D. Michael Quinn
Encyclopedia
Dennis Michael Quinn is a historian who has focused on The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was a professor at Brigham Young University
from 1976 until his resignation in 1988. At the time, his work concerned church involvement with plural marriage
after the 1890 Manifesto
, in which the practice was officially renounced. He was excommunicated from the church as one of the September Six
and is openly gay.
in 1944. Originally he planned to become a medical doctor, and in preparation he became a nursing aid at his local hospital during his senior year in high school, with a full load of patients doing everything involved except that prohibited by law. However in college he failed his pre-med program and had to change majors choosing English and Philosophy instead. He served a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
for 2 years in Germany. After graduation he served for three years in the US Army including service in the Vietnam War
. During his army service he first accepted into Duke University for graduate studies in English but after leaving the Army he realized that he preferred his then hobby of studying History over other subjects. He then applied for a graduate program in History in Yale Graduate School where he graduated with a Ph.D in 1975. After graduation he took a job teaching and researching History at Brigham Young University
.. He has also worked as a research assistant to then church historian Leonard J. Arrington
for 18 months . He taught at BYU until he resigned in January 1988 due to the ongoing pressure from some authorities who wanted to see him leave. At BYU he was elected once as best professor by the graduating class.
, his insubordination directed toward church authorities and his publication of his on-going work resulted in his excommunication from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as one of the September Six
. Despite his excommunication, Quinn believes in the Latter Day Saint movement
, although he is in disagreement with certain policies and doctrines. He continues to be a widely-cited Mormon
historian by researchers and students of Mormonism.
Quinn's research topics, both before and after his excommunication, were in-depth revisions of traditional accounts of Mormon history grounded in primary source material. Three of his most influential books, each of which is the focal point of intense controversy, are Early Mormonism and the Magic World View, The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power, and The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power.
In an April 2006 article, Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Golden wrote that Quinn has become unhireable because almost all the funding for professorships in Mormon studies comes from Mormon donors. In 2003, Brigham Young University
threatened to withdraw funding for a conference it was co-sponsoring at Yale if Quinn were allowed to speak. More recently Arizona State University
administrators vetoed the department of religious studies in its recommendation to hire Quinn. ASU faculty believe officials fear alienating ASU’s 3,700 LDS students and offending Ira Fulton
, a powerful Mormon donor who, according to Golden, has called Quinn a “nothing person.”
In 2007, Quinn was interviewed in the PBS documentary The Mormons.
activities. Indeed, the first published version of an early revelation told Oliver Cowdery
that a dowsing rod (referred to as a "rod of nature") would serve as a means of receiving divine revelation. Other claims, including Smith's purported involvement in astrology
and the idea that the Book of Mormon guardian Moroni transformed from the form of a salamander, are less supported by evidence.
Some historians, both within and without the Mormon faith, consider this book an important contribution in understanding early Mormon history, and Quinn's supporters feel his work is groundbreaking. In a 1990 book review in Church History, Klaus J. Hansen calls the book a "magisterial study" and a "tour de force," and describes it as providing a "truly stunning mass of evidence" in favor of its position. John L. Brooke made Quinn's argument the starting point of his study, The Refiner's Fire : The Making of Mormon Cosmology, 1644-1844.
However, Mormon and non-Mormon scholars have also criticized the book as relying too heavily on environmental parallels without a proven connection to Smith's ideas and behavior, that it accepts at face value the disputed Howe-Hurlbut affidavits about Smith's New York reputation and behavior and a late 19th century newspaper account of a money-digging agreement involving Smith and his father, and that its central thesis is implausible without Mark Hofmann
's "Salamander Letter
"--which turned out to be a forgery
. William J. Hamblin
states in his review of the book that "the fact that Quinn could not discover a single primary source written by Latter-day Saints that makes any positive statement about magic is hardly dissuasive to a historian of Quinn's inventive capacity." An additional criticism suggests that the concept of magic is flawed and inherently subjective; it implies that Smith's use of seer stones and dowsing rods was superstitious or fraudulent rather than divine. However, some of Quinn's critics acknowledge that the book is "richly documented" (William A. Wilson in a 1989 book review in The Western Historical Quarterly) and an obligatory starting point for any discussion of Smith's involvement in 19th-century folkloric practices.
