The nineteenth-century Mormon prophet Joseph Smith published a new scripture dominated by the figure of Jesus Christ; dictated revelations presented as the words of the Christian savior; spoke of encountering Jesus in visions; and told his followers that their messiah and king would soon return to the earth. From the author of the definitive life of Brigham Young comes a biography of the Mormon Jesus that revises and enriches our understanding of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.Over the past two hundred years; Jesus has connected the Latter-day Saints to broader currents of Christianity; even while particular Mormon beliefs and practices have been points of differentiation and conflict. The Latter-day Saints came to understand Jesus Christ as the literal son of his father; the exalted brother of God’s other spirit children; who should aspire to become like him. They gave new meaning to many titles for Jesus Christ: Father; Son of God; Lord; Savior; Firstborn; Elder Brother; Bridegroom; and Jehovah.While some early beliefs became canonized and others were discarded; Jesus Christ remains central to Latter-day Saint scripture; doctrine; and religious experience. Contemporary Mormon leaders miss no opportunity to proclaim their church’s devotion to the Christian savior; in part because evangelical Protestants denounce Mormonism as a non-Christian cult. This tension between Mormonism's distinctive claims and the church’s desire to be accepted as Christian; John G. Turner argues; continues to shape Mormon identity and attract new members to the church.
#256054 in Books Carruthers Susan L 2016-11-14Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.30 x 1.30 x 6.40l; .0 #File Name: 0674545702400 pagesThe Good Occupation American Soldiers and the Hazards of Peace
Review
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. A very good read gives an aspect of the occupation seldom visitedBy buskermanThe authors presentation of American occupation of Germany and Japan / Okinawaare excerpts of letters by the occupiers with narratives by the author fill in the blankspaces. The letters seem to make the occupiers the unhappy bunch and exploitedones where Rank Has Its Privilege (RHIP) as something new.There were no mentions in the excerpts from the letters of the AmericanOccupiers being as bad or worse than the Nazis .That the occupiers tortured the occupiedto get confessions they were Nazis or how they starved to Germans ; with Eisenhowersaying let them starve. Americans dumping unused food from mess halls outside thewire of compounds housing starving prisoners . Seems the letters and narratives makePatton out as a jerk . First thing Patton did was stop the torture by American Soldiersforcing ordinary Germans to confess to being Nazi's - He visited a prison where almost a 100% of the prisoners had crushed testicles; compliments of the interrogators.Patton also ran his part of Germany exactly like MacArthur did Japan ; using the peoplewho ran local governments during the war to keep things running then weeding out the Nazisas things went along.Read the book "After the Reich" to get accurate idea of the occupation. This is not theonly book on the subject but I find it one of the best.As far as the occupation of Japan a good book to read as how Japan was governedand why it emerged as it did is " Allied Occupation of Japan".Written by Eiji Takemae well researched ; does not go into abuses of the occupation just howJapan became what it did. MacArthur in all his arrogance did a good job of governingJapan ; choosing not to starve the Japanese. He let them govern themselves at the pointof the American bayonets.The description of the Japanese Surrender in Tokyo Bay is the best I have read. Themeticulous detail into the how and why things were done with the psychology behindevery orchestrated part .A very good read gives an aspect of the occupation seldom visited.4 of 5 people found the following review helpful. Too much emphasis on sexBy Delta D.Ambrose Bierce said "To be a Frenchman abroad is to be miserable. To be an American abroad is to make others miserable." This book; whilst dealing with a vitally important topic - i.e. what is the appropriate form of conduct for a victorious country occupying its defeated enemy post-war - seems too intent on exemplifying Bierce's remark. There's much to admire in this book - including the marked contrasts between occupation of Germany and the occupation of Japan - but there is too much description of the bad aspects of the two occupations and little space given to how this might have been improved. In particular; the processes of sexual gratification of the occupying forces - rape; formal prostitution; informal prostitution (i.e.attracting women with candy and cigarettes) and genuine affection - are given enormous prominence and I'm not convinced that this is the biggest takeaway from the the occupations.5 of 6 people found the following review helpful. Occupation - The Dark SideBy Fleeced.As I started reading this book; I was struck by the challenge and complexity of winning the peace after the brutal simplicity of war. The biases; foibles; and injustices effected by occupation forces are exemplified herein. However; by the time I was halfway through it was clear that the author had biases of her own. No mention or acknowledgement of any noble; positive; or humanitarian intent or manifestation is credited. Not a single American individual or action cited in this book had the slightest merit. I was disappointed to find that a promising study of a critical topic turned out to be so negatively one sided.
