Several weeks ago I was in downtown Salt Lake and decided to stop in at the Church History Library (not to be confused with the Family History Library or the Church History Museum). When I was last there several years ago they had a display of documents related to The Book of Abraham. There were different documents on display this time and as is too often the case with Church sites I wasn't able to just look around on my own, but was intercepted by a (senior) missionary who inisted on showing me around and giving me the spiel.

Some of the documents on display were related to the 'translation' and publication of the Book of Mormon. The missionary described the translation process as being accompliahed by Joseph peering into a "hat like object." I thought to myself "hat like object?". Can a hat correctly be described as a "hat like object" when it is in fact just a hat? 

The missionary gave me a little guide book that talked about the various documents on display. In the entry on the original Book of Mormon manuscript the text talks about how most of that document was destroyed by water damage, having been improperly sealed in a buildings corner stone. This corner stone was in the 'Nauvoo House', which it describes as "a place appointed by revelation for the lodging of vistors." This awkward phrasing seems a way to get around the less flattering and more straight forward: 'Joseph put this sacred document in a poorly insulated corner stone of a hotel he owned because he got the Church membership to build it for him.' Ironically the Church has never been more honest about its history then it is now.

An Introduction to 'Under the Banner of Heaven'

 Making some waves in certain circles recently is the new HULU limited series 'Under the Banner of Heaven'. Based on the 2003 non fiction book of the same name by Jon Krakauer, of 'Into the Wild' and 'Into Thin Air' fame. UTBOH uses the story of a relugiously motivated double murder in 1984 Utah, as a jumping off point for a larger discussion of religious excess, with Mormonism as its case study.

The new mini series was adapted by Oscar winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black (Milk) himself a former Mormon. Black insertes into the story a fictional LDS detective played by Andrew Garfield as an audiance surrogate figure.

Like the book before it the series has not been well recived by many in the broader Mormon community, which comprises a large number of Church's that trace their origins back to the teachings of Joseph Smith and The Book of Mormon. The Salt Lake City based Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is by far the largest of these denominations.  

Our intent is to discuss the series as both entertainment, and to examin some of the historical, social and religious issues on which it touches.