Most “Fundamentalist Mormons” have honored John W. Woolley (born in 1831) as the man who became senior “High Priest Apostle” following the death in 1918 of LDS Church president Joseph F. Smith. According to that belief, both were among the six men allegedly commissioned in 1886–87 by President John Taylor to preserve plural marriage if …
Speaker: D. Michael Quinn
What’s in a Name? The History Behind the Label “Mormon”
Over the course of Mormonism’s history, followers out of the Restoration have struggled with what to call themselves. This panel will explore the historical context of the label “Mormon.” Bryan Buchanan, Lindsay Hansen Park, Anne Wilde, D. Michael Quinn, Richie Wilcox
Author Meets Critics: D. Michael Quinn, The Mormon Hierarchy: Wealth and Corporate Power
In 2017, D. Michael Quinn released his third and final installment in his Mormon Hierarchy series: Joseph Geisner, Cristina Rosetti, D. Michael Quinn
Joseph Smith, the Entrepreneur
Steve Jobs was a flawed man, both personally and professionally in a lot of ways, but he was also one of the most successful CEOs in history. He and others like him have transformed the world with their visions of change and innovation. This panel will explore Joseph Smith as a religious and spiritual innovator …
Metal Records and the Invention of Religious Tradition
This presentation offers a comparative study of the gold plates of the New World, and the lead plates of Granada, Spain. Both metallic records (brought forth in the modern period) were said to be buried in the ground, connected by rings, found by treasurer-seekers in a sacred hills, and deposited with other relics. Both artifacts …
Liquid Assets
This presentation seeks to quantify the financial impact of climate change on the LDS Church. The LDS Church owns over a billion dollars in real estate in Florida, and continues to buy land and build multi-million dollar buildings there. How much of that is likely to be under water within a few decades due to …
Who Holds The Keys Flds Persepctives On Authority
Representing the FLDS persepctive, John Nielsen will explain the claim to priesthood authority from a fundamentalist point of view. He will be responded to by D. Michael Quinn, representing the LDS point of view. John Nielsen, D. Michael Quinn
William Bickerton V Brigham Young The Case Against Polygamy
Sometime in late 1851 or early 1852, Brigham Young decided to publicly endorse plural marriage. While attending a church meeting in Allegheny City, Pennsylvania, William Bickerton, a dedicated Mormon elder, heard the shocking news. He arose from his seat and declared, “If the approval of God were to come to [me] by accepting the doctrine …
Role Of Dissent In The Christian Community
The tension between authority and personal conscience can be seen in the citizen’s relation to political authority, the scholar’s relation to academic authorities, and the believer’s relation to the church. The relationship between authority and personal conscience is dialectic: the two are neither identical nor separable, and each is constantly informing the other. Dissent sometimes …
Scared Sacred How The Horrifying Story Of Joseph Smith S Polygamy Can Help Save Us
Most stories, especially the kind we tell in church and on television, have morals. They’re like horses that carry us to known destinations. But a few stories have the power to launch us toward the divine by invoking sheer horror: psychological, emotional, and cognitive. Joseph Smith’s polygamy is one of those storiesÑespecially for Mormons. But …