specialk136's review against another edition
4.0
The church’s efforts to improve transparency over the last several years have caused many moments of personal reckoning for me. As more uncomfortable moments in our past history come to light, I’ve had to deal with what they mean and where I place them in my testimony overall (I have a large metaphorical “save for later” shelf). These reckonings have also caused me to think more critically about the differences between “the gospel,” “the church” as an organization, and the “church culture” that gets embedded in us, sometimes without us realizing it.
These type of reckonings are a good thing - they're part of developing a more mature relationship with the faith that I’ve chosen and to which I’ve committed. Author Joanna Brooks seems to be coming from a similar place. “Because I love my faith community and believe we can do better, I offer our experience to others as a witness and a warning.”
So if we love our faith, we must come to terms with the actual existence of racism within the church. I’m not talking about individual racism, though there are heartbreaking incidences of that. No, we need to stop denying/ignoring that systemic racism formed in the early days of the church and affects us still today.
If you’ve read the Gospel Topics essay on Race and the Priesthood, you could consider this book evidence that backs up the main thesis of that essay. What Brooks has done is provide specific examples the essay does not, and offers some theories as to how some well-placed individuals’ embedded views of whites as a “chosen” race morphed into “doctrine,” which has since been disavowed by the church.
Those specific examples - put in black and white, are really hard to read. I was especially broken-hearted to read the correspondence between the then-First Presidency under George Albert Smith and a man named Lowry Nelson, who knew in his heart that the ban on the Priesthood didn’t align with the gospel he was taught.
I have some quibbles with the book: 1) It’s written for an academic audience and thus hard for the lay person to understand at times (I’ve never been one to sit with a dictionary by my side to read a book); 2) I would desperately like to encourage Brooks to hit the Enter key more often; it’s common for her paragraphs to be a full page in length; 3) This book pre-supposes you know the definitions and nuances of concepts like white supremacy and racial innocence. In other words, if you don’t already have a basic understanding and buy-in of these concepts, this is not the first book you should be reading on the subject.
This book has given me a lot to think about - prophetic “infallibility” being one of the major ones. I still have my testimony. And I still believe it’s more important than ever to look these things in the face so we can heal these wounds once and for all.
These type of reckonings are a good thing - they're part of developing a more mature relationship with the faith that I’ve chosen and to which I’ve committed. Author Joanna Brooks seems to be coming from a similar place. “Because I love my faith community and believe we can do better, I offer our experience to others as a witness and a warning.”
So if we love our faith, we must come to terms with the actual existence of racism within the church. I’m not talking about individual racism, though there are heartbreaking incidences of that. No, we need to stop denying/ignoring that systemic racism formed in the early days of the church and affects us still today.
If you’ve read the Gospel Topics essay on Race and the Priesthood, you could consider this book evidence that backs up the main thesis of that essay. What Brooks has done is provide specific examples the essay does not, and offers some theories as to how some well-placed individuals’ embedded views of whites as a “chosen” race morphed into “doctrine,” which has since been disavowed by the church.
Those specific examples - put in black and white, are really hard to read. I was especially broken-hearted to read the correspondence between the then-First Presidency under George Albert Smith and a man named Lowry Nelson, who knew in his heart that the ban on the Priesthood didn’t align with the gospel he was taught.
I have some quibbles with the book: 1) It’s written for an academic audience and thus hard for the lay person to understand at times (I’ve never been one to sit with a dictionary by my side to read a book); 2) I would desperately like to encourage Brooks to hit the Enter key more often; it’s common for her paragraphs to be a full page in length; 3) This book pre-supposes you know the definitions and nuances of concepts like white supremacy and racial innocence. In other words, if you don’t already have a basic understanding and buy-in of these concepts, this is not the first book you should be reading on the subject.
This book has given me a lot to think about - prophetic “infallibility” being one of the major ones. I still have my testimony. And I still believe it’s more important than ever to look these things in the face so we can heal these wounds once and for all.
bethgiven's review against another edition
5.0
"I love my faith community and believe we can do better." (p. 205)
It is with this hopeful purpose that Joanna Brooks writes this scholarly, honest history of white supremacy in the mainstream LDS Church. Brooks discusses how the Black priesthood and temple ban morphed from misinformation and folk doctrine into an official policy of the Church, given credibility by the emerging belief in the infallibility of latter-day prophets. Brooks also addresses the history following the 1978 official declaration that removed the ban, noting both positive steps towards transparency (such as the Gospel Topics essay, "Race and the Priesthood") and instances of "undergrounding" and deflection of the topic.
