889: Greg Prince - Leonard Arrington and the Writing of Mormon History Pt. 1

Returning to Mormon Stories, Dr. Greg Prince delves into the life and legacy of Leonard Arrington—considered by many to be the foremost twentieth-century historian of Mormonism. This interview follows closely the abstract of the book: "Leonard Arrington’s career was not without controversy. Gregory Prince takes an in-depth look at this respected historian and, in telling Arrington’s story, gives readers insight into the workings of the LDS Church in the late twentieth century. In 1972, during a major reorganization of the LDS Church, Arrington was asked to serve as the official church historian, thereby becoming the first—and thus far the only—professional historian to hold that title. He immediately set out to professionalize the entire Church History Division and open its extensive archives to scholarly researching. While the output of and from that division moved Mormon studies to a new level, the shift of historiography from faith promotion ecclesiastical, to scholarly and professional research and analysis was unacceptable to a handful of powerful senior apostles. In 1980 the History Division was disassembled and moved to Brigham Young University. That led to a shift in the professionalization of the Church History Division and Archives and in Arrington’s career but not to a loss of his broad influence." ________________________ Part 1: Greg discusses why he chose to write this book and describes how Leonard Arrington became LDS Church Historian Part 2: Greg discusses significant events that occurred during Leonard Arrington's administration Part 3: Greg describes the legacy of Leonard Arrington and shares his thoughts on where the LDS Church presently stands in its presentation of church history ________________________