Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought

philosophy journal

Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought is an independent quarterly journal that addresses a wide range of issues on Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint Movement. The journal publishes peer reviewed academic articles on subjects such as anthropology, sociology, theology, history, and science. The journal also publishes fiction, poetry, and graphic arts. Dialogue authors regularly include both members of the Mormon community and non Mormon scholars interested in Mormon studies. Douglas Davies and Jan Shipps are some of the non Mormon academics that publish in Dialogue. Examples of Mormon authors are Eugene England, Richard Bushman, Claudia Bushman, Gregory Prince, and Mary Lythgoe Bradford.

Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, is the oldest independent journal in Mormon studies. Dialogue was originally the creation of a group of young Mormon scholars at Stanford University led by Eugene England, and G. Wesley Johnson. Dialogue's original offices were located at Stanford. Brent Rushforth aided in Dialogue's initiation. The first issue appeared in the spring of 1966, and during its first few years the editorial board and staff came to include many notables in the subsequent history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints, such as Richard Bushman, Chase Peterson, Stanford Cazier, Dallin H. Oaks, Cherry Silver, Karen Rosenbaum, and Laurel Thatcher Ulrich. Dialogue is known for publishing groundbreaking articles from respected Mormon scholars and writers such as Armand Mauss, Hugh Nibley, Lester Bush, and D. Michael Quinn. Two key sponsors and advisors from the beginning were Lowell L. Bennion, of the LDS Institute at the University of Utah, and Leonard J. Arrington, later the official historian of the LDS Church. Dialogue has nevertheless remained independent of church auspices over the years because of its readers and donors. In February 2019, Dialogue announced that it was making all of its past and current content available to everyone for free on a new web page. The journal switched from a subscription to a donation system.

Name Term Notes Eugene England and G. Wesley Johnson 1966–1970 Based in Stanford Robert A. Rees 1970–1976 Based in Los Angeles Mary Lythgoe Bradford 1977–1982 Based in Virginia Linda King Newell and L. Jackson Newell 1982–1986 Husband and wife team, based in Salt Lake City F. Ross Peterson and Mary Kay Peterson 1987–1992 Martha Sonntag Bradley and Allen D. Roberts 1993–1998 Neal Chandler and Rebecca Worthen Chandler 1999–2003 Based in Shaker Heights, Ohio Karen Marguerite Moloney 2004 Only for spring issue Levi S. Peterson 2004–2008 English professor at Weber State, biographer, novelist Kristine Haglund 2009–2015 Boyd Jay Petersen 2016–2019 Mormon studies program coordinator at UVU Taylor Petrey 2019– Associate Professor of Religion at Kalamazoo College

In 2005 Dialogue dipped its toe into the Mormon blogosphere with several of its editorial and board members participating as long term guest contributors to the Mormon blog By Common Consent. Then in early 2006 Dialogue introduced "Dialogue Paperless" at Dialoguejournal. com, with sections for ePapers, News, Letters, and Book Reviews. The "e Papers" section intended to "supplement the printed journal by housing digital documents that qualify as papers complete pieces, duly refereed and edited and hitherto unpublished." Early e Papers included D. Michael Quinn's "Joseph Smith's Experience of a Methodist "Camp Meeting" in 1820," and articles by other authors comprising a "Critique and Defense of Chiasmus in the Book of Mormon."

In 2005, Dialogue received 1,332 responses to a subscriber survey. Dialogue reports the following responses:

The geographic location of respondents was: Utah (33%), California (17%), other Western states—Rockies to the Coast (19%), the Northeast (10 12%), elsewhere (20%). Less than 1% lived outside the U. S., though there is some indication that the availability of online subscriptions may be changing the level of international readership. The terminal education degree of respondents was: doctoral degree (40%), Master's (31%), Bachelor's degree (21%), and no degree (7%). 66% of respondents attend worship service every week, and another 12% attend "most weeks" (total 78%). 59% of today's readers are returned missionaries. Respondents subscribe to or regularly read the following other Mormon related publications: BYU Studies (29%), Ensign (66%), FARMS Review of Books (13%), John Whitmer Historical Association Journal (9%), Irreantum, the AML journal (10%), Journal of Book of Mormon Studies (17%), Journal of Mormon History (25%), Sunstone (68%), and Utah Historical Quarterly (13%). 90% of respondents are members of the LDS Church. Around 6% of respondents described themselves as having left the LDS Church and most of these have affiliated with other denominations. 81% of respondents either "strongly" (32%) or "somewhat" (49%) agreed that Dialogue contributes to their personal spiritual or religious enrichment. 84% of respondents viewed the Book of Mormon as "authentic in any sense." The way in which the Book of Mormon was viewed as authentic was: Literal Historical Record (almost 40%) Theology & Moral Teaching Authentic, Historicity Doubtful (24%) Moral Teachings Sound, Historicity & Divine Origin Doubtful (12%), 19th Century Literary Product (14%). Two thirds (68%) of respondents find Dialogue's "current content and editorial tone" to be predominantly "objective and "independent," 9% find it to be "hypercritical and negative," 8% find the content/tone to be "bland, uncritical," and 13% reported that it "depends on the subject."