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Disenchanted Lives
Apostasy and Ex-Mormonism among the Latter-day Saints
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E. Marshall Brooks
Language:
English
Published/Copyright:
2018
About this book
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS or Mormons), often heralded as the fastest growing religion in American history, is facing a crisis of apostasy. Rather than strengthening their faith, the study of church history and scriptures by many members pushes them away from Mormonism and into a growing community of secular ex-Mormons. In Disenchanted Lives, E. Marshall Brooks provides an intimate, in-depth ethnography of religious disenchantment among ex-Mormons in Utah. Showing that former church members were once deeply embedded in their religious life, Brooks argues that disenchantment unfolds as a struggle to overcome the spiritual, social, and ideological devotion ex-Mormons had to the religious community and not out of a lack of dedication as prominently portrayed in religious and scholarly writing on apostasy.
Author / Editor information
E. Marshall Brooks is an assistant professor in the Department of Family Medicine and Population Health and lectures in the School of World Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond.
Reviews
"Contributes to the larger matter in religious studies of why people leave faith traditions even after years of investment."
— Reading Religion"The strongest and most intriguing section of the book observes the ways that disenchantment is not simply a matter of rationality and reason coming to win out over faith, but how there are 'emotional, psychological, and embodied dimensions' of leaving the church and its beliefs as well."
— Mormon Studies Review"The book is balanced and well-informed, driven not by ideology but by a desire to position the ex-Mormon experience with sensitivity and in the light of other scholarship on religious disaffection. It makes four primary contributions to advance the existing literature."
— Dialogue Journal
— Religion News Service
"An extremely frank, thoughtful, compelling, and analytically rich exploration of contemporary apostasy and religious defection within a Mormon context. As more and more people walk away from their religion, it is essential that we understand the various dynamics at play—and Brooks's investigation on this front is not only highly readable, but extremely insightful. One of the best in-depth studies of apostasy I've ever encountered. Brooks's Disenchanted Lives is excellent. Highly recommended."
— Phil Zuckerman, author of Living the Secular Life"Disenchanted Lives is one of the best examinations of religious belief and disbelief published in recent years. It shines in the way Brooks illustrates social science processes with case studies. This is an excellent book worth reading by all who are interested in religion and religious disaffiliation."
— Free InquiryTopics
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Frontmatter
i -
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Contents
v -
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Preface
vii -
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Introduction: The “Crisis of Apostasy” in Modern Mormonism
1 -
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1. Ambivalent Pasts: Sacred History and the Crisis of Memory
24 -
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2. “Digging Too Deep”: The Paradox of Faith
51 -
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3. “The Other Side of Happiness”: Disenchantment, Loss, and World Collapse
97 -
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4. “I Lost My Body to the Church”: Sexual and Spiritual (Dis)Embodiment
122 -
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5. “Living in the Shadow of the Church”: Apostasy, Stigma, and Projective Fantasy
154 -
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6. “I’m Apostate, Yes I Am”: The Politics and Performance of Secular Identity
173 -
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7. Religious (Dis)Identification: Acquiescence and Anger on the Edge of Mormonism
200 -
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Conclusion: “Pastoral Apologetics” and the Future of Mormonism
218 -
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Notes
223 -
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References
227 -
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Index
239 -
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About the Author
247
Publishing information
Pages and Images/Illustrations in book
eBook published on:
September 2, 2019
eBook ISBN:
9780813592220
Pages and Images/Illustrations in book
eBook ISBN:
9780813592220
Keywords for this book
Mormon Church; Mormon; religion; apostasy; secular; ex-Mormon; Utah; Mormonism; anthropology; sociology; religious studies; Mormon Social Science Association; The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; LDS; history; scriptures; ethnography; faith; church history; spiritual; social; and ideological devotion; contemporary Mormonism; cultural Mormons; spiritual-atheists; conservative religious tradition; identity; ideologies; beliefs; practices; culture; Pastoral Apologetics; sacred history; future of Mormonism
Audience(s) for this book
For universities and colleges of further and higher education
