God Has Made Us a Kingdom: James Strang and the Midwest Mormons
Salt Lake City: Signature Books, 2006. First printing. Hardcover/dust jacket. 376 pp.
Was polygamy the downfall of the Strangite kingdom or was it something far more ominous and wide-reaching? Vickie Cleverley Speek examines the charismatic figure of James J. Strang and provides a detailed first look at his wives, children, and the Strangite families left behind at his martyrdom. She makes an especially close examination of the practice of “consecration of gentile property” in the Strangite colonies on Beaver Island in Lake Michigan. Were the Strangites guilty of piracy and other crimes, and if so, to what extent?
Strang was considered the prophetic successor to Joseph Smith for the Mormons of the Midwest who later formed the nucleus for the membership of what is now the Community of Christ. Today, 150 years after Strang’s death, about 100 faithful followers in the United States still await the emergence of another prophet to succeed Strang. In the prophetic tradition of Joseph Smith, Strang similarly excavated ancient metallic plates and translated them into the Book of the Law of the Lord and the Rajah Manchou of Vorito. Like Joseph Smith, Strang instigated polygamy, secret ceremonies, baptism for the dead, and communal living. He also introduced a bloomer-like fashion for women, as well as other innovations. Like Joseph Smith, he had himself crowned king of the world. New. Item #13260
ISBN: 9781560851929
Price: $34.95