Joseph Smith : history, methods, and memory / Ronald O. Barney.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Barney, Ronald O., 1949- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Latter Day Saint churches--Presidents--Biography.

Latter Day Saint churches.

Smith, Joseph, Jr., 1805-1844.

Smith, Joseph.

Smith, Joseph, Jr., 1805-1844--Study and teaching.

Genre:

Biographies.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (1 online resource)

Place of Publication:

Salt Lake City : The University of Utah Press, [2020]

Summary:

"Joseph Smith studies have long been shaped by the polemical atmosphere that surrounds Smith's claims of and to divine authorship. Even after a half-century of serious scholarship, fundamental questions remain about how to best interpret features of Smith's life and writing. Smith's own "History of Joseph Smith" (edited and revised at the beginning of the twentieth century by B. H. Roberts) created an enduring image of the man and influenced Mormon theology, doctrine, and polity for generations. With new historical documents now available, a reappraisal of Smith and Mormon beginnings warrants attention. Ronald O. Barney a former editor of the Joseph Smith Papers applies new interpretations to Joseph Smith in history and memory as he re-examinesSmith's surviving writings and what Smith's contemporaries wrote about him. The book explores the best methodologies for appraising the historical record, a review of Smith's worldand its contextual background, an analysis of his foundational experiences, and a characterization of Smith as a man and prophet. Though the premise of re-evaluation may be unsettling to traditionalists, a modern reconsideration of the historical record's entire range of sources is necessary to fashion a strategy for evaluating Smith and his enduring but complex legacy"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

A new era of Joseph Smith study : preparing the ground

The modern study of Joseph Smith

History and its methods

Memory as history

The religious times of Joseph Smith

Joseph Smith among his contemporaries

Joseph Smith's declaration : his 1832 history

Order of the priesthood : restoration

Order of the priesthood : expansion

Order of the priesthood : organization

Underlying the personality of Joseph Smith : its influence on his history

Underlying the character of Joseph Smith

Underlying What Joseph Smith thought and taught

A course of revelation : line upon line, precept upon precept

Prophet, seer, and revelator.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

9781607817567

160781756X

OCLC:

1127070068