Podcasts about Reed Smoot

Joseph Fielding Smith: evolution was not something he thought highly of. The son of Joseph F. Smith and grandson of Hyrum Smith, was a prominent figure in the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. As an apostle from 1910 and later Church President, he became known for his strong defense of traditional doctrines, often clashing with those who sought to reconcile faith with modern scientific and academic thought. https://youtu.be/8Kq1TVQBQtE Don't miss our other conversations about this book! https://gospeltangents.com/lds_people_historical/joseph-fielding-smith/ Joseph Fielding Smith Evolution One of the most famous conflicts involved the theory of evolution and the age of the Earth. Smith staunchly opposed the idea of an old earth, particularly the notion of human-like creatures or pre-Adamites living before Adam and Eve. His core objection wasn't simply to evolution itself, but to the idea that there could have been death before the Fall of Adam and Eve. Smith believed that death entered the world because of the Fall, and if death existed before then, it would undermine the necessity and efficacy of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. This principle of no death before the Fall was central to his arguments. This perspective led to direct clashes with contemporaries like James E. Talmage and John A. Widtsoe, who were generally more open to scientific ideas. The most notable dispute involved B.H. Roberts's book manuscript, The Truth, The Way, The Life, which attempted to reconcile a very old Earth and the possibility of pre-Adamites with the Genesis account. Roberts proposed that Adam and Eve were the first humans with souls, not necessarily the first biological humans. As a member of the church's publications committee, Smith absolutely rejected Roberts's ideas, protesting their publication to the Quorum of the Twelve and the First Presidency. While this conflict brewed behind the scenes, Smith publicly denounced the idea of an old Earth and pre-Adamites in a speech. In response, Talmage gave a talk endorsing the possibility of an older Earth, highlighting some public disagreement among church leaders. Ultimately, the First Presidency chose not to endorse either side and requested both men cease public conflict on the issue, preventing Roberts's book from being published at that time. Smith, however, outlived many of his contemporaries and later published his own book, Man His Origin and Destiny, which strongly attacked Darwinism and the higher criticism of the Bible. Family Trauma Smith's career as a defender of traditional beliefs was significantly shaped by his upbringing and early experiences. His father, Joseph F. Smith, was called to testify before Congress during the Reed Smoot hearings. During these hearings, the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (RLDS), led by descendants of Joseph Smith Jr., saw an opportunity. Richard Evans, an RLDS apostle, issued broadsides accusing the LDS Church of corruption, denouncing Brigham Young for originating polygamy and blood atonement, and claiming the RLDS Church was the true successor to Joseph Smith. This became a "family feud.” Joseph F. Smith was infuriated and asked his son, Joseph Fielding Smith, to refute Richard Evans. This charge launched Joseph Fielding Smith into a career of research and writing, focusing on apologetics – the defense of religious beliefs. He published pamphlets refuting Evans, arguing that polygamy originated with Joseph Smith Jr., not Brigham Young. This pamphlet feud led to exchanges in newspaper op-ed pages and solidified Smith's path. He began working in the Church Historian's office during this time and soon became Church Historian, serving for decades until he became Church President in 1970. Fight with Academics His long tenure as Church Historian meant he had significant influence. Unlike contemporaries like Talmage, Widtsoe, Joseph Merrill, Adam Bennion, and B.H.