To me, a white, faithful member of the Church who grew up learning the gospel both on Sundays and at home, a descendent of Utah pioneers, Brooks' unflinchingly honest approach was, at times, uncomfortable. We in the Church have been warned against finding fault with our leadership, from local bishops to general authorities. We particularly are cautioned against being critical of prophets. But it seems clear that prophets have made mistakes here, and that Black people in the Church have suffered for it -- and so have white people who showed their dissent.
I feel a bit of the danger of dissent even now, as I review this book on Goodreads. I've sat through enough Sunday School lessons and ward council meetings to know how most members feel about people who read "this kind of book," a book about the Church that's not published by the Church (or Deseret Book). I wonder if I have friends who will now question my faithfulness. Brooks addresses this idea in her book, and she gets it exactly right: that some stuff is truly anti-Mormon literature, designed to turn people away from the Church, but other stuff "just [feels] hostile because insular Mormon communities [are] not accustomed to the robustly interrogative quality of normal civil discourse." (p. 181)
Brooks also challenges the idea that childlike "innocence" (particularly racial innocence) is morally superior to hard-earned wisdom. The Church's image as wholesome and patriotic seems to excuse the Church as a whole (along with many of its members) from examining challenging issues regarding our faith and our history. That approach may have served us in the past, but here in 2020, that just won't work anymore. We need more study and transparency and vulnerability. I'm positive that the core doctrines can withstand the scrutiny, and that we must confront our history if we are going to heal.
I thought the idea of collective vs individual guilt was really interesting and that it definitely applies to racism within the Church and racism in our country. No person alive today instituted the priesthood and temple ban, and so many members of the Church were either not born yet or little children when it was in place. But we still have a collective responsibility to undo the harm it has done. I'm certain it can be done, through charity and humility, because Christ's atonement covers even this.
Even though this book evoked some deep emotion (chapter five, detailing events that happened in my parents' lifetimes, broke my heart and turned my stomach), I am so glad I read it. I feel more prepared to challenge racism in the Church. If you're looking for a light read, this isn't it -- but it was so valuable for me.
It is with this hopeful purpose that Joanna Brooks writes this scholarly, honest history of white supremacy in the mainstream LDS Church. Brooks discusses how the Black priesthood and temple ban morphed from misinformation and folk doctrine into an official policy of the Church, given credibility by the emerging belief in the infallibility of latter-day prophets. Brooks also addresses the history following the 1978 official declaration that removed the ban, noting both positive steps towards transparency (such as the Gospel Topics essay, "Race and the Priesthood") and instances of "undergrounding" and deflection of the topic.
To me, a white, faithful member of the Church who grew up learning the gospel both on Sundays and at home, a descendent of Utah pioneers, Brooks' unflinchingly honest approach was, at times, uncomfortable. We in the Church have been warned against finding fault with our leadership, from local bishops to general authorities. We particularly are cautioned against being critical of prophets. But it seems clear that prophets have made mistakes here, and that Black people in the Church have suffered for it -- and so have white people who showed their dissent.
I feel a bit of the danger of dissent even now, as I review this book on Goodreads. I've sat through enough Sunday School lessons and ward council meetings to know how most members feel about people who read "this kind of book," a book about the Church that's not published by the Church (or Deseret Book). I wonder if I have friends who will now question my faithfulness. Brooks addresses this idea in her book, and she gets it exactly right: that some stuff is truly anti-Mormon literature, designed to turn people away from the Church, but other stuff "just [feels] hostile because insular Mormon communities [are] not accustomed to the robustly interrogative quality of normal civil discourse." (p. 181)
Brooks also challenges the idea that childlike "innocence" (particularly racial innocence) is morally superior to hard-earned wisdom. The Church's image as wholesome and patriotic seems to excuse the Church as a whole (along with many of its members) from examining challenging issues regarding our faith and our history. That approach may have served us in the past, but here in 2020, that just won't work anymore. We need more study and transparency and vulnerability. I'm positive that the core doctrines can withstand the scrutiny, and that we must confront our history if we are going to heal.
I thought the idea of collective vs individual guilt was really interesting and that it definitely applies to racism within the Church and racism in our country. No person alive today instituted the priesthood and temple ban, and so many members of the Church were either not born yet or little children when it was in place. But we still have a collective responsibility to undo the harm it has done. I'm certain it can be done, through charity and humility, because Christ's atonement covers even this.
