Mormon America - Revised and Updated Edition: The Power and the Promise by Richard Ostling, Joan K. Ostling Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Mormon America - Revised and Updated Edition: The Power and the Promise
Book Review: Excellent Introduction to Mormonism
Summary: 5 Stars
This book, a follow-up to the Ostlings' 1997 Time Magazine cover article, provides a top-to-bottom look at Mormonism with as objective of an eye as possible. I was born into the faith, but there were many things that I learned about the LDS Church that I didn't know or had only suspected. For example, the LDS Church has hidden its financial activities from the public and its members for 50 years, despite requiring members to give 10% of their incomes in tithes. The Ostling provide reasonable estimates of the LDS Church's financial assets, revenues and expenditures and compare them to other religions of equivalent sizes. Topics covered in the book range from history, the various branches of Mormonism (LDS, RLDS, etc.), doctrine, canon vs. cultural beliefs, Mormonism in Utah vs outside, the life and work of missionaries, the changing impact of Mormonism on the US and vice-versa, and the future prospects.This book is great for Mormons, ex-Mormons, those who are investigating the LDS Church, or those who are interested in culture and religion in general. You won't find a better researched, more objective book aimed at the general public.
Book Review: A Millennium Study of a Native American Religion
Summary: 4 Stars
Richard and Joan Ostling's "Mormon America" is a valuable addition to the growing shelf of books about the Chruch of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I recommend it enthusiastically to those who want a single-volume survey that is both balanced and perceptive in its analysis of the LDS church and its members. The main focus of the book is on the status of the church at the end of the millennium: its organization, leadership, finances, theology, worldwide growth, as well as its controversies. Nevertheless the Ostlings include sufficient historical background, based on the latest research, to provide context for their portrait of the church as it is today.That portrait began as a 1997 TIME magazine cover story written by Richard Ostling and Sam Gwynne. They were permitted unprecedented access to top church officials. The fruit of good interviewing and Gwynne's extensive research into church finances are two of the strengths of the book. It is rich in quotes from LDS President George Hinckley and other church officials, but also contains enlightening comments by ordinary church members, missionaries in the Bronx, excommunicated dissidents, and officials of the splinter Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Ostling is a journalist who specializes in reporting on religion. This shows in the book's broad perspective when, for example, it compares the LDS missionary program with those of Protestant denominations and the Roman Catholic church.
The Ostlings have done an excellent job of melding a concise history of the origins of the LDS religion and it 19th century travails into their depiction of it at the end of the 20th century. As when they describe an intersection in Independence, Missouri where three competing branches of Mormonism have put up buildings on opposite corners to commemorate the site where Joseph Smith prophesied the second temple of Zion would be constructed in the last days. This leads into a survey of the numerous claimants to Joseph Smith's role as prophet and the splinter organizations they founded. Historical details illuminate the controversies that have swirled around the church from its inception to the present day, i.e. the sources of the Book of Mormon and the Book of Abraham, polygamy, the question of multiple gods in LDS theology, the Hoffman manuscript fraud, and the status of blacks, women and dissenters in the church.
In discussing historical events the Ostlings quote 19th century diaries and memoirs of church members, church records, and contemporary newspaper accounts -- drawn from the works of both Mormon and non-Mormon historians. The current church interpretation of those events is also presented, when relevant. Endnotes rather than footnotes are used to identify the sources used for each chapter. There are appendices and a substantial bibliography for those seeking more information. The book refers frequently to recently published work by the historians and researchers who had access to long-restricted church archives while working for Leonard J Arrington, official church historian 1972-82. Several, like D Michael Quinn later published their controversial findings at great personal cost (excommunication and/or loss of teaching position).
Book Review: Objective Tp A Point
Summary: 3 Stars
This book offers a neophyte to the Mormon religion and people a good deal of insight and a great dealof accurate historical data though that data is sometimes sanitized or abridged.It is well written and easy to understand. Very objective through most chapters and quite informative. It does become apologetic both for and against the Church Of latter Day Saints thus losing objectivity and credibility along the way. It seems tha authros were trying too hard to be objective and thereby muddled their message.
I would strongly recommend this book for anyone just starting their research into Mormonism. It's objectivity, thought limited and historical accuracy make it a great place to begin.
Book Review: This Is The Best Book If You Are Curious About Us
Summary: 4 Stars
The best book about the LDS church remains Leonard Arrington and Davis Bitton's 1979 "The Mormon Experience" which is still unmatched in its depth of insight. But if you are curious about Mormons and looking for a readable new book about them this is what you want. Someone has said that every reporter who visits Salt Lake for the 2002 Olympics with be carrying "Mormon America" as a handbook for local culture. That's probably accurate. The Ostlings wrote the recent cover story on the church for TIME magazine and have greatly expanded it for this effort.Anyone who believes the sterotype of Mormons as brain-dead religious fundamentalists are in for a shock when they read this first-rate journalism. The Ostlings write with great empathy about the complexity of life for people who take religion seriously. The chapters on our intellectual culture are as balanced as anything I've read on that subject. The sections on practice are accurate, too. The Ostlings come very close to revealing what it's like on the inside--they ultimately fail to catch what it really feels like, however, because of the ultimately unbridgeable gap between description and the indescribable faith that lies at the heart of a believer's life. That's not really their fault of course--it's like trying to describe in words what the color "blue" is like. Orthodox Judaism has gotten a lot of respectful attention recently because of the nomination of Sen. Joseph Lieberman for vice-president. Many reporters have revealed a new sensitivity about how devout people live. The Ostling's book should be considered at the forefront of this new attention to the relationship of faith and American culture.
Book Review: The Place to Learn About a Uniquely American Religon
Summary: 5 Stars
For those unfamiliar with the literature of Mormonism, a great deal of the history and biography related to Mormonism is what is called " faith-promoting," that is to say written by Mormon apologists to further their particular viewpoint. Other literature may be regarded as "anti-Mormon," in that it has an agenda in opposition to the Mormon church.This volume occupies the middle ground. It presents Mormon history and principles fairly. It is an astounding story, one worth reading even if you have no interest in the religion. If you read one book on American religon this year, this should be the one.