The Council of Fifty: A Documentary History – Jedediah S.
Rogers – 2 Stars
Title: The
Council of Fifty: A Documentary History
Author: Jedediah
S. Rogers
Publisher: Signature
Books
Year: Hardcover
2014
Rating: 2 STARS
Price and
Purchasing Options: The best option to pick up this book is going to be
from Amazon – and you will probably pay around 49.95 or a little less. This book probably will not be at Deseret
Book, as they don’t seem to be Signature Book fans, and this book didn’t get
enough rotation to be in most second hand options but you can always try your luck at eBay (here).
Review: This was probably one of the biggest
disappointments of that year; however, it wasn’t the editor/author’s fault as
much as the content that he had to work with.
The Council of Fifty was a council or quorum that Joseph
Smith began shortly before he was assassinated (1844). This council was a pattern or model of a
council that would be the political or secular form of government during the millennium
– in contrast to the Council of Twelve which would govern spiritually. The Council of Fifty composed of both members
of the church as well as non-members, and was someone secretive, or not
commonly discussed or known among the general membership of the church. This
was a common theme in the later years of Joseph’s ministry – as he would often
try to prove the model or idea out before he tried explaining more complicated concepts
to the general membership of the church.
Shortly after his death it kind of just faded away,
although in different times and seasons Brigham Young tried to re-engage the council. Although, it sounds more like out of
obligation than anything else.
Because of the lack of information, the Council of Fifty
had eventually become the things of legend and folklore among some members of
the church; imagining a “secret council to rule the world!” In some contexts the words are not wrong, but
it appears the unusual sensationalism around the council probably was misguided.
With that initial background this book was highly
anticipated – it was to document as much as possible the personal experiences
and writings of those who participated in The Council of Fifty.
However, from the very beginning of the book the editor
tries to highlight the objective of the text, but then readily admits that his
text will not include the more important minutes of the meetings. These minutes he was not given access to by
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but they would later be
included in one of the volumes of the Joseph
Smith Papers Projects (Administrative Records). So immediately, as the reader you realize
that the text you are about to read will not be comprehensive at all, and will not
give you the core information. What a
downer – right off the bat!
Then in the remaining content, you do learn quite a bit –
and it is interesting… kind of. This is because
the most important thing you learn is that the Council of Fifty was not a big
deal in the grand scheme of things. It
was a big idea by Smith, and with some potential to it, but without Smith’s
guidance it just fizzled with no one really knowing what it was, what it was
for, and what it was supposed to become.
It is even clear that during Smith’s life, with the exception of some
grand “launch” sermon about it governing the world during the millennium… he
also didn’t do much with it.
The book leads you to conclude that unfortunately, the
Council of Fifty really wasn’t a big deal at all… to anyone really; except the
few who anticipated something grander to come from it – mostly those members
who were members of the Council of Fifty, but not members of anything else
significant in the church.
In this light, and to no fault of the author/editor, the
book is sub-par. This isn’t because it
wasn’t written, edited or complied well – it is just clear that the content is
much less valuable than the sensational anticipation let on.
With that said, I give this 2 Stars. If you are already a fan of the Council of
Fifty, and need to fulfill that desire to have this sit on your bookshelf… go
for it. If not, or you don’t know
anything about the Council of Fifty – don’t start here… or even better don’t worry
about it and go read something else.
Suggestions: I would recommend for most, just to read
something else. For those who have to
because of some obsession to be “that guy” (like me)… pick it up – go through
it fast, so as to not waste much time on it.
I hope you have enjoyed this review, and I encourage your
to follow this blog as I update more reviews in the coming days, weeks, months,
etc. Please feel free to also follow my
YouTube page – however, I enjoy writing more than being on camera!
Tags: 2 Stars,
Documentary History, Historical, Council of Fifty, Council of Fifty: A
Documentary History, Jedediah S. Rogers
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