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The Book of Mormon for the Least of These, Volume 3: Helaman-Moroni
This social justice commentary of the Book of Mormon empowers readers to understand the text as a book that speaks to issues of racism, sexism, immigration, refugees, and socioeconomic inequality. The Book of Mormon For the Least of These offers an unflinching examination of some of the difficult and troubling sections of the Book of Mormon, while also advocating for a compassionate reading of holy text. As a verse-by-verse close reading, this book examines new layers of interpretation and meaning, giving even those deeply familiar with scripture innovative tools for engaging powerfully with the Book of Mormon.
PRAISE FOR THE BOOK OF MORMON FOR THE LEAST OF THESE
When different questions are posed to the text of the Book of Mormon, it gives very different answers. Margaret Hemming Olsen and Fatimah Salleh have asked some of the most difficult questions of the volume. That the Book of Mormon continues to give remarkable answers, even if not always comfortable ones, is a testament to the undying inspiration that has animated it since its coming forth. That these two scholars have had enough confidence in the Book of Mormon to raise such questions will make The Book of Mormon for the Least of These an important work for a long time.
—Joseph Spencer, author of 1st A Brief Theological Introduction and The Anatomy of Book of Mormon Theology, Volumes One & TwoWith this third volume of The Book of Mormon for the Least of These, Dr. Fatimah Salleh and Margaret Olsen Hemming complete their awe-inspiring project of analyzing the Book of Mormon in its entirety using a social justice framework. Through unflinching readings of the book’s depictions of racial violence, national failure, and traumatic loss, they show how it truly is “a text for our time.” Readers of this volume will not find easy answers, but they will find a Book of Mormon that asks hard questions about what is required of those who wish to build a just world. This is a beautiful work of original exegesis, one to which I will return again and again.
—Elizabeth Fenton, co-editor of Americanist Approaches to The Book of Mormon
People have long wondered how our Black Americans could have survived their experiences while maintaining their faith. This is how they did it. This book works to embed faith in Jesus Christ and the scriptural Word into people’s very beings. Although the title references those who have been forgotten or overlooked, The Book of Mormon for the Least of These is for everyone, regardless of social status or understanding of scripture. It is an aid in helping us to fulfill Jesus’ charge to “be one,” that as we gather to hear and understand one another by viewing through different lenses we are indeed gathering unto The Christ collectively.
—Alice Faulkner Burch, Editor of My Lord, He Calls Stories of Faith by Black American Latter-Day Saints
PRAISE FOR THE BOOK OF MORMON FOR THE LEAST OF THESE
When different questions are posed to the text of the Book of Mormon, it gives very different answers. Margaret Hemming Olsen and Fatimah Salleh have asked some of the most difficult questions of the volume. That the Book of Mormon continues to give remarkable answers, even if not always comfortable ones, is a testament to the undying inspiration that has animated it since its coming forth. That these two scholars have had enough confidence in the Book of Mormon to raise such questions will make The Book of Mormon for the Least of These an important work for a long time.
—Joseph Spencer, author of 1st A Brief Theological Introduction and The Anatomy of Book of Mormon Theology, Volumes One & TwoWith this third volume of The Book of Mormon for the Least of These, Dr. Fatimah Salleh and Margaret Olsen Hemming complete their awe-inspiring project of analyzing the Book of Mormon in its entirety using a social justice framework. Through unflinching readings of the book’s depictions of racial violence, national failure, and traumatic loss, they show how it truly is “a text for our time.” Readers of this volume will not find easy answers, but they will find a Book of Mormon that asks hard questions about what is required of those who wish to build a just world. This is a beautiful work of original exegesis, one to which I will return again and again.
—Elizabeth Fenton, co-editor of Americanist Approaches to The Book of Mormon
People have long wondered how our Black Americans could have survived their experiences while maintaining their faith. This is how they did it. This book works to embed faith in Jesus Christ and the scriptural Word into people’s very beings. Although the title references those who have been forgotten or overlooked, The Book of Mormon for the Least of These is for everyone, regardless of social status or understanding of scripture. It is an aid in helping us to fulfill Jesus’ charge to “be one,” that as we gather to hear and understand one another by viewing through different lenses we are indeed gathering unto The Christ collectively.
