Sunstone is a magazine published by the Sunstone Education Foundation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation, that discusses Mormonism through scholarship , art, short fiction, and poetry. The foundation began the publication in 1974. The magazine's motto is Faith Seeking Understanding .
104-556: In the 1960s–1970s, independent Mormon studies associations and publications were emerging, including the Mormon History Association and Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought . The Journal of Mormon History and Exponent II were both launched in 1974, and in that same year two graduate students at divinity schools, Scott Kenney and Keith Norman, hatched plans to create a scholarly journal for Mormon students. Gathering student volunteers but lacking funding,
208-702: A 1989 address given by Dallin H. Oaks , an apostle of the LDS Church, warning of "Alternate Voices" and a November 1991 "Statement on Symposia" issued by the church's First Presidency , although Sunstone was never mentioned in either case. Because of Sunstone' s position as a visible symbol of independent thought within Mormonism, however, these communications led to a decline in participation in Sunstone fora by many conservative and moderate voices. This trend culminated after six individuals were disciplined by
312-503: A January 1, 2019, video that they will be leaving Patreon by January 15, 2019, as a direct response to its treatment of Carl Benjamin and has since effected that change. Patreon banned comedian Owen Benjamin following alleged hate speech. Benjamin filed an arbitration claim for $ 2.2 million (later upped to $ 3.5 million) and told fans to file identical claims against Patreon as required by the Terms of Use in an attempt to pressure them into
416-544: A Mormon Studies Fellowship. Utah State University 's Evans Biography Awards focus on biographies significant to " Mormon Country ". Student writing competitions are held by Utah State University, the MHA, and the JWHA. BYU Religious Education presents annual awards to its faculty for teaching, research, and service, as well as books in the categories of church history or ancient scripture. Several universities have programs in
520-621: A Mormon audience in order to support their existing beliefs. Brigham H. Roberts was an associate editor of the Salt Lake Herald and while on a mission to England, was the editor of the Millennial Star . Upon returning to Utah, he became a General Authority . After an invitation from Americana , Brigham H. Roberts wrote a chapter each month from 1909 to 1915 in what later became the Comprehensive History of
624-556: A YouTube interview in February 2018. Benjamin said that Patreon had taken his words out of context and that "the video in question should not fall under Patreon's rules because it was on YouTube." This ban was criticized by Sam Harris and some American libertarians , who have accused it of being politically motivated. Furthermore, Jordan Peterson announced a plan to launch an alternative service that will be safe from political interference, and jointly announced with Dave Rubin in
728-543: A battle for their faith. Parley P. Pratt responded to Mormonism Unveiled in detail in his 1838 pamphlet Mormonism Unveiled: Zion's Watchman Unmasked and Its Editor Mr. L.R. Sunderland Exposed, Truth Vindicated, the Devil Mad, and Priestcraft in Danger! Pratt argued against Sunderland's character, quoting Hurlbut, who stated that Sunderland has a "notorious character." Hugh Nibley's No, Ma'am, That's Not History set
832-453: A coin or token. In March 2022, Patreon announced that it had more than 250,000 creators who were using the platform, and there were more than 8 million active patrons from more than 200 countries. In September 2022, Patreon announced it was laying off 80 people, representing about 17% of its staff. As part of the layoffs, the company also announced that it would be closing its Dublin and Berlin offices. In October 2023, Patreon announced
936-406: A creator on a monthly basis. Alternatively, content creators can configure their page so that patrons pay every time the artist releases a new piece of art. A creator typically displays a goal that the ongoing revenue will go towards, and can set a maximum limit of how much they receive per month. Patrons can cancel their payment at any time. Creators typically provide membership benefits (commonly in
1040-470: A full redesign of its interface and brand identity, including new features like community chats. Patreon also announced the acquisition of Moment, a ticketed live streaming platform. Patreon users are grouped by content type, such as video/films, podcast , comedy , comics , games, and education. These content creators set up a page on the Patreon website, where patrons can choose to pay a fixed amount to
1144-459: A good model of economic development. He influenced Leonard Arrington's interest in economics and Mormons. Andrew Love Neff wrote "The Mormon Migration to Utah," which he finished in 1918 but had started over ten years earlier. He was interested in how Mormons helped colonize the West. Mormon Ephraim Edward Ericksen wrote "The Psychological and Ethical Aspects of Mormonism" (1922) while studying at
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#17327868518091248-738: A group including both laypeople and academics, attempts to answer criticisms of the Mormon faith. in 2013, it changed its name to FairMormon . Some other Mormon "insiders" countered the Book of Mormon's ancient origins through the Smith-Pettit Foundation in Salt Lake City and George Smith's Signature Books publishing company. Signature Books published New Approaches to the Book of Mormon by Brent Metcalfe and American Apocrypha by Dan Vogel and Metcalfe. These insider views of
1352-489: A large scale was Edward Tullidge , who wrote Life of Brigham Young: or Utah and Her Founders (1876), History of Salt Lake City (1886), and History of Northern Utah and Southern Idaho (1889). Hubert How Bancroft wrote History of Utah (1889) with the help of the Historian's Office. Bancroft's history of Utah portrayed Mormons favorably. Critics say that he wasn't objective since he allowed LDS Church authorities to read
