Radical Origins: Early Mormon Converts and Their Colonial Ancestors [Hardcover]

Val D. Rust (Author)

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Product Details

Hardcover: 272 pages
Publisher: University of Illinois Press (May 12 2004)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0252029100
ISBN-13: 978-0252029103
Product Dimensions: 23.1 x 15 x 2.5 cm
Shipping Weight: 476 g

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Product Description

Val D. Rust's "Radical Origins" investigates whether the unconventional religious beliefs of their colonial ancestors predisposed early Mormon converts to embrace the "radical" message of Joseph Smith Jr. and his new church. Utilizing a unique set of meticulously compiled genealogical data, Rust uncovers the ancestors of early church members throughout what we understand as the radical segment of the Protestant Reformation. Coming from backgrounds in the Antinomians, Seekers, Anabaptists, Quakers, and the Family of Love, many colonial ancestors of the church's early members had been ostracized from their communities. Expelled from the Massachusetts Bay Colony, some were whipped, mutilated, or even hanged for their beliefs. Rust shows how family traditions can be passed down through the generations, and can ultimately shape the outlook of future generations. This, he argues, extends the historical role of Mormons by giving their early story significant implications for understanding the larger context of American colonial history. Featuring a provocative thesis and stunning original research, "Radical Origins" is a remarkable contribution to our understanding of religion in the development of American culture and the field of Mormon history.

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Amazon.com: 5.0 out of 5 stars (2 customer reviews)

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Exhaustive Research & Fascinating Concept, Feb 24 2005

By Wade Lillywhite - Published on Amazon.com

This review is from: Radical Origins: Early Mormon Converts and Their Colonial Ancestors (Hardcover)

Through exhaustive genealogical and historical research, as well as an interesting new hypothesis, Val Rust has endeavored to show that the roots of Mormonism extend well back of the 1830 date of the official organization of the Church. He has identified 583 of the earliest converts and carefully reconstructed genealogies and attendant family histories for each. The result is really quite fascinating. A majority of the earliest converts to Mormonism came from family religious traditions that uniquely prepared them to accept the radical new Church. Ancestors of Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, Parley P. Pratt and other lesser known founding fathers, have a religious heritage spread among the Antinomians, Seekers, Anabaptists, Quakers and other radical religions (including the Family of Love). Rust endeavors to show that a proclivity for free-thinking in religious matters as well as a family tradition of "seeking" a restoration of original Christianity was transmitted along family lines. Although treated elsewhere, I particularly enjoyed Rust's presentation of the strong New England influence on Joseph Smith's family, and the indentifying of specific congregations to which they belonged.

To my knowledge, an attempt of this kind has never been made before, at least not on this scale. And it would be safe to say that Rust succeeds quite nicely with his hypothesis. While those unfamiliar to Mormonism may find find some of the references to earliest Mormon history a little arcance, there is no denying that he makes a compelling case for a people prepared to receive a restoration of the gospel. A 40-page appendix gives ther names of all 583 early converts in this study, together with their known ancestors through five generations.

This is the kind of work that reshapes our view of history and encourages us to look in a different direction for an historical understanding of those spiritual forces that drive us all. We need more research of this kind.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Very Interesting Work, Mar 22 2011

By Michael J. Meehan "Michael J. Meehan" - Published on Amazon.com

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This review is from: Radical Origins: Early Mormon Converts and Their Colonial Ancestors (Hardcover)

Not being a Mormon, I approached this book somewhat hesitantly, but ended up being quite impressed by the author's research in proving his thesis. This book is an interesting and intricate detailing of the ancestry of those individuals who were numbered among the first converts of Joseph Smith in New York and Pennsylvania. The premise is that the majority of these early converts were descended from certain individuals who practiced "unorthodox" religious beliefs and migrated to western New York from New England. Basically, the idea behind the book is that these individuals, because of the history of radical religious thought and expression in their ancestry, were more likely to accept the rather radical ideas of Joseph Smith. Anyone interested in the Second Great Awakening or the Burned Over District would definitely find this book interesting.

› Go to Amazon.com to see both reviews 5.0 out of 5 stars