Is Mormonism a religion or an ethnicity?

Howdy, dear AMG readers:  thanks for writing back and letting me know how you feel about our new location, and click here to get a fresh installment of your favorite unorthodox Mormon Q&A column, this week weighing in on the question “Is Mormonism a religion or an ethnicity?” with a big-time shout out to BYU’s Divine Comedy troupe and their viral hit “Provo, Utah Gurls.”  You have seen it, haven’t you?

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Ask Mormon Girl: It’s time to learn Mormon history. Where do I start?

Dear Ask Mormon Girl:

I grew up a crazy liberal kid in a Democratic household.  In college, I was a political science / women’s studies major and an activist.  My mentor was an ex-Mormon and often talked bitterly about the Church.  I joined the Church my senior year while she was on sabbatical.  I’ve never had the guts to tell her I joined the church; in fact, I avoid telling people from my pre-Mormon past that I’m LDS. Part of it has to do with my lack of knowledge of Mormon History and my inability to articulate my beliefs.  I took a course on Mormon History at Institute (before joining the Church) but of course it was totally watered-down and sugar-coated. I want to learn as much as I can about our history, ALL of it. Could you recommend some books? I want to be as informed as possible. I want the good and the bad. It’s been almost five years since I joined the church; I feel like my faith is now mature enough to handle everything.  I tried doing some research on my own but it’s hard to find good sources.

Sincerely,

RS in SoCal