1456-637: A new LDS news magazine with plenty of advertising, which further influenced the Sunstone format. In 1978 Kenney returned to edit three more issues before retiring from the venture, and passing the editorship to Fletcher and Allen D. Roberts who would also go on to start its symposia. The magazine kept its approach for a popular audience while emphasizing intellectual issues, but it eventually dropped its student emphasis. In 1979, Sunstone began sponsoring an annual symposium in Salt Lake City , which
1560-630: A non-Mormon public about how "primitive and dangerous" Mormons were in "extreme terms." Eber D. Howe published Mormonism Unvailed, or a Faithful Account of that Singular Imposition and Delusion in 1834, which claimed that Sidney Rigdon was the original author of the Book of Mormon and that Joseph Smith was a "vile wretch." Howe included affidavits from people who knew Joseph Smith collected by ex-Mormon Philastus Hurlbut . The book influenced future anti-Mormon literature. (by La Roy Sunderland , John Bennett , and John A. Clark). Origen Bacheler examined
1664-573: A potential source of learning for himself and others. After retiring from BYU, he started one of the first Mormon studies programs at Utah Valley State College . According to a 1997 report by the American Association of University Professors on academic freedom at BYU, Alan Wilkins was questioned about his motives for contributing to Dialogue and Sunstone in a tenure review. The report also mentioned other incidents where BYU administration criticized speakers and articles for criticism of
1768-454: A service fee starting on December 18, 2017, where some fees would be charged to the patrons rather than all fees being paid by the creator. This caused a backlash from several creators, including some who saw members of their fanbase withdraw small pledges in response. Under the new payment model, a $ 1 pledge would have cost a patron $ 1.38, and a $ 5 pledge would have cost $ 5.50, representing a 38% and 10% rise respectively. Due to this backlash and
1872-514: A settlement. Benjamin said that the suit(s) had a basis due to a disrupted economic relationship. Patreon launched a counter-suit against 72 individuals who filed arbitration claims and sought a preliminary injunction to stay all arbitration proceedings pending the outcome of its counter-suit. The injunction was denied, meaning that Patreon may be required to prefund the arbitration claims against itself up to $ 10,000 per claim. Patreon had previously changed its terms of service on January 1, 2020, to end
1976-609: A similar detached tone. New Mormon historians often published with the University of Illinois Press in order to publish for an academic audience independent of the church. Charles S. Peterson argued in The Great Basin Kingdom Revisited that Arrington took an exceptionalist view of Mormon history, which he then taught to other New Mormon historians. This exceptionalist view was that they could believe in both secular history and orthodox Mormon views of
2080-558: A similar voluntary subscription service created by the Green brothers , and absorbed Subbable creators' pages and content. Notably CGP Grey , Destin Sandlin 's Smarter Every Day , and the Green brothers' own CrashCourse and SciShow channels. The merger was consequent to an expected migration of payment systems with Amazon Payments that Subbable used. In October 2015, the site was
2184-477: A standard for apologetics to use academic language, and criticized Brodie's use of sources in her controversial biography of Joseph Smith, No Man Knows My History . The Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies (FARMS) aimed to support the historical authenticity of the Book of Mormon and respond to criticism, and used Nibley's style to counter research that contradicted the Book of Mormon's ancient origins. FARMS collaborated with Deseret Book to publish
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#17327868518092288-512: A vehicle for frank, honest discussion in Mormonism, with increased balance and a concerted effort to be welcoming to all voices. The Smith-Pettit Foundation sponsors an annual lecture in conjunction with Sunstone Magazine. The magazine is published about four times per year, and in addition to the annual Salt Lake symposium, the foundation generally sponsors three to five smaller-scale, regional symposia each year. In 2018, Sunstone announced that it would no longer produce magazine issues throughout
2392-438: A way to democratize Mormon studies. Since blogs are independent from Church institutions, many felt that blogs were a safe space to test more unorthodox ideas. A few observed that men's voices are more prominent in the blogging community, though a few prominent blogs have all-women authors. Other respondents felt that blogs made Mormon studies "more of an echo chamber," and were "superficial," and "glorified navel-gazing." One of
2496-403: Is a monetization platform operated by Patreon, Inc. , that provides business tools for content creators to run a subscription service and sell digital products. It helps artists and other creators earn a recurring income by providing rewards and perks to its subscribers. Patreon charges a commission of 8 to 12 percent of creators' monthly income, in addition to payment processing fees. Patreon
2600-503: Is debated, Mormon apologetics have a tradition dating back to Parley P. Pratt 's response to an anti-Mormon book in 1838. The amount of scholarship in Mormon studies increased after World War II. From 1972–1982, while Leonard Arrington was a Church Historian in the history department, the LDS Church Archives were open to Mormon and non-Mormon researchers. Researchers wrote detached accounts for Mormon intellectuals in
2704-561: Is now a four-day event with approximately 100 different sessions generally held the second week of August. Since the 1980s, Sunstone has also regularly held regional symposia in Washington, D.C. , California , Seattle , Chicago , Dallas , and Boston . While early magazine issues and symposia included heavy participation from a full range of perspectives, circumstances and events in the late 1980s and early 1990s damaged Sunstone's reputation and hurt subscribership. These events included