, Blood Atonement
and Mormon War
). During the 20th century, Quinn asserts his view that the church was increasing bureaucratization of the church, its role in right-wing anti-Communism during the 1960s, efforts against the Equal Rights Amendment
, political work against same-sex marriage and some forms of anti-discrimination legislation, the church's mid-century financial crisis, conflicts over policies such as the so-called "baseball baptisms" of youth who knew little about the church, presumed disagreements among church Apostles (that Hugh B. Brown
was open to rescinding the Negro doctrine in 1963, and attempted to rescind it in 1969, but was blocked from doing so by Harold B. Lee
), and extensive business and family interrelationships among leaders.
In a review of The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power for the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies
, Duane Boyce asserts that there are scholarly deficiencies in the work and refers to it as a "betrayal of trust."
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
from 1976 until his resignation in 1988. At the time, his work concerned church involvement with plural marriage
Plural marriage
Polygamy was taught by leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for more than half of the 19th century, and practiced publicly from 1852 to 1890.The Church's practice of polygamy has been highly controversial, both within...
after the 1890 Manifesto
1890 Manifesto
The "1890 Manifesto", sometimes simply called "The Manifesto", is a statement which officially disavowed the continuing practice of plural marriage in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
, in which the practice was officially renounced. He was excommunicated from the church as one of the September Six
September Six
The September Six were six members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who were excommunicated or disfellowshipped by the LDS Church in September 1993 for speaking against Church doctrine and leadership. The term "September Six" was coined by The Salt Lake Tribune and the term was...
and is openly gay.
Early Years
D Michael Quinn was born in Glendale, UtahGlendale, Utah
Glendale is a town in Kane County, Utah, United States. The population was 355 at the 2000 census. It was founded in 1862 by Mormon pioneers John and William Berry, abandoned in 1866 due to Indian attacks, and resettled in 1871.-Geography:...
in 1944. Originally he planned to become a medical doctor, and in preparation he became a nursing aid at his local hospital during his senior year in high school, with a full load of patients doing everything involved except that prohibited by law. However in college he failed his pre-med program and had to change majors choosing English and Philosophy instead. He served a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints traces its current dispensation beginnings to Joseph Smith, Jr. on April 6, 1830 in Western New York. Initial converts were drawn to the church in part because of the newly published Book of Mormon, a self-described chronicle of indigenous American...
for 2 years in Germany. After graduation he served for three years in the US Army including service in the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. During his army service he first accepted into Duke University for graduate studies in English but after leaving the Army he realized that he preferred his then hobby of studying History over other subjects. He then applied for a graduate program in History in Yale Graduate School where he graduated with a Ph.D in 1975. After graduation he took a job teaching and researching History at Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
.. He has also worked as a research assistant to then church historian Leonard J. Arrington
Leonard J. Arrington
Leonard James Arrington was an author, academic and the founder of the Mormon History Association. He is known as the "Dean of Mormon History" and "the Father of Mormon History" because of his many influential contributions to the field.-Biographical background:Arrington was born in Twin Falls,...
for 18 months . He taught at BYU until he resigned in January 1988 due to the ongoing pressure from some authorities who wanted to see him leave. At BYU he was elected once as best professor by the graduating class.
Relationship with LDS Church
In September 1993, according to his biographer Lavina Fielding AndersonLavina Fielding Anderson
Lavina Fielding Anderson is a Latter Day Saint scholar, writer, editor, and feminist. Anderson holds a Ph.D. in English from the University of Washington...
, his insubordination directed toward church authorities and his publication of his on-going work resulted in his excommunication from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as one of the September Six
September Six
The September Six were six members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who were excommunicated or disfellowshipped by the LDS Church in September 1993 for speaking against Church doctrine and leadership. The term "September Six" was coined by The Salt Lake Tribune and the term was...
. Despite his excommunication, Quinn believes in the Latter Day Saint movement
Latter Day Saint movement
The Latter Day Saint movement is a group of independent churches tracing their origin to a Christian primitivist movement founded by Joseph Smith, Jr. in the late 1820s. Collectively, these churches have over 14 million members...
, although he is in disagreement with certain policies and doctrines. He continues to be a widely-cited Mormon
Mormonism
Mormonism is the religion practiced by Mormons, and is the predominant religious tradition of the Latter Day Saint movement. This movement was founded by Joseph Smith, Jr. beginning in the 1820s as a form of Christian primitivism. During the 1830s and 1840s, Mormonism gradually distinguished itself...
historian by researchers and students of Mormonism.
