Book: Pioneers in Every Land
Edited by: Bruce A. Van Orden, D. Brent Smith, and Everett Smith Jr.
Published by: Bookcraft: Salt Lake City, Utah, 1997.
Reviewed by: Ryan Reeder
During the 1997 Pioneer Sesquicentennial of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, worldwide pioneers were recognized. "'The Church has been moving out across the world in a remarkable way," President Hinckley said, "and each time that hte gospel is introduced into a country, there are pioneers who participate in the opening of this work" (1). Recognizing this observance, the editors of this book compiled the stories of various pioneers from a good sampling of time and space throughout Church history. Early saints who immigrated from Europe are included here, as well as members' experiences during World War II, and the opening of missionary work in their countries during the modern era. They include pioneers from North America, eastern and western Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Africa. This generous sampling is one of the book's greatest strengths.
The articles, some autobiographical, some written by close friends or relatives, others by church scholars, do not seem to be written in any particular order. For example, the first article is about a blind Thai convert who currently serves as the first patriarch in Thailand. This is followed by an account of a famous Yugoslav basketball player whose popular appeal helped open doors in his native land. The next article is about Charles O. Card, who founded the community of Cardston, Alberta, Canada when the United States government was persecuting the church for its polygamous practices. The thirteen stories display the church from a variety of cultural, temporal, religious, and socioeconomic perspectives, with the common thread of the pioneer spirit unifying the work.
One relation which I found particularly well-written is the account of Arwell L. Pierce written by LaMond Tullis, a professor at Brigham Young University. The Third Convention, a group of Mexican Saints, broke off from the main body in the 1930s. Tullis describes his subject as a caring individual who almost single-handedly brought back the Third Conventionists after this schism. He unifies his writing with the theme of the difference one can make. An account that I found less satisfying was that of Ketan Patel, who told his personal story of his conversion from Hinduism to Mormonism. The article brushes quickly over his experiences that prepared him to accept the gospel, and focuses mainly on his testimony. While I do not deny that Patel's testimony is germane to this article, I would have liked to have seen the article emphasize his experiences more. In addition, the article read as if he were responding to a mailed questionnaire from the editors.
In all, however, the book was well written. It compiled the experiences of a wide range of individuals who have blazed trails for the church in many lands. While lacking in a few respects, such as an epilogue which may have given closure to the book, it is a fitting complement to the Church's 1997 worldwide pioneer celebrations.