2808-546: Is the interdisciplinary academic study of the beliefs, practices , history and culture of individuals and denominations belonging to the Latter Day Saint movement , a religious movement associated with the Book of Mormon , though not all churches and members of the Latter Day Saint movement identify with the terms Mormon or Mormonism . Denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement include
2912-636: Is the Howard W. Hunter Chair of Mormon Studies at Claremont Graduate University in California. The Church History Library still restricts access to certain documents for most scholars. Scholars may self-censor their research for fear of losing access to documents from the Church History Library. Previous excommunications of Mormon historians give Mormon researchers the sense that they are being watched. Scholars from various disciplines see
3016-532: Is used by videographers , webcomic artists, writers, podcasters , musicians, adult content creators, and other kinds of creators who post regularly online. It allows artists to receive funding directly from their fans, or patrons , on a recurring basis or per work of art. The company is based in San Francisco . Patreon, Inc., was co-founded in May 2013 by developer Sam Yam and musician Jack Conte , who
3120-627: The Association for Mormon Letters , often awarding Mormon publications in biography, criticism, and special categories. Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought honors the best contributions to its journal and Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture awards the best article submitted by a woman. Universities also present awards. The University of Utah gives the Juanita Brooks Prize in Mormon Studies and offers
3224-1026: The Association for Mormon Letters , the first scholarly association aimed at the literature of the Latter-day Saints. Some writers looked at Mormon women's history with the goal of restructuring historical narratives. Mormon feminist articles on Mormon history started with the special Summer 1971 issue of Dialogue on women's issues and continued in publications like Exponent II (starting in 1974), and Mormon Sisters: Women in Early Utah (1976), edited by Claudia Bushman . Beecher and Laurel Thatcher Ulrich edited another volume about Mormon women's history in Sisters in Sprit: Mormon Women in Historical and Cultural Perspective (1987). Women and Authority: Re-emerging Mormon Feminism (1992)
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3328-722: The Church of Christ on April 6, 1830. Church records continue to the present and are kept in the LDS church archives. The first official church history was published in 1842, when Smith and his associates began writing History of Joseph Smith as an official diary of Joseph Smith. This history was published in Times and Seasons in Nauvoo , and then in Deseret News and Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star up until 1863. History of Joseph Smith
3432-518: The Daughters of the Utah Pioneers . Early academic writers on Mormon topics had a "naturalistic" approach to history, using theory from economics, psychology, and philosophy to guide their study. Richard Ely contributed to the professionalization of Mormon studies with his early dissertation "Economic Aspects of Mormonism" (1903). In the work, he praised Mormon irrigation and communalism as
3536-1023: The Joseph Fielding Smith Institute for Church History . The institute continued to support scholarship in Mormon history until 2005, when the institute closed and employees transferred to the LDS Church Office Building. In the late 1980s and 1990s, several other incidents made BYU faculty reluctant to voice unorthodox ideas about church history. Around 1990, BYU professors were asked not to contribute to Dialogue or Sunstone . Two historians were excommunicated in 1993, probably for their published unorthodox views. BYU Studies and other LDS church-sponsored publishers published more "faithful" scholarship at this time. Presses outside of Utah started to publish more books in Mormon studies. Mormon scholars engaging in Mormon studies still feel they must be careful about what they write, especially if they work with material from
3640-540: The Mountain Meadows Massacre . Brooks's Mormon neighbors did not like "the frankness" of her book. Mormon scholars are divided on whether or not apologetics should be considered part of Mormon studies. Brian D. Birch argues that it should be a part of Mormon studies, as long as apologetic authors concede that their arguments are objective and subject to academic debate. Apologists write defensively, and view their polemical responses to criticism as
3744-573: The Sunstone symposium; around 1990, BYU professors were asked not to contribute to Dialogue or Sunstone . Eugene England , one of the founders of Dialogue and then a professor at BYU, spoke out against these prohibitions. He was asked not to write for the Encyclopedia of Mormonism in 1990, and in 1998 he was asked to retire from BYU without justification. England saw this as stemming from his publicly anti-war stance, and for his attention to Mormon racism and sexism. He viewed his differences as
3848-547: The University of Oklahoma Press published books on Mormonism. In the 2000s, Jan Shipps was a large influence on news articles about Mormons; often she is the only expert cited for an entire article. In 2005, the National Endowment for the Humanities held a seminar at Brigham Young University on the bicentennial of Joseph Smith's birth. Terryl Givens , a comparative literature scholar, analyzed discourse about
3952-405: The " Not Safe For Work " categories on Patreon could accept payments through PayPal via PayPal's subsidiary Braintree . In October 2017, Patreon reverted its stance on NSFW content, introducing new restrictions. It published an expanded version of the community guidelines with a broader definition of sexual content, triggering a backlash from some adult content creators. A petition in protest of
4056-460: The "New Mormon history" style. Many new publications started to publish history in this style, including Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought , BYU Studies Quarterly , and Exponent II . Some general authorities in the church did not like the New Mormon history style, and Arrington and his remaining staff were transferred to Brigham Young University (BYU) in 1982, where they worked in