Ngày 02/04/2025, tổng thống Mỹ Donald Trump thông báo áp hàng loạt mức thuế cao nhắm vào hàng hóa nhập khẩu vào Mỹ. Giới chuyên gia lo lắng biện pháp bảo hộ mậu dịch này của ông Trump có nguy cơ dẫn đến suy thoái kinh tế, giá cả tăng vọt, cũng như leo thang trả đũa lẫn nhau. Trong viễn cảnh này, liệu tổng thống Trump có đang lặp lại sai lầm của năm 1930 : Kinh tế Mỹ và thế giới suy sụp do đạo luật Smoot – Hawley gây ra ? Donald Trump ngày 15/10/2024 phát biểu : « Đối với tôi, từ ngữ hay nhất trong từ điển là thuế hải quan. Đó là những từ ngữ tôi thích nhất. Thuế hải quan càng cao, chúng ta càng có nhiều cơ may các doanh nghiệp đến lập cơ sở tại Mỹ để không phải bị trả thuế hải quan. Còn có một lý thuyết khác cho rằng thuế hải quan càng cao, càng khủng khiếp, càng tệ chừng nào, các doanh nghiệp càng đến lập cơ sở nhanh chừng ấy. Khi tôi thông báo mức thuế hải quan là 10%, chỉ có 10% thôi, con số này chiếm đến nhiều trăm triệu đô la. Tất cả những điều này là nhằm giảm mức thâm hụt cán cân thương mại của Mỹ ! »McKinley : Thần tượng của Donald Trump !Tổng thống Trump luôn tin rằng áp thuế hải quan có thể làm cho « Nước Mỹ giàu có » trở lại. Niềm tin này được thể hiện rõ qua việc ông hay viện dẫn William McKinley như một điển hình. Năm 1890, khi vẫn còn là dân biểu Hạ Viện, William McKinley (trở thành tổng thống năm 1897) đã cho thông qua đạo luật « McKinley Tariff Act » khắc nghiệt, áp thuế đến 50% giá trị hàng hóa nhập khẩu.Jean-Baptiste Velut, giáo sư trường đại học Sorbonne Nouvelle, chuyên gia về lịch sử kinh tế - chính trị Mỹ, trên đài phát thanh France Culture (28/01/2025), đưa ra hai luận điểm giải thích vì sao tổng thống Trump xem McKinley như một « thần tượng ».« Thứ nhất, điều thú vị ở đây là xem cách thức chính quyền Trump, kể cả bản thân ông Trump cũng như cựu cố vấn thương mại Robert Lighthizer lấy cảm hứng và sử dụng lịch sử bảo hộ mậu dịch Mỹ như thế nào để chứng tỏ rằng cuối cùng những điều cấm kỵ về chủ nghĩa bảo hộ trong nhiều năm trước đã làm cho người ta không biết đến toàn bộ truyền thống bảo hộ của Mỹ đã tạo nên sức mạnh kinh tế của Mỹ.Điểm thứ hai, đó là khía cạnh hoài niệm của Donald Trump, vốn thích so sánh mình với nhiều tổng thống khác. Tôi tin rằng việc chọn tổng thống McKinley không phải là vô tình. Không những đây là một vị tổng thống theo chủ nghĩa bảo hộ mà còn là một người có tham vọng đế quốc. Và do vậy, điều đó giúp Donald Trump, ở một hình thức nào đó, biện minh cho những tham vọng bành trướng lãnh thổ của mình, đối với kênh đào Panama, hay quần đảo Groenland ngày nay. »Smoot – Hawley Act và cuộc Đại Khủng HoảngNhưng có lẽ ông Trump cũng quên rằng, thuế hải quan đã từng nhấn chìm nước Mỹ vào một trong những thảm họa kinh tế tồi tệ nhất trong lịch sử đất nước : Khủng hoảng kinh tế 1930 do « Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act » gây ra, đưa nước Mỹ vào thời kỳ Đại Suy Thoái.Ngược dòng thời gian, Hoa Kỳ trong những năm 1920 có nền kinh tế khá thịnh vượng. Đó là « những năm 20 sôi động », tỷ lệ thất nghiệp thấp, tăng trưởng cao và ngành công nghiệp phát triển mạnh. Duy chỉ có một lĩnh vực có nhiều dấu hiệu suy yếu : Nông nghiệp.Theo giải thích của ông Sebastien Jean, giáo sư kinh tế tại CNAM, cộng tác viên cho Viện Quan hệ Quốc tế và Chiến lược (IRIS), với trang HuffingtonPost, « ngành nông nghiệp Mỹ trong suốt những năm 1920 cho thấy có dấu hiệu trì trệ do giá cả sụt giảm, ảnh hưởng nghiêm trọng đến cơ cấu ngành bởi sự biến động của những năm tháng chiến tranh. Trước đó là quãng thời gian mà ngành nông nghiệp Mỹ phát triển đáng kể, chủ yếu là vì phải nuôi sống châu Âu, đang trong cảnh chiến tranh (Đệ nhất thế chiến). Nhưng khi chiến tranh kết thúc, châu Âu đã lấy lại sản xuất và ngành nông nghiệp của họ rơi vào tình trạng dư thừa sản xuất kéo dài. »Giới nông gia Mỹ rơi vào khủng hoảng kinh tế. Để ứng phó, Quốc Hội Mỹ năm 1922 thông qua luật Fordney – McCumber, lần đầu tiên tăng thuế hải quan, nhưng chỉ giới hạn ở hàng công nghiệp. Ông Herbert Hoover, thuộc đảng Cộng Hòa, khi vận động tranh cử đã dùng lại ý tưởng được hậu thuẫn bởi những người vận động hành lang cho các nhà sản xuất nông nghiệp, cho rằng nông dân đang chịu thiệt thòi do cạnh tranh quốc tế. Ông đề nghị áp thuế hải quan đối với nông sản nhập khẩu ngay khi đắc cử năm 1929.Dưới sự thôi thúc từ hai nghị sĩ đảng Cộng Hòa là Willis Hawley và Reed Smoot, Quốc Hội Lưỡng Viện đã đồng thuận về mức thuế trung bình là 40% nhắm vào khoảng 20 nghìn loại hàng hóa nhập khẩu, nhưng không chỉ đối với nông sản mà mở rộng sang cả sản phẩm công nghiệp. Quyết định này của chính quyền Hoover đã bị chỉ trích mạnh mẽ trong và ngoài nước.Bất chấp thư ngỏ tập thể của hơn 1.000 kinh tế gia, cảnh báo rằng « việc thông qua các biện pháp bảo hộ này sẽ là một sai lầm », có thể dẫn đến tình trạng giá cả tăng cao cho người tiêu thụ, và mức sống của người dân bị sụt giảm, cũng như là sự phản đối từ khoảng 20 chính phủ các nước, dự luật Smoot – Hawley vẫn được thông qua vào đầu năm 1930.Đại chiến thương mại thế giới và làn sóng bảo hộ mậu dịchĐáng chú ý là văn bản luật này ra đời vào một thời điểm khá nhạy cảm : Vụ sụp đổ thị trường chứng khoán Mỹ, « ngày thứ Năm đen tối » 24/10/1929, đã bắt đầu cho thấy có những tác động đầu tiên đối với nền kinh tế Mỹ : Nhà xưởng lần lượt đóng cửa khiến hàng triệu người dân Mỹ rơi vào cảnh thất nghiệp.Không những ngành nông nghiệp Mỹ chẳng hưởng được lợi gì từ thuế hải quan, mà chính sách bảo hộ của Mỹ đã châm ngòi cho cơn sốt bảo hộ mậu dịch. Các đối tác thương mại của Washington tăng cường trả đũa với nhiều chiến lược khác nhau, từ tăng thuế hải quan, tẩy chay, hay áp đặt hạn ngạch (quota) nhập khẩu hàng Mỹ.Cuộc chiến thương mại này đã làm chao đảo nền kinh tế thế giới, các hoạt động trao đổi thương mại sụt giảm đến hơn 40%. Tuy nhiên, ông Eric Monnet, kinh tế gia, giáo sư sử học tại EHESS, và trường Kinh tế Paris, trên trang Economie Alternative, trích dẫn một nghiên cứu xa xưa do BarryEichengreen và Douglas A. Irwin thực hiện, nêu lên một chi tiết thú vị là cuộc chiến bảo hộ này không chỉ đáp trả Mỹ mà còn thúc đẩy các nước đi theo con đường bảo hộ giống như Mỹ.Chỉ có điều, như ghi nhận từ Bertrand Blancheton, chuyên gia về lịch sử kinh tế thế giới, đại học Bordeaux, khi trả lời kênh truyền hình France 24, trong cuộc đọ sức này, và với việc bùng phát cơn sốt bảo hộ, tất cả các bên đều bị thiệt do tăng trưởng thế giới bị chững lại : « Chính quyền Hoover nghĩ rằng các nước khác sẽ không phản ứng, nhưng họ đã có những hành động trả đũa thương mại. Cuộc chiến thương mại thực sự này đã dẫn đến tình trạng gần như tự cung tự cấp cho đến khi Đệ Nhị Thế Chiến nổ ra. »Đạo luật Smoot-Hawley, một « đạo luật kinh tế ngu xuẩn », theo như chỉ trích từ Henry Ford, nhà sáng lập thương hiệu ô tô nổi tiếng tại Mỹ, đã làm cho cuộc khủng hoảng kinh tế Mỹ 1929 thêm trầm trọng. Chính sách bảo hộ này của Mỹ được cho là một trong những tác nhân chính gây ra cuộc Đại Suy Thoái, góp phần thúc đẩy một cuộc suy thoái mới le lói xuất hiện thành một cuộc khủng hoảng toàn cầu, kéo dài hàng thập kỷ.Trump Act và sự tương đồng với các chính sách cuối thế kỷ XIXTheo giải thích của nhà sử học Jean-Baptiste Velut, trường đại học Sorbonne Nouvelle ,với trang HuffingtonPost, « đạo luật này đã có những tác động tàn phá. Bởi vì, thông qua các tác động gián tiếp, nhiều cường quốc khác, đến phiên họ, đã khép cửa thị trường của mình. Và dần dần từng chút một, kinh tế và thương mại thế giới đã bị mất đến 2/3 giá trị của mình ».Một số sử gia thậm chí còn tin rằng, « Smoot – Hawley Tariff Act » đã góp sức cho sự trỗi dậy của chủ nghĩa Đức Quốc xã, dẫn đến Đệ Nhị Thế Chiến. Tuy nhiên, nhà sử học Jean-Baptiste Velut, trên đài France Culture, cho rằng đây vẫn còn là điều gây nhiều tranh cãi:« Một số nghiên cứu cho thấy rằng về cơ bản, khủng hoảng tài chính là gốc rễ của cuộc khủng hoảng kinh tế Mỹ và thế giới. Nhiều nghiên cứu khác quả thực chỉ ra rằng thuế quan rất cao đã làm trầm trọng thêm các vấn đề về khủng hoảng. Điều thú vị là đạo luật Smoot – Hawley đã trở thành một dạng tội đồ trong lịch sử kinh tế nước Mỹ và dưới góc độ biểu tượng, đạo luật này đã ám ảnh các cuộc tranh luận về tự do mậu dịch và nền ngoại giao Mỹ. »Dù vậy, sử gia về kinh tế Mỹ, Bertrand Blancheton, trả lời France 24, cũng tỏ ra cẩn trọng khi so sánh những gì diễn ra năm 1930 với tình hình hiện nay.« Tốt hơn là nên so sánh những gì chúng ta đang trải qua hiện nay với cuối thế kỷ XIX, từ năm 1880 đến năm 1914. Vào thời kỳ đó, Mỹ có những chính sách thương mại rất tinh vi và phân biệt đối xử. Ý tưởng là nhắm vào một quốc gia, sản phẩm cụ thể và đàm phán. Trong lịch sử kinh tế đương đại, kể từ cuộc cách mạng công nghiệp, có những thời điểm mà người ta tự do hóa và lúc khác họ siết chặt chính sách thương mại bằng cách tái lập thuế hải quan. Nhìn chung, đó là những kỳ kéo dài trong khoảng từ 30 đến 40 năm mỗi lần như thế. »Trump có sẽ cùng cảnh ngộ như Hoover ?Các mức thuế quan mới mà Donald Trump đưa ra, được cho là sẽ mở ra một « thời kỳ hoàng kim » cho nước Mỹ, nhưng lại có nguy cơ khiến các hộ gia đình Mỹ sẽ phải trả giá đắt. Một thăm dò do hãng tin Anh Reuters/Ipsos thực hiện cho thấy, 70% số người Mỹ được hỏi nghĩ rằng tăng thuế hải quan sẽ dẫn đến tăng giá thực phẩm và hàng hóa tiêu dùng hiện nay.Trong những năm 1930, tổng thống Hoover đã phải trả giá cho chính sách thuế quan. Trong cuộc bầu cử tổng thống năm 1932, vì không thể hóa giải được những tác động của cuộc khủng hoảng, tổng thống Cộng Hòa đã bị ứng viên Dân chủ Franklin D. Roosevelt đánh bại nặng nề.Chỉ còn 18 tháng nữa là đến kỳ bầu cử giữa kỳ, đảng Cộng Hòa cũng phần nào lo lắng vì đảng này chiếm đa số sít sao ở Thượng Viện và Hạ Viện. Vào lúc thị trường chứng khoán Mỹ và thế giới hoảng loạn, tổng thống Mỹ Donald Trump vẫn kiên định lập trường, không thay đổi chính sách thuế quan nặng nề.Thứ Tư 02/04, khi thông báo áp mức thuế mới chống lại nhiều nước, Donald Trump đã tuyên bố rằng Đại Khủng Hoảng những năm 1930 có lẽ sẽ không xảy ra nếu như việc áp thuế quan vẫn được tiếp tục. « Vào năm 1929, mọi việc đã kết thúc đột ngột cùng với cuộc Đại suy Thoái, và điều đó có lẽ sẽ không bao giờ diễn ra nếu như họ vẫn trung thành với chính sách thuế quan, lịch sử đã có thể rất khác ! »Hơn 90 năm sau ngày ban hành luật Smoot – Hawley, liệu rằng lịch sử có sẽ tái diễn ?

