Tag Archives: Orson F. Whitney

New Release: Spanish Flu “Saturday Night Thoughts” by Orson F. Whitney

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Now on Project Gutenberg! Notable writer Elder Orson F. Whitney of the Twelve explained this book in its foreword as follows:

Most of the contents of this volume appeared originally as a series of articles in Saturday issues of the Deseret Evening News, beginning October 26, 1918, and ending May 31, 1919. As stated by the News, these articles “were designed to fill in some degree a spiritual void and meet a special need of those who were in the habit of attending Sunday services, but were denied that privilege by the prevalence of the influenza epidemic.” That epidemic caused a suspension of public gatherings for several months, and even made necessary the postponement of one General Conference of the Church.

It was during this period of suspension that these contributions to the Church organ began. They were given place on the editorial page, and subsequently the News said of them: “These ‘Thoughts’ have subserved a far more than temporary and passing purpose—they have stimulated study and deep reflection, and they have been greatly enjoyed and prized by the thoughtful reader everywhere.”

Among those who uttered similar sentiments was President George H. Brimhall, of the Brigham Young University, who, in a letter to the author, expressed the hope that provision would be made for publication of the essays in book form, “thus adding one more choice volume to Latter-day Saint literature, especially suited to the needs of students at home and missionaries abroad.” Like expressions came from President Heber J. Grant, Senator Reed Smoot, President John A. Widtsoe, of the University of Utah, and many other prominent people.

In response to this cordial, widespread sentiment of appreciation, and under the sanction of the General Authorities of the Church, the “Saturday Night Thoughts” were compiled for republication, and the result is here presented.

May, 1921

THE AUTHOR.

 

Now releasing…all the pamphlets!

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Not quite all the pamphlets, but Scrap Book of Mormon Literature vol. 2, now on PG, contains an embarrassment of riches. It includes about 45 selections from authors including:

  • Brigham Young
  • Joseph Fielding Smith
  • Heber J. Grant
  • B. H. Roberts
  • Parley P. Pratt
  • George Q. Cannon
  • Orson Pratt
  • Orson Hyde
  • Orson F. Whitney

Obviously that’s a pretty good cross section from the first century of Church writing, thanks to mission president and compiler Ben E. Rich. He included materials originally published everywhere from the Liverpool to Japan.

And if you’re wondering…you didn’t miss the release of volume 1; it’s just still in progress. Stay tuned. Fortunately the volumes work independently of each other.

Triple release: Orson F. Whitney, BoM stories, and “Heroines of Mormondom”

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Well, the blog has fallen behind on the actual pace of releases, so this is me catching up. Without further ado, the following are now out:

1. Gospel Themes by Elder Orson F. Whitney, originally released in 1914 as a priesthood manual, “made [a] significant contribution to the understanding of doctrine” per the Encyclopedia of Mormonism. Whitney was both an Apostle and a major LDS literary figure of his time, perhaps something like the Maxwell of his time–you may know him as the author of “The Wintry Day, Descending to Its Close.”

2. Heroines of Mormondom is an 1884 compilation from the Juvenile Instructor Office, in the vein of the Faith Promoting Series. It tells of Hyrum Smith’s widow Mary Fielding and her pioneer journey; Mary Chittenden, a British-Australian convert; and Amanda Smith, a survivor of the Haun’s Mill Massacre. It is the second book in the Noble Women’s Lives series; the first was Lydia Knight’s History, and best I can tell there are only the two.

3. Book of Mormon Stories is an early (1892) effort at adapting the Book of Mormon for children, specifically stories of Lehi and Nephi. It is complete with the original illustrations.

Happy reading!

Key Free Doctrinal Works: A Reading List from the Encyclopedia of Mormonism

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I recently stumbled on the Encyclopedia of Mormonism’s list of books that “have made significant contributions to the understanding of doctrine.” It’s an interesting reading list–if you want a thorough grounding in Mormon doctrine through the ages, these are the books–and naturally it lines up well with what people have chosen to get up on Project Gutenberg.

Here’s the pre-1923 (i.e. out of copyright) portion of that list, with links to PG for the works we’ve completed:

Read these books!

Largest release ever: five new e-books

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It was a productive summer, and my pace of writing official release posts for books has fallen behind volunteers’ pace of production. To catch up in one fell swoop, the following are now available on Project Gutenberg:

Rays of Living Light by Elder Charles W. Penrose is a collection of twelve pamphlets on basic doctrines of the gospel.

The Strength of the “Mormon” Position by Elder Orson F. Whitney is a 48-page pamphlet published by the missions of the Church in 1917.

Lydia Knight’s History by Susa Young Gates has a pretty self-explanatory title.

Gems for the Young Folks, the fourth book of the Faith-Promoting Series, is an anthology of missionary anecdotes and similar material.

Early Scenes in Church History, the eighth book of the Faith-Promoting Series, is a similar anthology.

I’d give more detail, but frankly I haven’t been able to read any of these yet. (Hazards of the pace we hit this summer.) Maybe in the future. Anyways, happy reading!