4160-845: The 1950s after World War II, an increasing number of Mormons studied history professionally and wrote dissertations about Mormon history. Non-Mormon sociologist Thomas F. O'Dea wrote a dissertation entitled "Mormon Values: The Significance of a Religious Outlook for Social Action" after living in a rural Mormon farming village in New Mexico for six months and subsequently teaching at Utah State University. This study of Mormon culture "stunned Mormon readers with its objectivity and sympathetic insight," according to Mormon scholar Richard Bushman . (O’Dea expanded this into The Mormons in 1957. ) Bernard DeVoto , Dale L. Morgan , Fawn McKay Brodie , Stuart Ferguson, and Juanita Brooks did not have graduate degrees in history, but made significant contributions to
4264-532: The 1960s has come to be known as the New Mormon history. The publication of Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought , the newly-established Mormon History Association, and the professionalization of LDS and RLDS history departments provided spaces for historians to do new research in Mormon topics. RLDS scholars founded the John Whitmer Historical Association in 1972. In 1974, Claudia Bushman and Laurel Thatcher Ulrich founded
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4368-586: The Book of Mormon in By the Hand of Mormon: The American Scripture that Launched a New World Religion in 2002. Mormon women's history has not been well-integrated in general histories. Arrington and Davis Bitton discussed women's issues in two chapters on marriage and sisterhood in The Mormon Experience (1992). The Story of the Latter-day Saints (1992) by James Allen and Glen Leonard mentioned women in
4472-590: The Book of Mormon itself in Mormonism Exposed Internally and Externally , arguing that the book was inconsistent with the Bible and was written by Joseph Smith himself. In the 1960s, ex-Mormons Jerald and Sandra Tanner continued that anti-Mormon tradition by reprinting anti-Mormon works in the public domain as well as important but unflattering documents from LDS history through Utah Light House Ministry. They published their own criticisms of
4576-729: The Book of Mormon's origins were diverse. American Apocrypha described the Book of Mormon as a work of fiction reflecting its environment. Ostler argued that the Book of Mormon was partially inspired. FARMS's responses were at times patronizing, and even descending into veiled name-calling in William Hamblin's 1994 critique of a Metcalfe essay. In the 1990s and 2000s, Evangelicals Carl Mosser and Paul Owen encouraged other Evangelicals to respond to Mormon apologetics. Evangelical Craig L. Blomberg discussed whether or not Mormons were Christian with Mormon Stephen E. Robinson in How Wide
4680-530: The COVID-19 pandemic as a means of financial difficulty for the economy, the company laid off 30 employees or 13% of its workforce at the time. April 2021, the company laid off 36 employees or 13% of its workforce despite reporting recent growth. In October 2021, Patreon confirmed it was looking into implementing cryptocurrencies and NFTs after creators expressed interests in having the opportunity to offer exclusive memberships and benefits to its patrons through
4784-485: The Church Historical Department included Jill Mulvay Derr, Carol Cornwall Madsen, and Edyth Romney. Journals dedicated special issues to Mormon women, and the increased interest in Mormon women led to more publications focused on them. Scholars published biographies of Emma Smith, Eliza Snow, Emmeline B. Wells, and Amy Brown Lyman. Beecher's efforts would also prove instrumental to the founding of
4888-423: The Church History Library archives. Non-Mormon scholars are often suspicious of Mormon scholars' work. Before World War II, church histories were mostly either orthodox Mormon or anti-Mormon and written by faithful Mormons or hostile non-Mormons, respectively. A few writers in the first era of church history (1830–1905) wrote about Mormons as a curiosity and focused on their peculiar ways. Non-Mormons wrote for
4992-661: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), by far the largest, as well as the Community of Christ (CoC) and other smaller groups, include some categorized under the umbrella term Mormon fundamentalism . Before 1903, writings about Mormons were mostly orthodox documentary histories or anti-Mormon material. The first dissertations on Mormons, published in the 1900s, had a naturalistic style that approached Mormon history from economic, psychological, and philosophical theories. While their position within Mormon studies
5096-533: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints : Century One . The history had some of the first historical analysis of events in church history. It was serialized in Americana 1909–1915. From 1830-1930, women were victims or symbols in historical accounts. Church historians mentioned their suffering, but rarely mentioned them by name. Anti-polygamy tracts also described Mormon women in general terms, describing them as deluded or miserable. In an effort to combat
5200-469: The Church" containing over 1,500 scrapbooks filled with published and unpublished records of daily activities in the church. Jenson made a special report on the Mountain Meadows Massacre , and parts of the report were not openly used until Massacre at Mountain Meadows (2008) by Richard E. Turley , Ronald W. Walker , and Glen M. Leonard . The first historian to attempt to summarize Mormon history on
5304-622: The Divide? A Mormon and Evangelical in Conversation . Richard Bushman encouraged fellow Mormon historians to be less defensive and more open to criticism, and also to do research on Mormon history from a consciously Mormon point of view. Over the years, scholars raised within the Latter-day Saint tradition and professionally trained academically, often in the social sciences, began to enter the field. A flowering of these efforts in
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#17327868518095408-804: The Joseph Fielding Smith Institute for Church History at BYU. Carol Cornwall Madsen led research in the Women's History Initiative at the institute, where she wrote an important biographical study of Emmeline B. Wells . In 2001, Richard Bushman retired from full-time teaching at Columbia University and was a research director at the Smith Institute. Dean C. Jessee started editing Joseph Smith's papers in The Personal Writings of Joseph Smith . The Smith Institute closed in 2005, and institute staff along with
