Samuel M. Brown

“Investigating Mormon Masonry” February 25 in Seattle

smb — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 14:15:14 +0000

Samuel Brown, author of _In Heaven as It Is On Earth; Joseph Smith and the Early Mormon Conquest of Death_, will speak at Molly Bennion’s home in the 98112 zip code in Seattle at 7pm on February 25. The subject for the evening will be “Investigating Mormon Masonry.”

Intersections between Mormonism and American Freemasonry have caused considerable controversy among Latter-day Saints and their critics. The large majority of the work on this topic, on both sides, is intensely myopic. In this presentation, which extends the treatment of Masonry in _In Heaven_, Sam explores the assumptions central to the study of Mormon Masonry, considering how to understand influence and tradition, while exploring the meaning of Western esotericism at the intersections of early Mormonism and American Freemasonry.

Because space is limited, RSVP is required. Comments, questions, and confirmations should be directed to Molly Bennion at bennion AT seanet DOT com.

Seattle North Stake Fireside

smb — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 14:00:06 +0000

I will be speaking February 26 at 7pm at the Seattle North Stake, 5701 8th Ave NE, Seattle 98105 on “The Early Mormon Conquest of Death.” The talk will be designed primarily for an LDS audience and will be followed by a Q&A.

Diagnosing History

smb — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 22:11:07 +0000

In this guest post at Religion in American History, I describe the relationships between my work as a physician, medical researcher, and historian.

Feedback with Dave Cawley

smb — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 23:39:32 +0000

In this interview for Feedback with Dave Cawley, we discuss the delicate balance required to write Mormon history that is fair to Mormons and fair to interested outsiders. We also explore some of the ideas and beliefs that Mormons shared or rejected with their neighbors in early America.

Patheos: “Sorry, Grim Reaper–Families are Forever”

smb — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 05:16:21 +0000

Ben Park at Patheos writes,

All historians of early Mormon thought must come to terms with Samuel Brown’s remarkable scholarship, which should prove to be foundational for all future work on Joseph Smith. Exhaustively research, creatively imagined, and powerfully written, In Heaven as it is on Earth is prime evidence for the maturation of Mormon Studies.

Religion in American History

smb — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 02:00:13 +0000

At the Religion in American History blog, historian John G. Turner praised In Heaven as “a rich and persuasive reinterpretation of Joseph Smith’s most significant theological and ritual innovations.”

Contextualizing early Mormon beliefs

smb — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 15:30:42 +0000

In Heaven tried not only to think through the big problem of explaining death but also to make sense of early Mormonism for outsiders. In this post on the Oxford UP blog, I contextualize two of the beliefs currently circulating in the media.

On Doug Wright’s Everday Lives, Everyday Values on KSL radio

smb — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 23:15:56 +0000

Sunday, January 15, around 9:05 am, tune in to KSL’s live feed to hear a discussion with Doug Wright about In Heaven.

The show has archived our interview. The interview starts around 04:07 in the MP3 file.

CW Pick for City Weekly

smb — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 02:39:30 +0000

City Weekly has a very gracious review and designated the book a “CW Pick”:

In Heaven is “compelling new book” and “a detailed piece of social history.”

Video from Benchmark Reading

smb — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 18:59:45 +0000

The Benchmark crew have graciously provided video footage from the book talk I gave on January 10.

Video from Youtube