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9 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
A Misnomer, April 17, 2007
This review is from: Statements of the LDS First Presidency: A Topical Compendium (Paperback)
This book attempts to gather authoritative statements of Mormon doctrine from the highest authority in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. In doing so, it assumes an awesome responsibility - first, determining what is an authoritative statement and second, sifting through those statements to provide the information in an accessible, and interesting, manner. The book succeeds at the second effort. The book is laid-out well and accessible. We may quibble over topical choices, for example less space probably needs to be given to such well-trod topics as "faith," but the book as a whole is a good resource, particularly for the preparation of lessons and church discourses. The book fails, however, in the first area. Granted, this is a particularly thorny topic and many have, and will continue to have, heated debates about what is an authoritative source. The book prefaces its selection with a strict methodology - generally a statement made under the First Presidency's signature, but with some other allowances - but then fails to follow it. The reader is left to wonder where in the hierarchy of doctrine the cited "press releases" must fit. Is the church PR department endowed with the power to establish doctrine or even speak as the First Presidency? Are the correlated materials like "Gospel Principles" a definitive source for doctrine? How about the "First Presidency Message" section of the Ensign, a brief article usually culled from previous talks? Sometimes, the compilers provide quotes from the First Presidency Secretary, such as by Claire Middlemiss, but never discuss the canonical implications of using those as sources. These are not all statements by the First Presidency, nor are they authoritative doctrine announcements. Honestly, James R. Clark did a much better job in his unabridged six-volume set of relying on statements that the governing body of the church has approved. I would prefer to see a condensed version of his work than reliance on the Preach My Gospel handbook, whose author could be a church office building middle manager as easily as the prophet himself. In the end, the name "Statements of the First Presidency" is a misnomer. It should have been called . . . well, "Mormon Doctrine" . . . ok, that one has been taken, though many of the statements in the two books are of the same doctrinal validity.
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9 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Could be useful were it not misleading, January 15, 2009
This review is from: Statements of the LDS First Presidency: A Topical Compendium (Paperback)
This book rates one star because although it does contain some actual "statements of the First Presidency", most of its contents do not qualify as such, and a reader not familiar with the criteria for identifying whether or not something is such a statement, will be mislead. Those not familiar with what consititutes a "Statement Of The First Presidency" of the L.D.S. Church, which includes most people, including a great many members of the L.D.S. Church,might assume from the title that the contents of this book are official doctrinal statements, or procedural directives, by the Church's highest authorities. The First Presidency has, in fact, made few official doctrinal pronouncements and when it does they are easy to identify and there is no ambiguity about it. The First Presidency does regularly issue procedural or organizational or policy directives that address immediate or emerging issues, or with respect to new initiatives or changes in existing programs or procedures. These latter statements are also unambiguous, are in writing over the signatures of the members of the First Presidency, and are clear on the subject matter, the directive, and its applicability. In short, a "statement by the First Presidency" is always unmistakably by the First Presidency; is made by the entire First Presidency; is in writing or in a public and recorded oral statement expressly stated to be by the First Presidency; is unambiguous in its addressees, subject, and content; and other than internal, private communications from the First Presidency to other Church officers, is not confidential and certainly not "secret". That leaves few, actual, Statements of the LDS First Presidency, far fewer than are in this book. With respect to each of the two kinds of statements: the doctrinal statements do not go farther than is necessary for the subject at hand; and the organizational, procedural or policy directives are subject to revision, replacement, or withdrawal as the ongoing development of the Church and its programs requires. Many Presidents of the Church have expressly stated that the Church is governed by on-going revelation in the appointed way; and those, such as this reviewer, who have had a first-hand glimpse at the work as it is in process, see abundant evidence of that. Any of that revelation which is needed for the direction or guidance of the general membership or leadership of the Church is published clearly and without ambiguity. Knowing this, one finds little of value in this book, and a great potential for misinformation. Those items which are in fact actual "statements of the First Presidency" are available already in numerous publications; and the vast bulk of the book does not qualify as "statements of the First Presidency", leaving those unfamiliar with the meaning of the term with misunderstandings and in confusion.
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2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Very Useful But Could Be Improved, September 28, 2007
This review is from: Statements of the LDS First Presidency: A Topical Compendium (Paperback)
This is an important book that is definitely worth purchasing because it makes hundreds of quotes taken from First Presidency statements accessible in one volume. In my opinion, it's a must-have for the bookshelf of every LDS household. However, I hope the authors/editors will address the following weaknesses in any future version: (1) The book desperately needs a listing of topics at the front of the book. I honestly cannot understand how someone could spend countless hours compiling these quotes for the sake of making them accessible, and then undermine that whole effort by failing to provide a list of topics at the front of the book. There is an index at the back, but it is not arranged using the topical headings that are contained in the book. (2) The authors need to be careful of using potentially misleading headings. For example, one of the topical headings is "Infallibility" But the quotes appearing under that heading do not use the word "infallibility" or "infallible", and I think it is a stretch to turn those quotes into a claim of infallibility. Moreover, I have seen more than a few statements from General Authorities where they expressly deny any claim to "infallibility". So a heading like this can be doctrinally misleading. (3) The topical headings could definitely be much better. They are too general, which forces the reader to wade through a lot of off-point quotes to get to the specific issue you're looking for. I hope any future version is broken down into more specific, more useful topical headings. Overall, a very important and useful book that is definitely worth buying.
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