The Relationship Between History and Faith

During his 24 years as a beloved LDS General Authority and Official Church Historian, Elder Marlin K. Jensen presided over an historic shift toward greater openness in the LDS church’s approach to its history. In this Conversation with Terryl Givens, we get an intimate glimpse into Elder Jensen’s personal life and thoughts, including:

• How loving and serving his older brother instilled a determination to include “those who are different”
• The spiritual experiences that led him to consecrate his life to serving in the church
• His wish for more “overtly spiritual” church experience
• How our spiritual lives can be enriched by people, practices and writings from other religious traditions
• The challenges and the fruits of complete openness and transparency in telling the history of the church
• The urgent need to embrace those who are different or “don’t meet the norm” in the church
• His stirring witness of Christ

An attorney by profession who is more at home on the ranch, Elder Jensen became one of the public faces of Mormonism during what came to be called the “Mormon Moment.” He was featured prominently on the 2007 PBS series The Mormons. 

Under his direction as church historian, dramatic advances were made in church history, including creation of the Joseph Smith Papers project, construction of the new Church History Museum next to Temple Square, and greater access to scholars on a number of fronts. Terryl Givens once wrote of Elder Jensen: "Marlin Jensen has done more to further the cause of Mormon history than any person of the current generation."