Joseph Smith and the Beginnings of Mormonism

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Summary: A Decidedly Pro-Mormon Analysis of Mormon Origins
Review: "Joseph Smith and the Beginnings of Mormonism" (1984), written by prize-winning colonial historian Richard L. Bushman, was originally conceived as one of the sixteen volumes on Mormon history officially sponsored by the Latter-day Saint church in commemoration of its sesquicentennial in 1980. It is an excellent example of what Mormons would call "faithful history"--an approach that emphasizes the sacred nature of the history of Mormonism--and presents an elegant, eloquent, exacting, and exasperating analysis of the origins of Mormonism through the end of 1830.

In this work Bushman deals in an exceptionally faithful manner with the rise of the church, addressing many of the very real thorny historical issues swirling about Mormonism's creation mythology. How convincing his analysis may be is very much a result of whether or not one accepts Joseph Smith as a prophet of God. Bushman does and demonstrates it on virtually every page.

For example, Bushman sought to cohere the folk magic tradition of Joseph Smith with his later career as a prophet of God. There seems little doubt now, despite earlier denials, that Joseph Smith engaged in the practice of folk magic and treasure seeking. Bushman seeks to explain away affidavits and other information implicating Joseph Smith in efforts to use folk magic to recover buried treasure--specifically an 1826 account of a court case filed against Joseph Smith for defrauding a Josiah Stowel of money in a treasure hunting scheme--by exploring the larger context of folk magic in early American history and suggesting that Smith originally reflected his times but ultimately transcended them by God's intervention. In the end, Bushman fails to deal satisfactorily with the story of the Book of Mormon's "golden plates" buried in the Earth and presumably recovered by Smith in 1827, asserting rather than demonstrating this story did not originate out of a tradition of folk magic and money digging.

Equally significant, Bushman wrestles with the story of the Book of Mormon, specifically its origins and message. He plays off the comments of Disciples of Christ minister Alexander Campbell, who published the first genuine criticism of the book in 1831. In it Campbell commented that the Book of Mormon dealt with "every error and almost every truth discussed in New York for the last ten years." For this to be possible, of course, the Book of Mormon could not have been a sacred translation of ancient scripture but a modern work written by Joseph Smith. Bushman explicitly takes issue with this position and argues that the republican tendencies that were everywhere present in the early American nation were absent from the Book of Mormon. Indeed he suggests that the scripture was strangely distant from the social and political milieu of the U.S. in 1830. He sees more "Old World" perspectives than early American thought in the book.

"Joseph Smith and the Beginnings of Mormonism" is an interesting and provocative defense of the sacred story. Bushman is an elegant historian with a special skill in defending the faith story. That his arguments are as successful as they are is a measure of his historical versimilitude. While it is an important synthesis, Bushman's book will be acceptable mostly to believing Mormons.

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Summary: History of Joesph Smith or what?
Review: Although the authors intentions of accurate information is great, the book has little to do with the history of Mormons. Instead, the material deals with the geography during those times and some stuff on Joesph Smith's family. I read about half of the book but put it down since it read like a school textbook.

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Summary: A fair and important book
Review: Bushman truly lives up to his reputation as a historian with this book. This work is both fair and engrossing, and it seems a very even way to learn about a man who was important in both helping to define American religious feeling and adding yet another dimension to the dynamic world of the early American republic. Another reviewer on this site declared Bushman's insights as dry, politically correct, and biased. This review demonstrated an amateur approach to history. As an academic historian, Bushman tries and succeeds to weigh all facts and give a needed view of Joseph Smith. Bushman is not the first professional historian to write a serious work for his peers about the history of his own faith, although he may be one of the first Mormon to do so. As any conscientious historian writing from such a perspective, he admits to his reader his biases and how he dealt with them to offer an accurate portrait of Joseph Smith. "Obsessively footnoted," said that reviewer. Spare me. That's what professional historians do. A person glancing at those footnotes would see how Bushman's thorough use of sources has helped him be a judicious historian. Read this book. It's a great read and a very important contribution.

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Summary: The Best Book on Joseph Smith
Review: Bushman's elegant thinking and writing present Smith's story from the *inside* as it must have felt to him and his followers. This is a great example of how to talk about religious controversy. He is now working on what promises to be the essential full scale biography of Smith--a most highly anticipated book.

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Summary: Best book on Joseph Smiths early life.
Review: Richard L. Bushman is possibly the best historian on the subject of the Mormons. This book is thoroughly documented. Bushman focuses very much on the culture that Joseph Smith grew up in, he duscusses Joseph Smiths parents and grandparents on how they may have influenced him. Bushman is very honest and objective in his approach to the early life Joseph Smith. Bushman does not get caught up in verifying or disproving the claims of Joseph Smith. Bushman just states the facts and interprets when necesary. Richard Bushman is writing a full biography about Joseph Smith which I believe will become the definitive biography of Joseph Smith. Bushman also gives a very fair explanation on the Book of Mormon which is the most important work by Joseph Smith.

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Summary: Focused and objective examination of Mormonism's origins
Review: Richard L. Bushman's book, Joseph Smith and the Beginnings of Mormonism, presents an in-depth look at the Smith family, the start of the Mormon religion, and some of its early doctrines and foundations. Bushman's text addresses interesting ideas: the influence of the New England society and revivalism, Joseph Smith's application of religious skepticism and values inherited from his relatives, causes and explanations for the birth of some anti-Mormon factions, contemporary reflection on Smith's character, early history of the church, and refutation for some arguments against Smith and the church. Bushman's thorough analysis of Joseph Smith and the early church is placed in the context of early 19th century American culture.

