Fleming on BH Roberts on Plato: “In the intro to DC 76 in JS's 1838 history, JS said, "From sundry revelations which had been received, it was apparent that many important…”
Jack on BH Roberts on Plato: “"I’ve argued that God’s corporality isn’t that clear in the NT, so it seems to me that asserting that claims of God’s immateriality happened AFTER…”
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. …”