American Zion: A New History of Mormonism [Paperback]

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was founded by Joseph Smith in 1830 in the so-called burned-over district of upstate New York, which was producing seers and prophets daily. Most of the new creeds flamed out; Smiths would endure, becoming the most significant homegrown religion in American history. How Mormonism succeeded is the story told by historian Benjamin E. Park inWinner of the Philip Schaff Prize (for best book on the history of Christianity by a North American scholar) Park delves into Mormon history and lore to produce a picture of the institution as one that is both marginalized and marginalizing. Park& frames the church as an experiment within the American experiment, one regularly thwarted by the nations hithering and thithering. A monumental achievement. A book about Mormonism that will stand the test of time. General readers should be riveted by a story well told; scholars will be engaged by arguments worth debating. Absorbing . . . Park, the author of With enviable ease, Benjamin Park somehow manages to pack two centuries of Mormon history into a riveting narrative that is as smart as it is engrossing. Distinguished by its colorful cast of characters, rich historical detail, and elegant analysis, As Benjamin Park makes abundantly clear in this engaging history, the Mormon faith is fundamentally an American one. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been repeatedly transformed by the cultural wars that have raged in this nation and has, in return, transformed the nation. Deeply researched and deftly written, Mormonism is no more a monolith than the country that gave it birth and has shaped the religion throughout its two-century history. In Benjamin Parks spirited telling we encounter a story full of drama, irony, conflict, and the ongoing search for meaning and community. Readers will discover in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as it is officially known, has long defined itself simultaneously a