BYU and SLC anti-vice. We discuss the history of Charles A. Callis, his career in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and politics, and his final assignment before death, creating a sexual purity surveillance and counseling/therapy program for Mormons in the 40s. After his death, Spencer W. Kimball took the reins and vastly expanded the reach and purposes of the program, resulting in The Miracle of Forgiveness. Cleon Skousen was running raids on gay clubs and anybody else seen as commie enemies of god's country. The systems they created have adapted, evolved, and conformed to the times, but never gone away, as evidenced by the recent SL Tribue piece about BYU's retrenchment and culture of fear. Then we chat about Minority report, a Tom Cruise sci-fi flick with surprisingly profound concepts. We wrap with happy news about the first openly transgender congressperson in American history.   Show Notes:  https://mormonstudies.as.virginia.edu/gay-rights-and-mormonism/ https://mormonstudies.as.virginia.edu/gay-rights-and-mormonism/05-the-miracle-of-forgiveness/ https://mormonstudies.as.virginia.edu/gay-rights-and-mormonism/16-the-cure-2-0/ https://mormonstudies.as.virginia.edu/gay-rights-and-mormonism/07-salt-lake-city-gay-scene/ https://archive.org/details/spencerwkimballt00kimb/page/271/mode/2up?view=theater https://ourphoenixfoundation.org/includes/about.php https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evergreen_International https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/topics/gay/individuals?lang=eng https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/topics/transgender/understanding?lang=eng https://www.sltrib.com/religion/2025/01/05/byu-blue-why-these-are-dark-days/ https://fairnessforall.org/the-utah-compromise/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W._Cleon_Skousen https://police.slc.gov/about/history/ https://lris.com/recent-developments/2012/05/salt-lake-city-vice-squad-disbanded/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_E._Talmage https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reed_Smoot_hearings https://prophetsseersandrevelators.wordpress.com/2021/10/31/the-political-manifesto/ https://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/digital/collection/DE2/id/201100 https://news.google.com.au/newspapers?nid=Aul-kAQHnToC&dat=18961109&printsec=frontpage&hl=en https://www.uen.org/utah_history_encyclopedia/e/ELECTIONS.shtml https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/People%27s_Party_(Utah) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1896_United_States_presidential_election_in_Utah https://archive.org/details/improvementera3707unse/page/434/mode/2up?view=theater https://archiveviewer.org/collections/en/improvement-era#1934 https://mormonstudies.as.virginia.edu/david-o-mckay-diary-excerpts/w-cleon-skousen/ https://www.qsaltlake.com/news/2009/09/28/the-oppressive-50s/ http://www.nomorestrangers.org/timeline-of-mormon-thinking-about-homosexuality/ http://www.elisarolle.com/queerplaces/fghij/Jack%20Pembroke.html https://www.glapn.org/sodomylaws/sensibilities/utah.htm https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBTQ_rights_in_Utah#Conversion_therapy https://books.google.com/books?id=rlC1DgAAQBAJ&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=false https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_Brigham_Young_University_LGBTQ_history https://web.archive.org/web/20100122080551/http://www.affirmation.org/memorial/joseph_fielding_smith.shtml https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/ensign/1981/04/elder-charles-a-callis-twentieth-century-missionary?lang=eng https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Pack https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_A._Callis https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2001/04/them-that-honour-me-i-will-honour?lang=eng https://thesingleleaf.com/tag/charles-albert-callis/ https://rsc.byu.edu/prophets-apostles-last-dispensation/charles-albert-callis https://catalog.churchofjesuschrist.org/assets/2d1fb5a0-211a-4908-baca-5e3dd9e145eb/0/178?lang=eng https://history.churchofjesuschrist.org/chd/individual/charles-albert-callis-1866?lang=eng Article Shannon brought up: The Role of the LDS Church in Utah Politics: An Insider's Look  https://www.mrm.org/utah-politics    MOGP: Minority Report: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0181689/?ref_=tttrv  Where it's streaming: https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/minority-report    Happy News: https://apnews.com/article/sarah-mcbride-congress-transgender-lgbtq-delaware-9cce7f778e6b57dfdb08986d7410404e?taid=677918364fe1660001b83485&utm_campaign=TrueAnthem&utm_medium=AP&utm_source=Twitter   Email: glassboxpodcast@gmail.com  Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/GlassBoxPod  Patreon page for documentary: https://www.patreon.com/SeerStonedProductions Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/glassboxpodcast Twitter: https://twitter.com/GlassBoxPod  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/glassboxpodcast/  Merch store: https://www.redbubble.com/people/exmoapparel/shop Or find the merch store by clicking on “Store” here: https://glassboxpodcast.com/index.html One time Paypal donation: bryceblankenagel@gmail.com  Venmo: Shannon-Grover-10  