Even though this book evoked some deep emotion (chapter five, detailing events that happened in my parents' lifetimes, broke my heart and turned my stomach), I am so glad I read it. I feel more prepared to challenge racism in the Church. If you're looking for a light read, this isn't it -- but it was so valuable for me.
erintby's review against another edition
4.0
Excellent and necessary book! Brooks explores how white supremacy became institutionalized in the LDS Church. To justify the priesthood and temple ban on blacks, some Church leaders embraced an ahistorical view of the past, with some claiming God institute the ban since the Church’s restoration, conveniently forgetting that Joseph Smith did welcome and ordain Black men to the priesthood. But white supremacy did not end when the ban was lifted.
While it can be hard to read about prophets and other leaders who expressed racist views and supported racist policies, it is important to overcome the dangerous belief in prophet infallibility. Brooks documents exactly why the infallibility myth is so destructive to our faith and community in the context of white supremacy.
I especially enjoyed Chapter 5. It was refreshing to learn about Church members who did speak out according to their conscience, refusing to compromise on their belief that God is not racist. Though it was also disheartening to learn how those with more privileged status were the only ones allowed to express dissent without retribution (George Romney, Lowry Nelson, Stewart Udall), which most likely continues to be the case today.
There is so much more to be done. Just like with systemic racism in our country at large, we cannot simply move on and forget the past and expect the future to heal itself. We must make formal apologies, learn our true history, honestly admit that we were wrong, and adopt specific policies that dismantle white supremacy and teach antiracism going forward.
One of my favorite quotes is from Frederick Douglass: “He is a lover of his country who rebukes but does not excuse its sins.” I think the same could be said of one’s religion. I love my Church, and I don’t believe we should excuse our sins. We need a soul-searching and thorough repentance process. Like Brooks, I believe we can and must do better.
While it can be hard to read about prophets and other leaders who expressed racist views and supported racist policies, it is important to overcome the dangerous belief in prophet infallibility. Brooks documents exactly why the infallibility myth is so destructive to our faith and community in the context of white supremacy.
I especially enjoyed Chapter 5. It was refreshing to learn about Church members who did speak out according to their conscience, refusing to compromise on their belief that God is not racist. Though it was also disheartening to learn how those with more privileged status were the only ones allowed to express dissent without retribution (George Romney, Lowry Nelson, Stewart Udall), which most likely continues to be the case today.
There is so much more to be done. Just like with systemic racism in our country at large, we cannot simply move on and forget the past and expect the future to heal itself. We must make formal apologies, learn our true history, honestly admit that we were wrong, and adopt specific policies that dismantle white supremacy and teach antiracism going forward.
One of my favorite quotes is from Frederick Douglass: “He is a lover of his country who rebukes but does not excuse its sins.” I think the same could be said of one’s religion. I love my Church, and I don’t believe we should excuse our sins. We need a soul-searching and thorough repentance process. Like Brooks, I believe we can and must do better.
sbnich's review against another edition
3.0
An important work, highlighting the role of American religions in perpetuating white supremacy, from the perspective of Brooks, who is both a member of the Mormon faith and a scholar of gender and race.
The book is heavily academic, with lage-long paragraphs and a PhD-level vocabulary. This limits the appeal of the first half of the book, steeped in the historical and academic refutations of what has been presumptively canonized by white religious institutions, inclusive of the LDS faith.
The second half of the book, while still suffering from page-long paragraphs (what do academic publishers hold against pure readability with these absurdly long paragraphs.!), is a fast read, tight, and informative, while not losing its academic rigor.
Worth a read for anyone wanting to understand how to do better at dismantling systemic racism, with an interest in LDS/Mormon history, or critical but not heretical examination of the fallacies of men and the execution of Christian gospel.
The book is heavily academic, with lage-long paragraphs and a PhD-level vocabulary. This limits the appeal of the first half of the book, steeped in the historical and academic refutations of what has been presumptively canonized by white religious institutions, inclusive of the LDS faith.
The second half of the book, while still suffering from page-long paragraphs (what do academic publishers hold against pure readability with these absurdly long paragraphs.!), is a fast read, tight, and informative, while not losing its academic rigor.
Worth a read for anyone wanting to understand how to do better at dismantling systemic racism, with an interest in LDS/Mormon history, or critical but not heretical examination of the fallacies of men and the execution of Christian gospel.
ronald_schoedel's review against another edition
5.0
I first became aware of this book upon hearing a course at my alma mater, BYU Law School, was reading it. Upon hearing this, it became a “must read” for me. Having now read it, I believe it is a must read for white Latter-day Saints who want to follow President Nelson’s call to lead out in rejecting racism.