5512-606: The LDS Church in September 1993, after which the potential costs of writing for the magazine and speaking at its symposia were feared by some to be too high. With a lack of participation from moderate and conservative voices, Sunstone experienced an unbalancing of many presentations toward liberal causes and points of view. With the passage of time and under new leadership, the Sunstone Education Foundation has begun to recover much of its former status as
5616-573: The LDS Church. In September 1993, the LDS church excommunicated the September Six , which included historians Lavina Fielding Anderson , D. Michael Quinn and Maxine Hanks . These excommunications served as a warning to other Mormon historians. Quinn's excommunication was perhaps tied to his idea that Mormon women had been given the priesthood in 1843, which he published in an essay in Women and Authority: Re-emerging Mormon Feminism . In 2003, he
5720-548: The LDS church as well, which, unlike early anti-Mormon works, cite historical documents. Ed Decker , an excommunicated Mormon, made two anti-Mormon films: The God Makers (1982) and The God Makers II (1993). The films described Mormons as being a cult , abusing women and children, manipulating news outlets, and practicing Satanism . The God Makers II received criticism from other anti-Mormons, including Jerald and Sandra Tanner, who stated it contained inaccuracies. Official recorders have existed since Joseph Smith organized
5824-579: The Latter Days with Richard Turley . Tait works on the web team, helping to add a "Women of Conviction" section to church history website. In 2017, Reeder and Holbrook edited a compilation of women's speeches called At the Pulpit: 185 Years of Discourses by Latter-day Saint Women. The Mormon blogosphere influences Mormon studies. In 2011, Patrick Mason surveyed 113 Mormon blog readers who were also graduate students. Most respondents viewed blogs as
5928-906: The Mormon village was designed to promote unity and sociability, which allowed Mormon settlers to colonize the Great Basin Desert. He left Utah in 1937. Nels Anderson studied at the University of Chicago, and studied hobos in Utah, where he converted to Mormonism. His book Desert Saints (1944) recounted the history of saints in the St. George, Utah area. Other scholars publishing on Mormonism from this time period include I. Woodbridge Riley, Walter F. Prince , Franklin D. Daines, Hamilton Gardner, Joseph Geddes, Feramorz Fox , Arden Beal Olsen, William McNiff, Kimball Young , Austin Fife and Alta Fife . In
6032-537: The New Mormon historians and New Mormon scholars was hard to define. Along with Arrington's transfer and a subsequent increase in restrictions in the LDS Church Archives, several other incidents led to an intellectual chilling of Mormon history by Mormons in the 1990s. In 1992, Arrington wrote that "the church cannot afford to place its official stamp of approval on any 'private' interpretation of its past," and this kind of history must be not sponsored by
6136-456: The New Mormon history movement as ending, bring replaced by post-New Mormon history or "Newer Mormon History." This emerging movement is interdisciplinary and endeavors to place Mormon studies in a broader historical context, further eroding boundaries between disciplines. Mormon women's history has not been well-integrated with other Mormon studies topics. Contemporary historians like R. Marie Griffith , Grant Wacker , and Robert Orsi encourage
6240-618: The Patreon user's goal. Patreon takes a 8-12% commission on pledges. As of May 2017 , the average pledge per patron was around $ 12, and a new patron pledged to a creator every 5.5 seconds. As of February 2014 , almost half of the artists on Patreon produce YouTube videos, while most of the rest are writers, webcomics artists, musicians, or podcasters . As of December 2016 , Patreon's Community Guidelines allow nudity and suggestive imagery as long as they are clearly marked, but prohibit content that may be deemed pornographic or as glorifying sexual violence . In December 2017, Patreon announced
6344-540: The Relief Society, is mostly used in women's meetings. Outside of Mormon history specialists, Mormon women are rarely mentioned. Non-Mormon scholars are still often suspicious of LDS scholars' work. That is gradually changing as non-Mormon scholars increase and universities not affiliated with the LDS Church have endowed chairs for Mormon studies. Kathleen Flake is the first Richard L. Bushman Chair of Mormon Studies at University of Virginia , and Patrick Mason
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#17327868518096448-727: The Smith papers project moved to the Church Office Building . The Joseph Smith Papers project, started by the LDS church in 2001, aimed to publish Joseph Smith's papers with rigorous accuracy, and was validated by the National Historic Public Records Commission. Jan Shipps asserts that this reluctance to support New Mormon history was a response to the Mark Hofmann document forgeries. Also, some church authorities disliked
6552-494: The University of Chicago. His dissertation, influenced by functionalist theory, argued that Mormonism was a product of conflicts with non-Mormons and harsh environments. Lowry Nelson, also a Mormon, studied at the University of Wisconsin in the 1920s. He worked in agriculture and was dean of BYU's College of Applied Science and director of the Utah Agriculture Experiment stations. He wrote articles about how
6656-675: The account of Artur Rehi, an Estonian military video blogger . Patreon stated "hate speech" as one of the reasons for the deletion, due to Rehi's reference to the Russians in occupied Ukraine as "Occupiers". The other reason was "funding military", despite Rehi's funneling of all donations through Rotary Club . In March 2014, Patreon announced via email that creators of sexual content on its platform would no longer be allowed to use PayPal services through Patreon to fulfill subscription payments. In July 2016, Patreon emailed its content creators announcing that payments through PayPal would resume for adult-oriented creators. Those who worked within