Most of the main branches of the Restoration were formed within roughly two decades of the martyrdom of the Prophet Joseph Smith. One clear exception, however, is the Mormon Fundamentalist movement. Here's a little backstory: In 1890 President Wilford Woodruff issued a manifesto announcing the Church's intention to submit to those laws recently passed and declared constitutional by the US Supreme Court forbidding plural marriage. Then in 1904, as a result of the Reed Smoot hearings before the US Senate and the national attention this brought to the continued practice of plural marriage in Utah, President Joseph F. Smith issued what is known as the “Second Manifesto,” which announced the Church's policy to excommunicate anyone who continued to enter into new polygamous marriages.  Yet some Church members felt that the manifestos of Presidents Woodruff and Smith were not inspired. Instead, they saw them as weak and uninspired capitulations to government demands rather than a continued courageous commitment to God's commands in the face of persecution. Within a few decades, those who dissented against these manifestos or were excommunicated from the LDS Church for entering into additional plural marriages began to gather on the Utah/Arizona border at a place known as Short Creek. They believed in a 1912 statement by Lorin C. Woolley, who had been courier for President John Taylor, about an unpublished 1886 revelation of President Taylor wherein the Lord declared that the “New and Everlasting Covenant” had not been revoked, nor would it ever be. This was interpreted by those in this group to mean that plural marriage would never be withdrawn. They concluded therefore that President Taylor's unpublished revelation (and their interpretation of it) overruled and superceded the first manifesto of President Woodruff in 1890 and the second manifesto of President Smith in 1904. They were staying true to this core fundamental element of Mormonism while the LDS Church was not.   In time these Mormon Fundamentalists fragmented into various groups, including the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (or FLDS Church), the Apostolic United Brethren (or AUB), the Righteous Branch of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the True and Living Church of Jesus Christ of Saints of the Last Days, among others.  In this episode of Church History Matters, Casey and I sit down with Dr. Brian Hales, an expert researcher and author of several books on the Mormon fundamentalist movement, to discuss this fascinating branch of the Restoration.  For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

1904 marked the beginning of what would become a grueling 4-year-long senate hearing of US sentator and apostle Reed Smoot. It is intriguing—and important—to learn how this crucible of intensive government examination into every aspect of the Church led to a posture of much greater openness about the temple to outsiders. In fact those hearings, followed by a backfired blackmail attempt by a man who threatened to release illicit pictures he had taken of the interior of the Salt Lake Temple, led Church leaders—really for the first time—to go on the offensive and proactively tell our own story about LDS temple beliefs and practices.  In this episode of Church History Matters we'll talk about the Smoot hearings and the blackmail attempt; as well as dig into the origin of temple garments, their symbolism, and changes made to their design over the years. We'll also discuss major innovations in how the temple endowment was presented (which included some help from Walt Disney studios), a cool floating temple boat idea that never happened, as well as how President Gordon B. Hinckley's temple innovations and prolific temple-building ministry became an inflection point which set the Church on a trajectory to build thousands of temples in the years to come.

In a new series, Bill and Eric take a look at the Reed Smoot Hearings. These congressional hearings took place in 1904, as polygamy continued in the LDS Church despite the “Manifesto” in 1890. What were these hearings about? That is the focus of this week's podcasts.

In a new series, Bill and Eric take a look at the Reed Smoot Hearings. These congressional hearings took place in 1904, as polygamy continued in the LDS Church despite the “Manifesto” in 1890. What were these hearings about? That is the focus of this week's podcasts.

In a new series, Bill and Eric take a look at the Reed Smoot Hearings. These congressional hearings took place in 1904, as polygamy continued in the LDS Church despite the “Manifesto” in 1890. What were these hearings about? That is the focus of this week's podcasts.

