Description

Fifteen essays by various scholars.

Table of Contents

Editor's Introduction

1. The Search for Truth and Meaning in Mormon History
   Leonard J. Arrington
2. The Quest for Religious Authority and the Rise of Mormonism
   Mario S. De Pillis
3. The Significance of Joseph Smith's "First Vision" in Mormon Thought
   James B. Allen
4. The Prophet Puzzle: Suggestions Leading toward a More Comprehensive Interpretation of Joseph Smith
   Jan Shipps
5. Dream and Nightmare: Nauvoo Revisited
   Robert Bruce Flanders
6. A Gift Given, A Gift Taken: Washing, Anointing, and Blessing the Sick among Mormon Women
   Linda King Newell
7. A Demographic Portrait of the Mormons, 1830-1980
   Dean May
8. Mormons, Crickets, and Gulls: A New Look at an Old Story
   William G. Hartley
9. The "Leading Sisters": A Female Hierarchy in Nineteenth-Century Mormon Society
   Maureen Ursenbach Beecher
10. Notes on Mormon Polygamy
    Stanley S. Ivins
11. Divorce among Mormon Polygamists: Extent and Explanations
    Eugene E. Campbell and Bruce L. Campbell
12. After the Manifesto: Mormon Polygamy, 1890-1906
    Kenneth L. Cannon II
13. The Metamorphosis of the Kingdom of God: Toward a Reinterpretation of Mormon History
    Klaus J. Hansen
14. "To Maintain Harmony": Adjusting to External and Internal Stress, 1890-1930
    Thomas G. Alexander
15. Sheaves, Bucklers, and the State: Mormon Leaders Respond to the Dilemmas of War
    Ronald W. Walker

Epilogue: "Justice Will Follow Truth"
B. H. Roberts