6760-668: The book before publication. Perhaps his favorable treatment was how he obtained access to the church records. Expanding on Bancroft's history, Orson F. Whitney wrote History of Utah (1898–1904) in four volumes. Joseph Fielding Smith wrote Essentials of Church History in 1922. Most of these accounts combined various testimonies into a single narrative without questioning the validity of the eyewitnesses or other observers, especially those of church authorities. Mormons wrote accounts for other Mormons, often published in church-sponsored venues like The Juvenile Instructor and in church-published lesson manuals. These writings were written for
6864-426: The book was "the most important work to emerge from a Mormon Press in the last 50 years." Jennifer Reeder , specializing in 19th century women's history, was hired in 2013. Brittany Chapman Nash and Lisa Tait also specialize in women's history and work in the Church history department. Nash works in public services and helps researchers to be aware of women's sources the archive offers. She co-authored Women of Faith in
6968-433: The books and articles produced by the history department, which noted flaws as well as strengths of people in church history. Shipps states that the increase in new converts to the LDS Church led General Authorities to emphasize the need for "palatable" versions of church history in museums and historic sites rather than in-depth articles in church-sponsored publications. Mormon sociologist Armand Mauss argued that Mormonism
7072-402: The changes gathered 1,800 signatures, which drew a response from Jack Conte. In June 2018, Patreon suspended some creators who produced adult content. Since its inception, Patreon has been widely criticized for its approach on handling and removing child sexual abuse material either drawn, photographed, or filmed. In March 2018, a petition that gathered nearly 37,000 signatures demanded that
7176-420: The church, among other complaints. In 1997, Joanna Brooks argued that the goal of Mormon studies was to critically examine Mormonism, not to determine religious truths. She postulated that Mormon studies done as a type of cultural studies will help scholars in the field feel less defensive and more productive. Outside of Brigham Young University and Utah, the University of North Carolina Press , Knopf , and
7280-401: The company closed on a fresh round of $ 30 million in a series B round , led by Thrive Capital , which put the total raised for Patreon at $ 47.1 million. It signed up more than 125,000 "patrons" in its first 18 months. In late 2014, the website announced that patrons were sending over $ 1,000,000 per month to the site's content creators. In March 2015, Patreon acquired Subbable ,
7384-444: The company prohibit animators and artists from selling content depicting child rape. In August 2021, an Australian news agency reported that Patreon was hosting sexual content of children under 18 filmed in a psychiatric hospital in Prague , Czech Republic. In May 2022, social media influencer Michael McWhorter said he found sexually provocative pictures and videos of pre-pubescent children on Patreon categorized as NSFW and requiring
7488-477: The complete works of Hugh Nibley starting in 1984. In 1997, LDS church president Gordon B. Hinckley invited FARMS to be officially affiliated at BYU, and in 2006 it was subsumed by the Neal A. Maxwell Institute of Religious Scholarship . In 2012, Daniel C. Petersen, the editor of FARMS Review , started publishing a new journal called Interpreter . The Foundation for Apologetic Information and Research (FAIR),
7592-443: The conditions under which the suits attempted by Benjamin's supporters (but not himself) occurred, as the lawsuits were filed on January 6. The terms-of-service update stated that only the person banned from the platform would be allowed to file a complaint and that any arbitration fees would have to be paid by the person or entity filing the complaint. The suits open the door to lawsuits from supporters of other Patreon users banned from
7696-571: The context of auxiliaries like Relief Society and Primary, plural marriage, suffrage, and the ERA. The Encyclopedia of Latter-day Saint History (2000) contained 435 entries about men, but only 64 about women, with three-quarters of the women receiving less than a page of description. Church publication Our Heritage (1996) only mentioned a few women. Women's history remained in a "separate sphere." Daughters in My Kingdom (2011), an official history of
7800-705: The customer to be 18 years or older to view or purchase such content. In September 2022, following the laying off of several members of the Patreon security team, McWhorter published a follow-up video featuring a testimony from another user that she had reported CSAM she found to Patreon staff and it simply dismissed any concerns. Patreon rejected the statements, dismissing them as "dangerous and conspiratorial disinformation". In March 2023, Patreon announced its partnership with Tech Coalition, an internet agency with aims to combat child sexual exploitation and online child abuse. A few months later in June 2023, an investigation by
7904-557: The devotional religious market also occasionally publish in Mormon studies, including the LDS publishers Cedar Fort, Inc. , Covenant Communications , and Deseret Book (which is owned by the LDS Church), as well as Herald House (which is owned by the Community of Christ ). In addition, certain general book publishers or university presses have also published significant Mormon studies. These include: Patreon Patreon ( / ˈ p eɪ t r i ɒ n / , /- ə n / )
8008-579: The field of Mormon studies are presented annually by scholarly societies. The Mormon History Association (MHA) and the John Whitmer Historical Association (JWHA) each present annual awards for various categories within Mormon history, such as books, biographies, documentary history, journal articles, and lifetime achievement. The MHA also gives awards for theses and student papers. The Utah State Historical Society (USHS), which frequently engages Mormon history, also presents awards for books, articles, and student papers. Literary awards are presented by