In a new series, Bill and Eric take a look at the Reed Smoot Hearings. These congressional hearings took place in 1904, as polygamy continued in the LDS Church despite the “Manifesto” in 1890. What were these hearings about? That is the focus of this week's podcasts.

In a new series, Bill and Eric take a look at the Reed Smoot Hearings. These congressional hearings took place in 1904, as polygamy continued in the LDS Church despite the “Manifesto” in 1890. What were these hearings about? That is the focus of this week's podcasts.

From 1904-1907 Congress held a series of hearings on whether Reed Smoot, an LDS apostle who was elected to the Senate, should be seated. The hearing provide a deep look at Mormon practice, history and theology in the congressional record. These hearings and the controversies surrounding them remain a pivotal moment in Mormon History. Episode Show Notes YouTube Link ________________________ Mormon Expressions is made possible by generous donors! Help us continue to deliver quality content by becoming a donor today: Donate to support John/Carah for Mormon Expressions Dabbler Farm Wishlist  John & Carah on Other Platforms: John Larsen – From the banks of chaos in my mind Mormon Expressions Podcast on Spotify Nuancehoe on YouTube Nuancehoe on Patreon John Larsen on YouTube Support Mormon Stories Podcast here: One-time or recurring donation through Donorbox Support us on Patreon Our Platforms: Mormon Stories Blog Patreon Spotify Apple Podcasts Contact us: MormonStories@gmail.com PO Box 171085, Salt Lake City, UT 84117 Social Media: Insta: @mormstories Tiktok: @mormonstoriespodcast Join the Discord

In 1852, only eight years after Joseph Smith's death, Church leaders in Utah publicly announced to the astonished world what some had suspected—that Latter-day Saints did indeed practice the principle of plural marriage. But now that it was out there in the open, it could be openly challenged and attacked. And it was. Relentlessly. For decades.   In today's episode of Church History Matters we'll walk you through the history of how plural marriage came to a rocky end under the draconian legislation and crushing pressure of the United States government. We'll dive into the George Reynolds trial, President Wilford Woodruff's Manifesto, the Reed Smoot trials and the Second Manifesto, the resignation of the two members of the Quorum of the Twelve over this, the beginning of the FLDS Church, and more!    For show notes and transcript for this and other episodes go to https://doctrineandcovenantscentral.org/church-history-matters-podcast/   

In 1903, Latter-day Saint Apostle Reed Smoot was elected by Utah to become a United States senator.  However, many in the country and Senate did not want to seat Elder Smoot due to his leadership position in the Church and because of the Church's practice of polygamy.  In this episode, Dr. Carter Charles recounts this history and President Theodore Roosevelt's defense of Reed Smoot and the Latter-day Saints.   

In Frontier Religion: The Mormon-American Contest for the Meaning of America, 1857-1907 (U Utah Press, 2019) Konden Smith Hansen examines the dramatic influence these perceptions of the frontier had on Mormonism and other religions in America. Endeavoring to better understand the sway of the frontier on religion in the United States, this book follows several Mormon-American conflicts, from the Utah War and the antipolygamy crusades to the Reed Smoot hearings. The story of Mormonism's move toward American acceptability represents a larger story of the nation's transition to modernity and the meaning of religious pluralism. This book challenges old assumptions and provokes further study of the ever changing dialectic between society and faith. Brady McCartney is an interdisciplinary environmental studies scholar at the University of Florida. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/history

In Frontier Religion: The Mormon-American Contest for the Meaning of America, 1857-1907 (U Utah Press, 2019) Konden Smith Hansen examines the dramatic influence these perceptions of the frontier had on Mormonism and other religions in America. Endeavoring to better understand the sway of the frontier on religion in the United States, this book follows several Mormon-American conflicts, from the Utah War and the antipolygamy crusades to the Reed Smoot hearings. The story of Mormonism's move toward American acceptability represents a larger story of the nation's transition to modernity and the meaning of religious pluralism. This book challenges old assumptions and provokes further study of the ever changing dialectic between society and faith. Brady McCartney is an interdisciplinary environmental studies scholar at the University of Florida. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

In Frontier Religion: The Mormon-American Contest for the Meaning of America, 1857-1907 (U Utah Press, 2019) Konden Smith Hansen examines the dramatic influence these perceptions of the frontier had on Mormonism and other religions in America. Endeavoring to better understand the sway of the frontier on religion in the United States, this book follows several Mormon-American conflicts, from the Utah War and the antipolygamy crusades to the Reed Smoot hearings. The story of Mormonism's move toward American acceptability represents a larger story of the nation's transition to modernity and the meaning of religious pluralism. This book challenges old assumptions and provokes further study of the ever changing dialectic between society and faith. Brady McCartney is an interdisciplinary environmental studies scholar at the University of Florida. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/american-studies

In Frontier Religion: The Mormon-American Contest for the Meaning of America, 1857-1907 (U Utah Press, 2019) Konden Smith Hansen examines the dramatic influence these perceptions of the frontier had on Mormonism and other religions in America. Endeavoring to better understand the sway of the frontier on religion in the United States, this book follows several Mormon-American conflicts, from the Utah War and the antipolygamy crusades to the Reed Smoot hearings. The story of Mormonism's move toward American acceptability represents a larger story of the nation's transition to modernity and the meaning of religious pluralism. This book challenges old assumptions and provokes further study of the ever changing dialectic between society and faith. Brady McCartney is an interdisciplinary environmental studies scholar at the University of Florida. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/american-west

In Frontier Religion: The Mormon-American Contest for the Meaning of America, 1857-1907 (U Utah Press, 2019) Konden Smith Hansen examines the dramatic influence these perceptions of the frontier had on Mormonism and other religions in America. Endeavoring to better understand the sway of the frontier on religion in the United States, this book follows several Mormon-American conflicts, from the Utah War and the antipolygamy crusades to the Reed Smoot hearings. The story of Mormonism's move toward American acceptability represents a larger story of the nation's transition to modernity and the meaning of religious pluralism. This book challenges old assumptions and provokes further study of the ever changing dialectic between society and faith. Brady McCartney is an interdisciplinary environmental studies scholar at the University of Florida. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/religion