Quinn's research topics, both before and after his excommunication, were in-depth revisions of traditional accounts of Mormon history grounded in primary source material. Three of his most influential books, each of which is the focal point of intense controversy, are Early Mormonism and the Magic World View, The Mormon Hierarchy: Origins of Power, and The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power.
In an April 2006 article, Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Golden wrote that Quinn has become unhireable because almost all the funding for professorships in Mormon studies comes from Mormon donors. In 2003, Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
threatened to withdraw funding for a conference it was co-sponsoring at Yale if Quinn were allowed to speak. More recently Arizona State University
Arizona State University
Arizona State University is a public research university located in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area of the State of Arizona...
administrators vetoed the department of religious studies in its recommendation to hire Quinn. ASU faculty believe officials fear alienating ASU’s 3,700 LDS students and offending Ira Fulton
Ira A. Fulton
Ira A. Fulton is an Arizona philanthropist, land developer, and businessman. BusinessWeek has listed Fulton 36th on its list of "The 50 Most Generous Philanthropists" for 2006...
, a powerful Mormon donor who, according to Golden, has called Quinn a “nothing person.”
In 2007, Quinn was interviewed in the PBS documentary The Mormons.
Early Mormonism and the Magic World View
Early Mormonism and the Magic World View is an exhaustive recounting of the role of 19th-century New England folk magic lore in Joseph Smith's early visions and in the development of the Book of Mormon. The book argues that Smith's early religious experiences were inextricably intermingled with ritual, supernaturalism, and white magic. Evidence is drawn from friendly firsthand sources, unfriendly firsthand sources, material artifacts, and parallels in ideas. All four sources agree that Joseph Smith used a collection of different seer stones in searching for buried treasure supposedly left by pirates, Spaniards, and Native Americans. The evidence suggests that these same seer stones were one of the primary tools used by Smith in translating the Book of Mormon. Likewise, evidence from all four categories of sources supports the idea that Smith approved of the use of rods for dowsingDowsing
Dowsing is a type of divination employed in attempts to locate ground water, buried metals or ores, gemstones, oil, gravesites, and many other objects and materials, as well as so-called currents of earth radiation , without the use of scientific apparatus...
activities. Indeed, the first published version of an early revelation told Oliver Cowdery
Oliver Cowdery
Oliver H. P. Cowdery was, with Joseph Smith, Jr., an important participant in the formative period of the Latter Day Saint movement between 1829 and 1836, becoming one of the Three Witnesses of the Book of Mormon's golden plates, one of the first Latter Day Saint apostles, and the Second Elder of...
that a dowsing rod (referred to as a "rod of nature") would serve as a means of receiving divine revelation. Other claims, including Smith's purported involvement in astrology
Astrology
Astrology consists of a number of belief systems which hold that there is a relationship between astronomical phenomena and events in the human world...
and the idea that the Book of Mormon guardian Moroni transformed from the form of a salamander, are less supported by evidence.
Some historians, both within and without the Mormon faith, consider this book an important contribution in understanding early Mormon history, and Quinn's supporters feel his work is groundbreaking. In a 1990 book review in Church History, Klaus J. Hansen calls the book a "magisterial study" and a "tour de force," and describes it as providing a "truly stunning mass of evidence" in favor of its position. John L. Brooke made Quinn's argument the starting point of his study, The Refiner's Fire : The Making of Mormon Cosmology, 1644-1844.
However, Mormon and non-Mormon scholars have also criticized the book as relying too heavily on environmental parallels without a proven connection to Smith's ideas and behavior, that it accepts at face value the disputed Howe-Hurlbut affidavits about Smith's New York reputation and behavior and a late 19th century newspaper account of a money-digging agreement involving Smith and his father, and that its central thesis is implausible without Mark Hofmann
Mark Hofmann
Mark William Hofmann is an American counterfeiter, forger and convicted murderer. Widely regarded as one of the most accomplished forgers in history, Hofmann is especially noted for his creation of documents related to the history of the Latter Day Saint movement...
's "Salamander Letter
Salamander Letter
The Salamander Letter was a document created by Mark Hofmann in the early 1980s.The letter was one of hundreds of documents concerning the history of Latter Day Saint movement that surfaced in the early 1980s...