8112-519: The form of exclusive content or behind-the-scenes work) for their patrons, depending on the amount that each patron pays. Patrons can unlock monetary tiers that increase the content type they see from the user. Several content creators on Patreon are also YouTubers. They can create content on multiple platforms, and while the YouTube videos may be available to the public, the patrons receive private content made exclusively for them in exchange for aiding
8216-421: The foundations of Mormonism's "New History" movement. Brodie wrote No Man Knows My History (1945), which contemporary reviews praised as definitive and scholarly. Other LDS scholars, notably Hugh Nibley , criticized Brodie's biography. In 1950, Juanita Brooks, a Columbia University -trained housewife who formerly taught English composition at a nearby college, published a well-researched and balanced book on
8320-463: The increasing amount of Mormon scholarship "the New Mormon history." The "New Mormon history" movement included non-Mormons Thomas F. O'Dea, P.A.M. Taylor, Mario De Pillis , Lawrence Foster, Community of Christ member Robert Flanders, and Mormon scholar Klaus Hansen. Maureen Ursenbach Beecher was a leading researcher in women's studies. In the 1970s women's biographies were published, but not integrated into larger narratives. Other women hired by
8424-449: The loss of many pledges for creators, Patreon announced that it would not be rolling out these changes, and apologized to its users. Unlike other online platforms such as YouTube and Facebook , which use trained algorithms to identify potentially inappropriate content, Patreon's trust and safety team monitors users and investigates complaints of Terms of Service violations. In July 2017, right-wing YouTube personality Lauren Southern
8528-591: The magazine Exponent II . The first issue of BYU Studies was published in 1959. In 1972, the LDS Church hired Leonard Arrington as their historian. During Arrington's time as historian, Mormon and non-Mormon historians were allowed to access the LDS Church Archives . Much of the research in the 1970s used these newly-available sources to examine church history, sometimes in great detail. Leonard Arrington influenced important scholars of Mormon history, including Richard Jensen , William Hartley , and Ronald Walker . In 1969, Jewish historian Moses Rischin named
8632-753: The most popular blogs, By Common Consent, had over two million page visitors in 2011. It and other blogs are influential on Mormon studies. Archives with significant Mormon collections include the L. Tom Perry Special Collections at BYU, the Church Archives in Salt Lake, the J. Willard Marriott Library at the University of Utah in Salt Lake, Utah State University Libraries, and the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale in New Haven, Connecticut. Awards for writing or service in
8736-677: The oral history data were published in Mormon Women Have Their Say: Essays from the Claremont Oral History Collection . The Church History Department hired a specialist in women's history in 2011, Kate Holbrook . She co-authored The First Fifty Years of Relief Society: Key Documents in Latter-Day Saint Women's History with Jill Mulvay Derr, Carol Cornwall Madsen, and Matthew J. Grow. Laurel Thatcher Ulrich said
8840-671: The platform, with freelance journalist Lauren Southern preparing her suit. During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine , Patreon maintained its business in Russia despite international pressure on western companies operating in Russia to cease operating there. At the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Patreon closed a major Ukrainian account run by a charity named Comeback Alive, which raised money for helping volunteers and veteran divisions due to its financing and training of military personnel. On February 15, 2024, Patreon deleted
8944-535: The restoration. The LDS church stopped funding so much research and limited access to the church archives. Apostle Ezra Taft Benson warned employees in the Church Educational System against New Mormon history in a 1976 speech. He said that writing history in a neutral style undermined "prophetic history." Boyd K. Packer 's 1981 article, "The Mantle is Far, Far Greater than the Intellect"
9048-483: The study of Mormonism, with professors named to oversee coursework, research, and events on Mormon studies. While independent academic programs have emerged in recent years, devotional religious education programs have existed far longer. Additional colleges have also taught courses on Mormonism without having institutionally sponsored programs, but they are not included in the list below. The following primarily publish books on Mormon studies: Several publishers within
9152-613: The target of a large cyber-attack , with almost 15 gigabytes of password data, donation records, and source code taken and published. The breach exposed more than 2.3 million unique e-mail addresses and millions of private messages. Following the attack, some patrons received extortion emails demanding Bitcoin payments in exchange for the protection of their personal information. In January 2017, Patreon announced that it had sent over $ 100,000,000 to creators since its inception. In May 2017, Patreon announced that it had over 50,000 active creators and 1 million monthly patrons, and
9256-624: The team produced and sold a Mormon history calendar in Utah and California. They were encouraged by the Dialogue staff, including editor Robert Rees, who suggested the name "Sunstone," an architectural symbol from the Mormon temple in Nauvoo . After struggles and delays, the first issue was printed in November 1975. The publication faced early challenges. The time and effort to produce each issue
9360-596: The use of interdisciplinary tools in Mormon studies. Included in these interdisciplinary tools are oral histories. In 1972, the Charles Redd Center for Western Studies was established at BYU, where Jessie L. Embry directed an extensive oral history project. The Church History Department started their own oral history project in 2009. Claudia L. Bushman and her students started the Claremont Oral History collection in 2009, and papers using
9464-479: The way anti-polygamists portrayed Mormon women, Edward Tullidge and Eliza R. Snow compiled The Women of Mormondom (1877), a book that portrayed Mormon women as hardworking and independent in a combined history, biography, and theology. Heroines of Mormondom (1884) highlighted faithful Mormon women's lives. Women wrote short biographies of other women and recorded them in Women's Exponent and through publications from