In Frontier Religion: The Mormon-American Contest for the Meaning of America, 1857-1907 (U Utah Press, 2019) Konden Smith Hansen examines the dramatic influence these perceptions of the frontier had on Mormonism and other religions in America. Endeavoring to better understand the sway of the frontier on religion in the United States, this book follows several Mormon-American conflicts, from the Utah War and the antipolygamy crusades to the Reed Smoot hearings. The story of Mormonism's move toward American acceptability represents a larger story of the nation's transition to modernity and the meaning of religious pluralism. This book challenges old assumptions and provokes further study of the ever changing dialectic between society and faith. Brady McCartney is an interdisciplinary environmental studies scholar at the University of Florida. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/christian-studies

In Frontier Religion: The Mormon-American Contest for the Meaning of America, 1857-1907 (U Utah Press, 2019) Konden Smith Hansen examines the dramatic influence these perceptions of the frontier had on Mormonism and other religions in America. Endeavoring to better understand the sway of the frontier on religion in the United States, this book follows several Mormon-American conflicts, from the Utah War and the antipolygamy crusades to the Reed Smoot hearings. The story of Mormonism's move toward American acceptability represents a larger story of the nation's transition to modernity and the meaning of religious pluralism. This book challenges old assumptions and provokes further study of the ever changing dialectic between society and faith. Brady McCartney is an interdisciplinary environmental studies scholar at the University of Florida. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/book-of-the-day

From part 2 of Matt's history of Mormons. Subscribe today for access to all premium episodes! www.patreon.com/chapotraphouse

It had to happen: an episode about Theodore Roosevelt. I'm surprised it took ten episodes to get here! Prof. Benjamin Wetzel and I double as interviewer and interviewee in a conversation about our recent books about Roosevelt. Ben's explores TR's religiousity, a new vein of research that has been overlooked. My book shares new sources for the first time. Both depict TR in unique treatments. Essential Reading:Benjamin Wetzel, Theodore Roosevelt: Preaching from the Bully Pulpit (2021).Michael Patrick Cullinane, Remembering Theodore Roosevelt (2021).Recommended Reading:Christian F. Reisner, Roosevelt's Religion (1922).Kathleen Flake, The Politics of American Religious Identity: The Seating of Senator Reed Smoot, Mormon Apostle (2004).Stacy A. Cordery, Alice: Alice Roosevelt Longworth, from White House Princess to Washington Power Broker (2008).Hermann Hagedorn, The Roosevelt Family of Sagamore Hill (1954). See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Today on the Talk Mormonism podcast I am joined by Konden Smith Hansen, professor of religious studies at the University of Arizona. Konden specializes in American Religious History, with a particular expertise in Mormon Studies. He's also the author of Frontier Religion: Mormons in America and co-editor of a recently published book titled The Reed Smoot Hearings: The Investigation of a Mormon Senator and the Transformation of an American Religion, available through the University of Utah Press. In this episode, Dr. Smith Hansen and I will discuss one of the most impactful events in Mormon history: the Reed Smoot senate hearings. The hearings have come to be seen by scholars as the catalyst that resulted in a tamed Mormonism-it forced leaders like Reed Smoot and Joseph F. Smith to conform the Mormon identity by making it more in tune with mainstream Protestantism. The Mormonism born out of the Reed Smoot hearings was a faith free of its most distinctive and divisive practices-things like polygamy and theocratic rule. The U.S. senate was left to try and determine whether this form of Mormonism represented by Smoot, Smith, and other Mormon leaders, was an act or the truth.  You can find Dr. Smith Hansen's latest book at the following link:  https://www.amazon.com/Reed-Smoot-Hearings-Investigation-Transformation-ebook/dp/B09B2PFKMS/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=reed+smoot+hearings&qid=1632514241&sr=8-1

Over the years, few people have believed that Joseph Smith’s run for president was a serious candidacy.  Why is that?  Dr. Derek Sainsbury answers that question and discusses the role of apostles B.H. Roberts and Reed Smoot in downplaying Joseph’s POTUS run for the presidency. Derek:  When the political manifesto is put out, where we’re […] The post *Why Joseph’s POTUS Run was Downplayed (Part 8 of 8) appeared first on Gospel Tangents.

The 1890 Manifesto was issued saying the LDS Church no longer practiced polygamy.  However, it was practiced secretly.  LDS Apostle Reed Smoot was elected as a US Senator from Utah in 1902, causing Congress to investigate whether the LDS Church had continued to practice polygamy.  Lindsay Hansen Park, host of the Year of Polygamy podcast, […] The post Early 20th Century Polygamy & Reed Smoot (Part 4 of 8) appeared first on Gospel Tangents.

You may know his tariff, but not him.  A look at the man behind the Smoot-Hawley Tariff.  Reed Smoot, Senator from Utah.  His history, his politics, his views on tariffs.  His battles for a mix of conservative issues and progressive stands.  And his battle to keep his own seat from religious intolerance.   Plus a discussion on tariffs in history and the variety of different historical figures who have positive and negative views of tariffs.  

Will, James & CJ are back in the bunker to talk trade wars! Reed Smoot! Easter egg rolls! .... and why the White House is the house with no name! The Biglyest Australian look at US Politics, by @cjjosh, @willozap, @jcnerd & @rodl. Sound engineering by @creogg. Image by @JonKudelka.