"--which turned out to be a forgery
Forgery
Forgery is the process of making, adapting, or imitating objects, statistics, or documents with the intent to deceive. Copies, studio replicas, and reproductions are not considered forgeries, though they may later become forgeries through knowing and willful misrepresentations. Forging money or...
. William J. Hamblin
William J. Hamblin
William James Hamblin is a Mormon apologist and associate professor of history at Brigham Young University . He is a former board member of the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies at BYU.- Biography :...
states in his review of the book that "the fact that Quinn could not discover a single primary source written by Latter-day Saints that makes any positive statement about magic is hardly dissuasive to a historian of Quinn's inventive capacity." An additional criticism suggests that the concept of magic is flawed and inherently subjective; it implies that Smith's use of seer stones and dowsing rods was superstitious or fraudulent rather than divine. However, some of Quinn's critics acknowledge that the book is "richly documented" (William A. Wilson in a 1989 book review in The Western Historical Quarterly) and an obligatory starting point for any discussion of Smith's involvement in 19th-century folkloric practices.
The Mormon Hierarchy
The two volumes of The Mormon Hierarchy provide a comprehensive secular organizational history of the church from its founding to modern times, and its influence on current LDS culture and doctrine. The work emphasizes conflict, coercion, and violence, especially during the 19th century (see Danites, Mountain Meadows massacreMountain Meadows massacre
The Mountain Meadows massacre was a series of attacks on the Baker–Fancher emigrant wagon train, at Mountain Meadows in southern Utah. The attacks culminated on September 11, 1857 in the mass slaughter of the emigrant party by the Iron County district of the Utah Territorial Militia and some local...
, Blood Atonement
Blood atonement
In mormonism, blood atonement is a controversial doctrine that teaches that murder is so heinous that the atonement of Jesus does not apply. Thus, in order to atone for these sins, the perpetrators must have their blood shed upon the ground as a sacrificial offering...
and Mormon War
Mormon War
The Mormon War is a name sometimes given to the 1838 conflict which occurred between Latter Day Saints and their neighbors in the northwestern region of the U.S. state of Missouri...
). During the 20th century, Quinn asserts his view that the church was increasing bureaucratization of the church, its role in right-wing anti-Communism during the 1960s, efforts against the Equal Rights Amendment
Equal Rights Amendment
The Equal Rights Amendment was a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution. The ERA was originally written by Alice Paul and, in 1923, it was introduced in the Congress for the first time...
, political work against same-sex marriage and some forms of anti-discrimination legislation, the church's mid-century financial crisis, conflicts over policies such as the so-called "baseball baptisms" of youth who knew little about the church, presumed disagreements among church Apostles (that Hugh B. Brown
Hugh B. Brown
Hugh Brown Brown was an attorney, educator and author and a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
was open to rescinding the Negro doctrine in 1963, and attempted to rescind it in 1969, but was blocked from doing so by Harold B. Lee
Harold B. Lee
Harold Bingham Lee was eleventh president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from July 1972 until his death.- Early life :...
), and extensive business and family interrelationships among leaders.
In a review of The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power for the Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies
Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies
The Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies is an informal collaboration of academics devoted to Latter-day Saint historical scholarship. The group is formally part of the Neal A...
, Duane Boyce asserts that there are scholarly deficiencies in the work and refers to it as a "betrayal of trust."
Same-sex dynamics among 19th-Century Mormons
Quinn, who himself is openly gay, has publicly argued that homosexual relationships, between both men and women, were quietly accepted by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its leadership up until the 1940s. This theme has arisen in Quinn's The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power and is the central topic of Same-Sex Dynamics Among Nineteenth-Century Americans: A Mormon Example. Several LDS scholars have disputed Quinn's work, calling it a distortion of LDS history and saying he completely misrepresented the facts. They deny any acceptance from previous leaders of homosexuality, suggesting that Quinn conflated an absence of early Church proscriptions of homosexuality with tacit acceptance of same, and state the current leadership of the church “is entirely consistent with the teachings of past leaders and with the scriptures.”External links
- Recorded 2006 Radio Interview with D. Michael Quinn
- D. Michael Quinn speaking on the 10 anniversary of his excommunication from YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....