Mormon Doctrine (book)
Encyclopedia
:"Mormon Doctrine" redirects here. For articles on the doctrines of Mormonism, see :Category:Latter Day Saint doctrines, beliefs, and practices.
Mormon Doctrine (originally subtitled A Compendium of the Gospel) is an encyclopedic work written in 1958 by Bruce R. McConkie
, a general authority
of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was intended primarily for a Latter-day Saint audience and is often used as a reference book by church members because of its comprehensive nature. It was not an official publication of the Church, and it has been both heavily criticized by some church leaders and members, and highly regarded by others. After the book was originally removed from publication at the instruction of the church's First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve, corrections were made in subsequent editions.
In writing the book, McConkie relied heavily upon the scriptures and recognized doctrinal authorities including, Joseph Smith, Brigham Young
, Orson Pratt
, John Taylor
, and Joseph Fielding Smith
.
was assigned by President David O. McKay
to read and report on the book. His report was delivered on January 28, which mainly "dealt with Elder McConkie's usage of forceful, blunt language; some strongly worded statements about ambiguous doctrine and matters of opinion; and the overall authoritative tone throughout the book, though in general Romney had a high regard for Mormon Doctrine and felt it filled an evident need remarkably well." The report concluded, "notwithstanding its many commendable and valuable features and the author’s assumption of ‘sole and full responsibility’ for it, its nature and scope and the authoritative tone of the style in which it is written pose the question as to the propriety of the author’s attempting such a project without assignment and supervision from him whose right and responsibility it is to speak for the Church on 'Mormon Doctrine.'"
Elder Mark E. Petersen
of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles also marked 1,067 corrections in his first edition copy of the book.
McKay called Joseph Fielding Smith
on January 27, 1960 at 3:00 p.m. to inform him of the decision to not allow further publication of the book:
When the First Presidency
met with McConkie about their decision, he responded, "I am amenable to whatever you Brethren want. I will do exactly what you want. I will be as discreet and as wise as I can."
states that six years later:
Other accounts of the meeting suggest that McConkie sought out permission and generously interpreted McKay's counsel:
The second edition of Mormon Doctrine, with its approved revisions, was published in 1966. Horne states, "The most obvious difference between the two editions is a more moderate tone."
Another revision was made to the book in 1978 after Church President Spencer W. Kimball
received a revelation
that the priesthood should be extended to all worthy male members.
included with the Church's publication of the Bible in 1979 borrows from Mormon Doctrine. For example, the entry for "Abraham, covenant of" in the Bible Dictionary is exactly the same as the entry for "Abrahamic covenant" in Mormon Doctrine except for one paragraph. Many other Bible Dictionary entries teach identical concepts with closely paralleled wording as corresponding entries in Mormon Doctrine.
In 1972 McConkie was called to serve in the Quorum of Twelve Apostles by McKay's successor, Harold B. Lee
.
sales rank was far higher than many other Mormon titles that are still in print.. A story on KUTV reported that local Salt Lake City booksellers reported consistently strong sales of the book.
Mormon Doctrine (originally subtitled A Compendium of the Gospel) is an encyclopedic work written in 1958 by Bruce R. McConkie
Bruce R. McConkie
Bruce Redd McConkie was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1972 until his death...
, a general authority
General authority
In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , a general authority is a member of certain leadership organizations who are given administrative and ecclesiastical authority over the church...
of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was intended primarily for a Latter-day Saint audience and is often used as a reference book by church members because of its comprehensive nature. It was not an official publication of the Church, and it has been both heavily criticized by some church leaders and members, and highly regarded by others. After the book was originally removed from publication at the instruction of the church's First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve, corrections were made in subsequent editions.
History
In 1958, McConkie, who was at the time a member of the First Council of the Seventy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, published a book entitled Mormon Doctrine: A Compendium of the Gospel, which he described as "the first major attempt to digest, explain, and analyze all of the important doctrines of the kingdom" and "the first extensive compendium of the whole gospel—the first attempt to publish an encyclopedic commentary covering the whole field of revealed religion." He included a disclaimer that he alone was responsible for the doctrinal and scriptural interpretations, a practice unusual at the time.In writing the book, McConkie relied heavily upon the scriptures and recognized doctrinal authorities including, Joseph Smith, Brigham Young
Brigham Young
Brigham Young was an American leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and a settler of the Western United States. He was the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1847 until his death in 1877, he founded Salt Lake City, and he served as the first governor of the Utah...
, Orson Pratt
Orson Pratt
Orson Pratt, Sr. was a leader in the Latter Day Saint movement and an original member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles...
, John Taylor
John Taylor (1808-1887)
John Taylor was the third president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1880 to 1887. He is the only president of the LDS Church to have been born outside of the United States....
, and Joseph Fielding Smith
Joseph Fielding Smith
Joseph Fielding Smith, Jr. was the tenth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1970 until his death. He was the son of Joseph F. Smith, who was the sixth president of the LDS Church...
.
