the mormon people the making of an american faith

Individual success does not serve oneself but enables one to build up the greater good. It need not be a paradox, as the Los Angeles Times recently maintained, that the Mormon faith is “rooted in both self-reliance and communitarian idealism.” The values of shared responsibility and commitment helped Mormon pioneers build settlements across the deserts of the American West. That community of Saints compared their joint enterprise to “the body of Christ.” As the diverse parts of the body work together compatibly, so each individual contributes to the whole. So what’s behind the Mormon ethic of community? In many respects Mormon community life aspires to the model of early Christianity.

Similar efforts are taking place in many locales without much noise or fanfare. This interfaith community plans and organizes opportunities for their fellow believers to serve together. They feed those who can’t feed themselves and offer comfort during times of need. He appropriately dedicates the book to Richard Bushman, who is not only his principal mentor but also was instrumental in connecting him with the publisher.One example of this outward reach can be found in Monterey, California where during the past three years, Mormon congregations have joined with other Christian congregations to take care of the poor and needy. The significance of this periodization will be readily apparent to many Mormon readers, and Bowman makes it clear enough to non-Mormon readers as well. The chapters are arranged chronologically, with the first taking us to 1831, the second to 1839, the third to 1846, the fourth to 1877, the fifth to 1896, the sixth to 1945, the seventh to 1978, and the final chapter to 2011. This book provides eight solid chapters, a brief introduction, and an even briefer conclusion, followed by four appendices, a bibliographic essay, endnotes, and an index. He has appeared on various public media sites, electronic and otherwise, as a commentator about Mormons and Mormonism, including discussions of his new book. Having completed his doctorate in American religious history at Georgetown University in 2011, he has nevertheless already been very visible for some time at academic conferences and in periodical literature of both Mormon and American religious histories. Matthew Bowman is an up-and-coming young scholar of the generation now rising with the relatively new field of Mormon studies.

The mormon people the making of an american faith