The word "remember" is used by prophets in the Book of Mormon more than 200 times, Church Historian Marlin K. Jensen says, a fact that speaks volumes about the importance of recalling the church's past.

"Without our past, it's very difficult, I think, to live properly in the present and have hope, and live in a way that we can receive our expectations in our future," said Elder Jensen of the First Quorum of the Seventy, who was called to be a general authority in 1989.

Elder Jensen has overseen the recording and dissemination of church history ever since President Gordon B. Hinckley called him to the office in 2005. With a background in law -- not history -- Elder Jensen said he was humbled by the calling, but knows he's in good company.

"I'm only a historian by yearning, not by training," he said. "But then, I'm not sure that Moroni or Mormon were trained historians, either."

Responsibilities

The duties of the church historian are laid out clearly in the scriptures, Elder Jensen said. Doctrine and Covenants Section 85 states: "It is the duty of the Lord's clerk, whom he has appointed, to keep a history, and a general church record of all things that transpire in Zion ..." It also states that the records kept should include details about the Saints' "... manner of life, their faith and works."

Within the church, every stake submits an annual report to headquarters in Salt Lake City, which makes its way to the history department. Important documents such as transcripts of general conference talks, minutes from meetings of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and some financial records are also maintained by the history department. Those records that need to be kept in perpetuity are stored on microfilm and kept at the Granite Mountain Vault.

The department also collects everything it can that mentions the church, Elder Jensen said.



"There's also something that's called the journal history that we keep, which in a sense is a giant scrapbook that on a daily basis includes everything appearing about the church across the world," he said. "And of course now we have someone who also roams across the Internet and picks up what's being said and written and reported about the church."

This collected information may come from news agencies, blogs or movies, Elder Jensen said, and includes both favorable and unfavorable items.

Keeping or storing records is only one aspect of the calling, he said. Sharing and making them available are just as important.

"We collect church history and materials, we preserve them, and from those materials we share the history of the church," he said.

The construction of the Church History Library just east of the Conference Center has helped in that sharing process. Also beneficial have been the publishing of historical accounts such as the church-supported book "Massacre at Mountain Meadows," and most recently the Joseph Smith Papers Project.

Elder Jensen said both of these publications are evidence of the church's willingness to share as much information as it has.

"The church allowed (the publication of 'Massacre at Mountain Meadows') to happen and supported it so that it could happen. We're doing really the same with Joseph Smith now. There's no effort there to conceal anything about Joseph. It's to put the documents out and let the world come in and read them and draw their own conclusions. And we think Joseph will tell his own story and withstand scrutiny very, very well."

Elder Jensen said members of the church are not "afraid of information," and the church makes no effort to conceal or hide, but rather attempts to make as much of its history available as it can.

"The Book of Mormon records the good and the bad about people. For every Corianton, there's a Shiblon. "Those writers made no effort to conceal the strengths and weaknesses of people. That's how we learn. That's how history is. And I sense the same thing on the part of our leaders. They want the proper story told."

A tradition of recording

The church historian position has been around since the day the church was organized, first held by Oliver Cowdery and about a year later, John Whitmer. The fact that the calling was created in 1830 -- when The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints had little history to speak of -- says something of the importance God places on keeping both church-wide and personal histories, Elder Jensen said.

"Our history is especially critical, because in a sense, we rise or fall with our history," he said. "If those early beginning stories that Joseph Smith told us are true, then we are the only true church as we contend. If they're not true, then we don't have what we purport to have. ... So history is such an important part of our existence that it is logical that the church would want a historian appointed."

God has always mandated that his followers record their experiences, and those faithful writings constitute the scriptures members have today, he said.

"We know that the scriptures that we treasure as Latter-day Saints primarily are historical records," Elder Jensen said. "Within that history, we find our doctrine and the Lord's word to us."

Unlike in ancient civilizations, however, a plethora of writings outside of the realm of scripture from Joseph Smith's day still exist today. Church historians and members gone by truly took the commandment to record to heart, and there are volumes upon volumes of records from the first days of the church up through the present day.

Elder Jensen said if Joseph Smith was a fraud, he wouldn't have put such an emphasis on record-keeping.

"My thought is if Joseph had meant to deceive mankind, it's not likely at all that he would have wanted to keep a record because records are what can incriminate as well as exonerate," Elder Jensen said. "Ultimately, the question of whether this is the true church or whether it is not is a matter of faith."

What to study

Recording isn't the only commandment, though, as members have also always been commanded to read and remember the things that have been written. The prophet Alma, for instance, began his sermon in Alma 5 by exhorting his people to study their histories.

"He really begins his attempt to awaken and revitalize the members of that church by directing them to their past," Elder Jensen said. "So there's always benefit to be had by going back to our founding stories."

Elder Jensen said there is benefit to be gained by reading from all eras of church history as well as from learning the historical context and societies in which the stories exist.

"There's a need, I think, for members of the church to become more familiar with all the periods of our history," he said. "In that remembering, not only is there gratitude that's produced, but there's faith that can be drawn, hope that can be drawn, resolve that can be drawn from how others have responded to God and how he has responded to them and how he will respond to us in our day under our circumstances."

For members interested in studying the first 100 years of the modern church, Elder Jensen recommends reading the "Comprehensive History of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints," which was written in 1930 by then-Church Historian B.H. Roberts.

Also of benefit, he said, would be a study of Utah's journey to statehood; the church's 20th-century history including its financial struggles at the turn of the century and how the law of tithing helped turn things around; the church's "coming of age" under President Joseph F. Smith; and how the church became an international force under President David O. McKay's leadership.

"There's always benefit to be had by going back to our founding stories," Elder Jensen said.

E-mail: mfarmer@desnews.com