Bushman, a practicing Mormon, obviously possesses a bias toward Mormonism. Bushman does not attempt to disguise his religious affiliation; yet, I never felt that Bushman gave an apologetic narrative or tried to justify Smith's claims or Mormonism's history. The book seems remarkably objective and well-researched and Bushman does not shy away from controversial topics or derogatory critiques. As he explains in his introduction, he treats Smith's claims as reality, allowing the individual reader to decide whether these experiences are true. This method enabled Bushman to approach Mormon history from a more open perspective than most readers are used to, and we can visualize Smith in a complete portrait. Bushman's work helps me understand Smith as a human being, not as a saint or a charlatan.

Bushman's thesis explains Smith and Mormonism as both a product of and reaction against his environment. Bushman is not attempting to validate Mormonism, nor provide a routine recitation of LDS history. Neither is he attacking its assumptions nor its key founders.

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Summary: Honest Examination of Mormon Roots by Faithful LDS Historian
Review: The author is up front about his devout belief in the holy calling of Joseph Smith, Jr. as a modern-day prophet. He, therefore, takes Mr. Smith at his word as it relates to the chronology of many of the important LDS claims. He is otherwise reasonably critical and respectably analytical with the context of Joseph's arrival in the world up through the movement of the early Mormons to Kirtland, Ohio in 1831. Mr. Bushman confirms contemporary belief of the final composition of 1 & 2 Nephi after the rest of the Book of Mormon, as well as contrasting the early Mormon view of "restoration" being simply restoring Israel to its rightful place to the later, more fundamental "restoration" that the LDS Church holds today. I would have loved to read more of his analysis of the development of the early Mormon priesthood hierarchy, from Joseph and Oliver Cowdery as 1st and 2nd Elders of the Church, respectively, to the later Rigdonite, full-blown priesthood. Still, there's only so much one can cover in a "Beginnings" book. A great read for students, faithful LDS/Community of Christ/etc. or otherwise, of early Mormon history.

Rating:
Summary: Honest Examination of Mormon Roots by Faithful LDS Historian
Review: The author is up front about his devout belief in the holy calling of Joseph Smith, Jr. as a modern-day prophet. He, therefore, takes Mr. Smith at his word as it relates to the chronology of many of the important LDS claims. He is otherwise reasonably critical and respectably analytical with the context of Joseph's arrival in the world up through the movement of the early Mormons to Kirtland, Ohio in 1831. Mr. Bushman confirms contemporary belief of the final composition of 1 & 2 Nephi after the rest of the Book of Mormon, as well as contrasting the early Mormon view of "restoration" being simply restoring Israel to its rightful place to the later, more fundamental "restoration" that the LDS Church holds today. I would have loved to read more of his analysis of the development of the early Mormon priesthood hierarchy, from Joseph and Oliver Cowdery as 1st and 2nd Elders of the Church, respectively, to the later Rigdonite, full-blown priesthood. Still, there's only so much one can cover in a "Beginnings" book. A great read for students, faithful LDS/Community of Christ/etc. or otherwise, of early Mormon history.

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Summary: Articulate, credentialed, public relations
Review: The three stars are for textual organization, grammar, spelling and punctuation, not for credibility of content.

Staid and stolid, this reads like a government report. Rather than being a balanced and objective history, Bushman's book is primarily a P.R. piece in support of a respectful makeover of Mormonism's colorful founder and his ecclesiastical creation. As an accomplished historian, Bushman certainly knows far more than he discloses. In his chapter, "The First Visions," for example, he describes Joseph Smith's reported 1820 vision as if he actually thinks such an occurrence took place during that year, given the fact that ample documentation demonstrates that it certainly could not and did not. Bushman also omits the evolving variations of the claimed 1820 vision, and the LDS Church's officially presenting an 1838 version very different from the one Joseph wrote in 1932.

Numerous blunt inconsistencies and contradictions regarding the Book of Mormon's production are glossed over, ignored or distorted in similar fashion in Bushman's chapter titled "Translation," which omits, for example, competent textual studies compiled by Brent Metcalfe and others.

In my opinion, this book needs to be read alongside Duwayne R. Anderson's book, Farewell To Eden: Coming to Terms with Mormonism and Science, or Grant Palmer' book, An Insider's View of Mormon Origins, both of which deal with the subject matter in a more forthright manner than Bushman's LDS public-relations treatment.

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Summary: uninteresting and bland
Review: This purports to be a study of Joseph Smith and The beginnings of Mormonisn and the author attempts to accomplish this in a mere 188 pages? What suprises me the most is why so many people, respected Historians such as Leonard J. Arrington and others have given unwarranted praise for Bushmann's book. Perhaps they did so as fellow colleagues giving respect to their dear friend.

To read a book which really tries to understand Joseph Smith buy Brodie's No Man Knows My History or Donna Hill's Joseph Smith: the First Mormon. As for the beginnings of Mormornism read Quinn's Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power or The Mormon Experience by Arrington and Davis Bitton.

I wished Bushman's work would be forgotten since his book has contributed little to the understanding of the church's past and more importantly has not furthered an understanding of the character and mind of Joseph Smith. I guess we'll have to wait for Bushman to redeem hismself with his forever-pending Biography of Joseph Smith, which I truly doubt will ever replace Brodie's indelible work on the man who help create the religion which Bushmann, myself, and the 12 million or so others are apart of.