Scrutiny by church leaders
On January 5, 1959, Apostle Marion G. RomneyMarion G. Romney
Marion George Romney was an apostle and a member of the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints .-Early life:...
was assigned by President David O. McKay
David O. McKay
David Oman McKay was the ninth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , serving from 1951 until his death. Ordained an apostle and member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in 1906, McKay was a general authority for nearly 64 years, longer than anyone else in LDS Church...
to read and report on the book. His report was delivered on January 28, which mainly "dealt with Elder McConkie's usage of forceful, blunt language; some strongly worded statements about ambiguous doctrine and matters of opinion; and the overall authoritative tone throughout the book, though in general Romney had a high regard for Mormon Doctrine and felt it filled an evident need remarkably well." The report concluded, "notwithstanding its many commendable and valuable features and the author’s assumption of ‘sole and full responsibility’ for it, its nature and scope and the authoritative tone of the style in which it is written pose the question as to the propriety of the author’s attempting such a project without assignment and supervision from him whose right and responsibility it is to speak for the Church on 'Mormon Doctrine.'"
Elder Mark E. Petersen
Mark E. Petersen
Mark Edward Petersen was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1944 until his death. Born in Salt Lake City, Utah, he filled the vacancy caused by the excommunication of Richard R. Lyman...
of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles also marked 1,067 corrections in his first edition copy of the book.
Publication restriction
Nearly a year later, after meeting to discuss the book, the January 8, 1960 office notes of McKay reflect that:McKay called Joseph Fielding Smith
Joseph Fielding Smith
Joseph Fielding Smith, Jr. was the tenth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1970 until his death. He was the son of Joseph F. Smith, who was the sixth president of the LDS Church...
on January 27, 1960 at 3:00 p.m. to inform him of the decision to not allow further publication of the book:
When the First Presidency
First Presidency
In the Latter Day Saint movement, the First Presidency was the highest governing body in the Latter Day Saint church established by Joseph Smith, Jr. in 1832, and is the highest governing body of several modern Latter Day Saint denominations...
met with McConkie about their decision, he responded, "I am amenable to whatever you Brethren want. I will do exactly what you want. I will be as discreet and as wise as I can."
Second edition
In his biography of his father, Joseph Fielding McConkieJoseph Fielding McConkie
Joseph Fielding McConkie is an emeritus professor of Ancient Scripture at Brigham Young University. He is the son of LDS Apostle Bruce R. McConkie and Amelia Smith McConkie. He has authored and co-authored over 25 books, speaks regularly at LDS gatherings, and is married to Brenda Kempton McConkie...
states that six years later:
Other accounts of the meeting suggest that McConkie sought out permission and generously interpreted McKay's counsel:
The second edition of Mormon Doctrine, with its approved revisions, was published in 1966. Horne states, "The most obvious difference between the two editions is a more moderate tone."
Another revision was made to the book in 1978 after Church President Spencer W. Kimball
Spencer W. Kimball
Spencer Woolley Kimball was the twelfth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1973 until his death in 1985.-Ancestry:...
received a revelation
Official Declaration—2
"Official Declaration—2" is the formal 1978 announcement by the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that the church's priesthood would no longer be subject to restrictions based on race or skin color...
that the priesthood should be extended to all worthy male members.
Legacy
Much of the Bible DictionaryBible Dictionary (LDS Church)
Bible Dictionary is an official publication of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . Since 1979, Bible Dictionary has been published as an appendix to most copies of the King James Version of the Bible printed by the LDS Church. The dictionary contains 1285 entries on 196 pages...
included with the Church's publication of the Bible in 1979 borrows from Mormon Doctrine. For example, the entry for "Abraham, covenant of" in the Bible Dictionary is exactly the same as the entry for "Abrahamic covenant" in Mormon Doctrine except for one paragraph. Many other Bible Dictionary entries teach identical concepts with closely paralleled wording as corresponding entries in Mormon Doctrine.
In 1972 McConkie was called to serve in the Quorum of Twelve Apostles by McKay's successor, 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 :...
.
Out of Print
Citing poor sales, Deseret Book opted in 2010 to cease printing of Mormon Doctrine. Despite Deseret's claim that the decision was based on declining sales, many observers opined that the move was due to the book's uncompromising presentation of controversial Mormon ideas from which the Church is attempting to distance itself to seem more like mainstream Christianity. Aaron Shafovaloff of the blog Mormon Coffee stated that the book's Amazon.comAmazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
sales rank was far higher than many other Mormon titles that are still in print.. A story on KUTV reported that local Salt Lake City booksellers reported consistently strong sales of the book.
See also
- Great and abominable churchGreat and abominable churchIn the Latter Day Saint movement, the great and abominable church is an actual or metaphorical church described in the Book of Mormon and other revelations by Joseph Smith, Jr...
- Mormon folkloreMormon folkloreMormon folklore is a body of expressive culture unique to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its members. It includes tales, oral history, popular beliefs, customs, music, jokes, and other traditions....
- Mormonism and evolutionMormonism and evolutionThe Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints takes no official position on whether or not biological evolution has occurred, or on the validity of the modern evolutionary synthesis as a scientific theory. However, in the 20th century, the LDS Church published doctrinal statements on the origin...
External links
- Mormon Doctrine : Complete work in HTML - link is broken
- A Requiem for Bruce R. McConkie’s Mormon Doctrine : A discussion of Mormon Doctrine on Mormon ExpressionMormon ExpressionMormon Expression is a weekly podcast created by John Larsen dealing with issues of Mormon faith, culture, doctrine and history. The podcast includes a mixed format of interviews and panel discussions...