Law school was where I got my first serious introduction to systemic racism in 2010, when my study of the law inadvertently exposed to me the seriously unequal treatment of people of color under the American legal system that had existed since the beginning and continues to exist today.
RecognizIng that the American experiment did not do justice to all those who found themselves a part of it is not unpatriotic. Likewise, it is not unfaithful or apostate to recognize that the religious body we belong to has not always done right by its members of color or the vast majority of the world that is not white. Recognizing both of these truths is the first step to making things right and truly loving all of God’s children.
The church’s publication of the Priesthood Ban essay in 2013 was another critical moment in my personal journey on matters of race, this time as it intersects with my faith. This was the first time in print that an official source of the LDS church suggested anything less than infallibility on matters of doctrine, and all but states that the racial ban was an error. So systemic racism existed in the church; they admitted the blame for it could not be laid at God’s feet. Sure it took decades after the ban was lifted, but it was a huge step.
Any white Latter-day Saint should read this book. It can be painful. But that is important. We must reconcile these matters, not ignore them. We must see how the church has spent the last century first gaining acceptance into "white America" then entering and maintaining a pact with the white, right-conservative Protestant mainstream to allow systemic racism to be swept under the rug and to validate each other's racist actions. We must be the change the church needs and the world needs. Our ability to literally keep our baptismal covenant to mourn with those who mourn and to follow the two great commandments (love God and love others) depends on ridding racist beliefs and structures from ourselves individually and the institutions to which we belong.
Now, because of our unique culture and our predisposition to believe in institutional infallibility, and our general unwillingness to consider dissent as a faithful action or response, I have to add that this is not a seditious book. The author is a faithful church member. She wants her faith tradition to be welcoming for the vast majority of its members who are not white Americans. Numerous other faithful church members, including within BYU, are producing the scholarship that is nudging change within the institution. We are past the era of scholarship meeting with sanction or excommunication, thankfully. Let us do what we can to educate ourselves and others on the changes needed and how we can effect such change.
Law school was where I got my first serious introduction to systemic racism in 2010, when my study of the law inadvertently exposed to me the seriously unequal treatment of people of color under the American legal system that had existed since the beginning and continues to exist today.
RecognizIng that the American experiment did not do justice to all those who found themselves a part of it is not unpatriotic. Likewise, it is not unfaithful or apostate to recognize that the religious body we belong to has not always done right by its members of color or the vast majority of the world that is not white. Recognizing both of these truths is the first step to making things right and truly loving all of God’s children.
The church’s publication of the Priesthood Ban essay in 2013 was another critical moment in my personal journey on matters of race, this time as it intersects with my faith. This was the first time in print that an official source of the LDS church suggested anything less than infallibility on matters of doctrine, and all but states that the racial ban was an error. So systemic racism existed in the church; they admitted the blame for it could not be laid at God’s feet. Sure it took decades after the ban was lifted, but it was a huge step.
Any white Latter-day Saint should read this book. It can be painful. But that is important. We must reconcile these matters, not ignore them. We must see how the church has spent the last century first gaining acceptance into "white America" then entering and maintaining a pact with the white, right-conservative Protestant mainstream to allow systemic racism to be swept under the rug and to validate each other's racist actions. We must be the change the church needs and the world needs. Our ability to literally keep our baptismal covenant to mourn with those who mourn and to follow the two great commandments (love God and love others) depends on ridding racist beliefs and structures from ourselves individually and the institutions to which we belong.
Now, because of our unique culture and our predisposition to believe in institutional infallibility, and our general unwillingness to consider dissent as a faithful action or response, I have to add that this is not a seditious book. The author is a faithful church member. She wants her faith tradition to be welcoming for the vast majority of its members who are not white Americans. Numerous other faithful church members, including within BYU, are producing the scholarship that is nudging change within the institution. We are past the era of scholarship meeting with sanction or excommunication, thankfully. Let us do what we can to educate ourselves and others on the changes needed and how we can effect such change.
katykat_reads's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
mil35's review against another edition
4.0
Really well researched and important information. Just wish it was more accessible. It’s difficult read for a layperson like myself due to the dense scholarly nature of the writing. I found myself rereading nearly every sentence to parse what was being expressed in so few words.