On this episode, we continue our examination of Mormon polygamy by walking through more than a century of plural marriage history affiliated with Mormonism. We begin with the Second Manifesto of 1904 and discuss the rise of the Council of Friends and the resulting Fundamentalist Mormon sects which arose from the Council’s leadership. We finish the last half hour with a quick deconstruction of the modern FLDS and Warren Jeffs. Links: Utah Becomes a State http://www.ilovehistory.utah.gov/topics/statehood/index.html Constitution of Utah https://archives.utah.gov/community/exhibits/Statehood/1896text.htm Manifesto and the End of Plural Marriage https://www.lds.org/topics/the-manifesto-and-the-end-of-plural-marriage?lang=eng Second Manifesto 11904 http://www.wikiwand.com/en/Second_Manifesto Reed Smoot Hearings http://eom.byu.edu/index.php/Smoot_Hearings https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reed_Smoot https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reed_Smoot_hearings Kidnapped from That Land: The Government Raids on the Short Creek Polygamists https://books.google.com/books?id=0N6C_HZp3wUC&pg=PA57&lpg=PA57&dq=1935+short+creek+oath+to+renounce+polygamy&source=bl&ots=AM3I4yUVIa&sig=7HbVtnr1_seOwJ7b5onaadmz2Xc&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwib45-Ut4XYAhUR1mMKHdEjBVUQ6AEIKTAA#v=onepage&q&f=false John Taylor 1886 Polygamy Revelation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1886_Revelation Council of Friends http://www.mormonfundamentalism.com/archive/ChartLinks/CouncilofFriends.htm#_edn2#_edn2#_edn2#_edn2 Lorin C. Woolley https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lorin_C._Woolley#Plural_marriage https://web.archive.org/web/20080922184416/http://www.fldstruth.org:80/administration.php?index=5 1933 Final Manifesto https://books.google.com/books?id=TgQxDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA382&lpg=PA382&dq=1933+final+manifesto+mormon&source=bl&ots=P1wFZj29bq&sig=BcHeJ8TXUO0Z7p4K4cm9Jjwwowg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjnh8HLwoXYAhVLw2MKHbLbBJ0Q6AEIODAC#v=onepage&q=1933%20final%20manifesto%20mormon&f=false Leslie Broadbent http://www.mormonfundamentalism.com/archive/ChartLinks/JLeslieBroadbent.htm https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._Leslie_Broadbent John Yates Barlow http://www.mormonfundamentalism.com/archive/ChartLinks/JOHNYATESBARLOW.htm Bradley’s Kidnapped from that Land https://books.google.com/books?id=0N6C_HZp3wUC&pg=PA57&lpg=PA57&dq=1935+short+creek+oath+to+renounce+polygamy&source=bl&ots=AM3I4yUVIa&sig=7HbVtnr1_seOwJ7b5onaadmz2Xc&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwib45-Ut4XYAhUR1mMKHdEjBVUQ6AEIKTAA#v=onepage&q&f=false 26 Jul 1953 Short Creek Raid https://www.newspapers.com/image/116729813/?terms=short+creek https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=Aul-kAQHnToC&dat=19530727&printsec=frontpage&hl=en https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Short_Creek_raid#cite_note-13 Rulon Allred http://www.mormonfundamentalism.com/archive/ChartLinks/RulonCAllred.htm https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rulon_C._Allred Timeline of Polygamist Mormon Sects http://www.mormonfundamentalism.com/archive/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Mormon_fundamentalist_leaders https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Mormon_fundamentalist_leaders Kingston Group http://kingstonclan.com/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latter_Day_Church_of_Christ Apostolic United Brethren http://www.mormonfundamentalism.com/archive/ChartLinks/AUB.htm https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apostolic_United_Brethren United Effort Plan https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamentalist_Church_of_Jesus_Christ_of_Latter-Day_Saints http://www.yearofpolygamy.com/year-of-polygamy/episode-111-the-united-effort-plan/ http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/31/us/fundamentalist-church-of-jesus-christ-of-latter-day-saints-fast-facts/index.html Utah and Arizona withdraw from UEP https://www.deseretnews.com/article/865690488/Utah-quietly-withdraws-from-FLDS-UEP-Trust-fund.html Most Fundamentalist Groups https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Mormon_fundamentalist_leaders Rulon Jeffs http://www.mormonfundamentalism.com/archive/ChartLinks/RulonJeffs.htm https://www.deseretnews.com/article/936024/FLDS-leader-Rulon-Jeffs-dies.html Warren Jeffs http://www.mormonfundamentalism.com/archive/ChartLinks/WarrenJeffs.htm https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warren_Jeffs#cite_ref-64 https://www.deseretnews.com/article/645197034/Warren-Jeffs-timeline.html http://www.hcn.org/articles/mormon-fundamentalists-control-short-creek-polygamy-utah-warren-jeffs https://web.archive.org/web/20130615042231/http://www.cbc.ca/fifth/bustupinbountiful/timeline.html https://www.deseretnews.com/article/645197034/Warren-Jeffs-timeline.html Warren Jeffs Apprehended https://www.stgeorgeutah.com/news/archive/2015/08/28/ccj-anniversary-flds-warren-jeffs-arrest/#.WjMh-0qnE2w SPLC Classifies FLDS as Hate Group https://web.archive.org/web/20100203152005/http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?sid=342 Warren Jeffs child-sex tapes http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/warren-jeffs-trial-audio-tape-underage-wife-sexual-assault-14229374 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrnWSHF4Ikw Warren Jeffs renounces prophetic claims https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eh9wnCcR0LE Show Links: Website http://nakedmormonismpodcast.com Twitter @NakedMormonism Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/Naked-Mormonism/370003839816311 Patreon http://patreon.com/nakedmormonism Music by Jason Comeau http://aloststateofmind.com/ Show Artwork http://weirdmormonshit.com/ Legal Counsel http://patorrez.com/ Voicemail Line (864)Nake-dMo (625-3366)

In 1890 Wilford Woodruff issued what's known as the Manifesto, Official Declaration One in the Doctrine & Covenants, prohibiting polygamy. What many Mormons don't know is that polygamy did not end in 1890.  This is often referred to as post-Manifesto polygamy.  Wilford Woodruff himself may have married another wife in 1897, a year after statehood in Utah. GT:  Do you have any comments on whether you think that 1890 Manifesto was meant for public consumption, but privately we were still going to practice it, or how does that work? Anne:  I don't know what was in the back of Wilford Woodruff's mind.  I don't know, other than the fact that he took—as far as we know, there's pretty good evidence that he took a plural wife seven years after the Manifesto, himself.  We also have very good evidence that many of the apostles, the Quorum of the Twelve, took additional wives after 1890.  That's one reason why the 1904 Manifesto had to come out is to put teeth in it because so many people were very quietly taking additional wives, especially in Canada and Mexico. We're going to talk in this episode about post-Manifesto polygamy.  What are some of the things that led to the Second Manifesto in 1904?  Could it have something to do with newly elected senator Reed Smoot, an apostle? GT:  It seems to me that there was also another big issue in the early 1900s that may have led to the Second Manifesto and that was the Reed Smoot hearings. …. Anne:  They didn't want to seat him, but he didn't have more than one wife. Anne Wilde, a polygamy expert will tell us why.  Check out the conversation…..   (Don't forget to check out our previous episode on an uncanonized polygamy revelation in 1886!) https://youtu.be/E0BQ2N6q0rE [paypal-donation]  

Dale Luffman is the Ecumenical and Interfaith Officer for the Community of Christ. Community of Christ shares its first 14 years with the modern day LDS church and officially became a separate religion in 1860. Dale walks us through the history of the church, and how its history has impact Community of Christ's entirely separate Doctrine and Covenants. The Book of Mormon's Witness to Its First Readers  National Council of Churches  Sharing in Community of Christ: Exploring Identity, Mission, Message, and Beliefs List of Community of Christ's presidents  Reed Smoot was a Mormon apostle elected to the United States Senate in 1902  John Whitmer Historical Association Annual Conference  The Joseph Smith Revelations: Text and Commentary, by H. Michael Marquardt Community of Christ website: https://www.cofchrist.org/ To get your own D&C email sales@heraldhouse.org or call 816-521-3015   Become a Patron at Patreon.com/MyBookofMormonPodcast  