9568-500: The website, objected to Patreon's approach and announced that he would be leaving the platform because of it. Shortly thereafter Patreon deleted the account of It's Going Down , a far-left news website, for allegedly doxing . In September 2018, Patreon banned Turkish journalist-in-exile Kamil Maman after Turkey threatened to block the entire site in Turkey if the company did not comply. In an e-mail sent to Maman, Patreon said "This
9672-399: The year, due to the high costs of print publishing. Instead, subscribers would receive articles as podcasts and electronic documents, with a print digest of all new articles to be published annually. Podcast episodes would be published throughout the year and each contain at least two articles, and would be distributed through Patreon subscriptions. Mormon studies Mormon studies
9776-453: Was Louis Midgely , who argued that from a relativist, postmodern theory, the Mormon view that the LDS Church had divine origins was just as valuable and valid as others. New Mormon historians said that the New Mormon scholars left faith out of their analyses. Many were members of FARMS, and often saw writers of New Mormon history as the same as other anti-Mormons, even though most writers of New Mormon history were Mormon. The difference between
9880-657: Was a struggle between remaining distinctive and assimilating to accepted American cultural practices; scholar Ronald Helfrich speculates that the change in General Authority's reception to Arrington's research was because they feared assimilating too much. General interest in Mormon studies continued during the 1980s, with over 2,000 books, articles, and other material published on Mormon history during that decade. BYU Studies and Deseret Books published more New Mormon historians after General Authority pushback against New Mormon history. One of these New Mormon historians
9984-535: Was another milestone in feminist publications, and it encouraged Mormon women to be empowered by their history and "reclaim lost opportunities." Most New Mormon historians were LDS. Their audience was Mormon intellectuals and non-Mormons. They maintained their respect for the Mormon faith, admitted to flaws in people and policies, and avoided taking a defensive stance, a tone which non-Mormon historian Jan Shipps wrote "made them seem more secular than they actually were." Mormon history by non-Mormons at this time had
10088-714: Was banned from Patreon over concerns about Génération Identitaire 's blocking of NGO ships in the Mediterranean, ferrying migrants to Europe off the Libyan coast. A letter she received from Patreon said she was removed for "raising funds in order to take part in activities that are likely to cause loss of life," referring to an incident in May involving Southern, and the larger Defend Europe mission in July, which she covered on YouTube. Philosopher, writer, and podcast host Sam Harris , who also received contributions from patrons on
10192-522: Was demanding on the volunteer staff, and the first several issues had a different editor for each issue, under the leadership of Kenney and Peggy Fletcher . For Orson Scott Card 's ghost-edited issue in Summer 1977, Card had convinced the board to change to a cheaper and more accessible magazine format. Facing financial troubles later that year, Sunstone merged with the New Messenger and Advocate ,
10296-617: Was followed by History of Brigham Young , which was also published in Deseret News and Millennial Star over the next two years. Church Historians and their assistants edited the material, which was published in official publications. Andrew Jenson made sizable contributions to documentary church history with the Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia (1901–36), Encyclopedic History of the Church (1941), and an unpublished "Journal History of
10400-491: Was looking for a way to make a living from his YouTube videos. It developed a platform that allowed 'patrons' to pay a set amount of money every time an artist created a work of art. The company raised $ 2.1 million in August 2013 from a group of venture capitalists and angel investors . In June 2014, Patreon raised a further $ 15 million in a series A round led by Danny Rimer of Index Ventures . In January 2016,
10504-407: Was not an easy decision for [us], as we are huge proponents of free speech, but it was a decision we made in order to best protect access to Turkish creators." Maman condemned Patreon for giving in to the demands of an autocratic regime. In December 2018, Patreon banned Milo Yiannopoulos a day after he created an account and also banned Carl Benjamin because he used homophobic and racist slurs in
10608-449: Was on track to send over $ 150 million to creators in 2017. In June 2017, Patreon announced a suite of tools for creators to run membership businesses on the Patreon platform. Notable improvements included a customer relationship management system, a mobile app called Lens, and a service to set up exclusive livestreams. In August 2018, Patreon announced the acquisition of Memberful, a membership services company. In April 2020, citing
10712-526: Was published in BYU Studies. He wrote that contemporary historians were too eager to focus on the faults of church leaders and dismiss spiritual inspiration. In 1982, historians from Arrington's department were transferred to Brigham Young University, where they were assigned to teach in the history department and worked in the Joseph Fielding Smith Institute for Church History. After Arrington's death in 1999, Ronald K. Esplin and Jill Mulvay Derr led
10816-479: Was scheduled to give a speech at a conference at Yale which was co-sponsored by BYU, and BYU stated they would withdraw their funding if Quinn presented his paper. That same year, Quinn applied to work as a professor at the University of Utah and Arizona State University. He was not hired as a professor, possibly because of fears that LDS people in power would retaliate against the university. In 1986, administrators were asked not to contribute to Dialogue or present at
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