Join Lindsay as she discusses the history of the “Polygamy Revelation,” or D&C 132, the 1843 Revelation, or the Celestial Marriage Revelation.   Links and texts mentioned an read in this episode: FAIR Mormon explaining the Reed Smoot hearing with […]

Join Lindsay as she discusses the history of the “Polygamy Revelation,” or D&C 132, the 1843 Revelation, or the Celestial Marriage Revelation. Featuring an interview with Lancaster scholar, Sheldon Kent.   Links and texts mentioned an read in this episode: FAIR Mormon explaining the Reed Smoot hearing with Joseph F. Smith testimony The Persistence of […]

Join Lindsay as she discusses the history of the “Polygamy Revelation,” or D&C 132, the 1843 Revelation, or the Celestial Marriage Revelation.   Links and texts mentioned an read in this episode: FAIR Mormon explaining the Reed Smoot hearing with Joseph F. Smith testimony The Persistence of Polygamy: Joseph Smith and the Origins of Mormon […]

KSL has unearthed a 1932 recording, 40 minutes long, that introduces KSL's new 50,000 watt signal as the Voice of the West. Doug Wright walks us through the historic broadcast's live musical performances and talks by notables such as Senator Reed Smoot. An audio time capsule, the show highlights a slice of life in the early 30s in the Intermountain West.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

KSL has unearthed a 1932 recording, 40 minutes long, that introduces KSL's new 50,000 watt signal as the Voice of the West. Doug Wright walks us through the historic broadcast's live musical performances and talks by notables such as Senator Reed Smoot. An audio time capsule, the show highlights a slice of life in the early 30s in the Intermountain West. 

Skip to Main ContentSearch This Site: Main Navigati2014 McMurrin Lecture on Religion and Culture with Kathleen Flake "The LDS Intellectual Tradition: A Study on Three Lives"April 11, 2014 Symposium: "Faith and Reason, Conscience and Conflict: The Paths of Lowell Bennion, Sterling McMurrin, and Obert Tanner"April 12, 2014  McMurrin Lecture: In her lecture, Flake defines an intellectual as one who loves and is committed to the life of the mind, one for whom thought is both a delight and a necessity, a source as well as means for human flourishing. This does not mean a life without conflicts, as illustrated by three intellectuals - Lowell Bennion, Sterling McMurrin, and Obert Tanner. Flake will consider their intellectual lives in relation to the religious culture from which they came. Doing so will tell us something about whether there is a Mormon intellectual tradition and, if so, what are its distinctive features. Kathleen Flake holds the Richard L. Bushman Chair of Mormon Studies at the University of Virginia. She is the author of The Politics of American Religious Identity: The Seating of Senator Reed Smoot, Mormon Apostle (University of North Carolina Press, 2004). Professor Flake has been awarded grants from the Mellon Foundation, Lily Endowment, Pew Charitable Trusts, and American Philosophical Society.  She has held office in the American Academy of Religion, the American Society of Church History, and the Southeastern Commission for the Study of Religion. Frequently invited to comment on Mormonism in the news, she is also a panelist for the Washington Post/Newsweek "On Faith" blog.   Symposium: Mormonism is often seen as a religion of conformity, with a hierarchy in tight control of members’ beliefs and behavior. Yet this perspective misses a rich tradition of intellectual independence and principled dissent. With an eye to the present and future, the Tanner Humanities Center will offer a unique symposium on the lives and legacies of Sterling M. McMurrin, Obert C. Tanner, and Lowell L. Bennion. Their stories reveal the tensions between faith and reason, conformity and dissent. This symposium will mark the 25th anniversary of the founding of the Obert C. and Grace A. Tanner Humanities Center. Panels include “Challenge of Conscience: Sterling M. McMurrin” (9:00-10:30 AM), with Bob Goldberg (Chair), Jack Newell, James Clayton, and Brian Birch; “Challenge of Loyalty: Lowell Bennion” (11:00 AM-12:30 PM), with Irene Fisher (Chair), Greg Prince, Tony Morgan, Sam Allen, and Emma Lou Thayne; and “Challenge of Faith: Obert C. Tanner” (1:30-3:00 PM), with Greg Thompson (Chair), Kent Murdock, Bob Goldberg, and Grethe Peterson. A concluding panel, titled “Public Men and the Challenge of Their Private Worlds” (3:30-5:00 PM), will focus upon the personal, intellectual, and working relationships that existed among these men, with panelists Linda King Newell (Chair), Carolyn Tanner Irish, Ellen Bennion Stone, Charlotte Hansen Terry, and Bill McMurrin.             These three intellectuals who shared a determination to act were rooted in Mormonism, but possessed distinctive visions that penetrated beyond their treasured religious heritage and drove them to embrace—and respond to—the pressing social, cultural, and political issues of their time.  With mutual respect, but using distinctive methods, Tanner, McMurrin and Bennion shared a passion for justice and impatience with racial discrimination in their church and across American society.  At various points in their careers, they served the LDS Church, the University of Utah, their state, and the nation in pursuit of their visions of a more enlightened and humane society. Pursuing justice and adhering to conscience brought its own rewards, but also exacted a cost. As Director of the University of Utah’s LDS Institute of Religion, Lowell Bennion chafed at supporting church authorities in their denial of the priesthood to African American men.  Largely over this issue, he surrendered this post, swallowed his disappointment, and vigorously channeled his religious instincts into serving the needy in Salt Lake City.  Sterling McMurrin chose to proclaim himself a heretic and relished that identity, but lost friendships and some sense of community. Obert Tanner, a closet skeptic, muffled his doubt and kept his silence to play prominent roles in the life of his country, state, and city. Symposium speakers and panelists will not only examine the specific, contemporary impacts of Lowell Bennion, Sterling McMurrin, and O.C. Tanner, but also consider their enduring legacies on the issues facing the Mormon Church today: the inclusion of women more fully in church leadership circles, the need to face painful facets of church history more honestly, the challenge of retaining the engagement or affiliation of socially and culturally liberal members and young adults, the quest to understand the effects of new technologies on Mormon practices and beliefs, and other concerns of our time. A concluding panel will focus upon the personal, intellectual, and working relationships that existed among these men.  The Tanner Center is partnering with the College of Humanities, Smith-Pettit Foundation, and Michael Morris to bring you this event.