—Alice Faulkner Burch, Editor of My Lord, He Calls Stories of Faith by Black American Latter-Day Saints
261 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 5, 2023
11 people are currently reading
42 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
December 12, 2024
Another volume, another enhanced BoM reading experience. Grateful to have additional perspectives to help me think while studying.
November 27, 2023
“The Book of Mormon for the Least of These” looks in new ways for a morality that hasn’t been previously emphasized in readings of the Book of Mormon. Margaret Olsen Hemming and Fatimah Saleh have asked hard questions while having compassion and admiration for the complex writers at the center of its action. Volume 1 explored Nephi, a survivor of harrowing migration and familial violence. Volume 2 mourned alongside Alma, father and son, seeking to spread faith and righteousness in a brutally unequal and divided society. In Volume 3, they teach us to bring the same compassion to lonely souls like Mormon, Ether and Moroni, standing on the edge of the utter failure of their civilizations, trees felled by fatal flaws near their roots. For us, this includes a lack of faith, but also a lack of imagination about how our faith invites those from the margins: particularly immigrants and refugees, minority groups, and people living in poverty. This book looks at hope in adversity, connection across divisions, assisting us to look anew at this scripture’s message for us today.
December 11, 2023
So excited for Volume 3! Just in time for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to study the Book of Mormon in 2024, the final volume of this thoughtful and provocative exegesis is here! Margaret Olsen Hemming and Rev. Dr. Fatimah Salleh provide meaningful questions and a social justice lens to take readers deeper into the text and new insights.
December 17, 2024
I love this series. This cook helped me cope with the atrocities of the final chapters of the Book of Mormon. The authors apply situations directly to the current day and situations, begging us to take a hard look at ourselves.
February 2, 2025
I had heard about this series as a companion to The Book of Mormon, but didn't get my hands on the first two volumes. I loved and appreciated this third volume so much! I am looking forward to reading the other two.
February 9, 2024
A triumph of a closing volume and essential reading for our team. Full review coming in the Winter 2024 issue of Exponent II!
December 15, 2024
A great resource for studying the Book of Mormon
December 19, 2024
I really loved reading all 3 of these along with the Book of Mormon this year. Highly recommend.
December 23, 2024
incredible read to go along with the Book of Mormon, so many necessary insights that have changed the way I read scriptural text. highly recommend.
December 23, 2024
After years of reading and studying the Book of Mormon, it was great to have a different perspective and made it easier to have meaningful study again.
January 2, 2025
I confess I haven't read every word, but read enough I am going to keep this as a commentary to include in my study library.
October 27, 2025
“The lessons we learn from scripture depend on the questions we ask… The Book of Mormon…warrants the most challenging questions we can throw at it. This book attempts to ask those difficult questions.” So opens this third and final volume of The Book of Mormon for the Least of These, focusing on the books of Helaman through Moroni. Specifically, this commentary asks what the Book of Mormon says “about genocide, bigotry, environmental destruction, poverty, and inequality? What can it offer a world that is broken, full of hatred and unfettered greed?” The Book of Mormon and this commentary have lots to say on these (and many other) crucial topics for this day and age.
Olsen Hemming and Salleh bring myriad insights. (I counted more than 40 notes or highlights in my copy.) From underlining the unfairness of the justice system that locked up five innocent men in Helaman 9 (“how many times in the Book of Mormon do innocent people go to prison?”), to drawing attention to the failures of Nephi the prophet (“a promise from God that your work is right is not a promise of ease and safety”), to inviting readers to reflect on the likely fate of women and children carried away into the wilderness by robbers (“vulnerable bodies are frequently a casualty of men’s wars”). Again and again, the authors point to themes often largely neglected in discussions of these books. Olsen Hemming and Salleh provide questions for meditation or discussion related to many passages, making this an ideal volume to integrate into a class.
I’ll end on a personal note. I’ve had the privilege of discussing each volume in this trilogy with the authors, Fatimah Salleh and Margaret Olsen Hemming. If I’ve taken one thing from each of those conversations, it’s how much they love the Book of Mormon and how much they love the prophets in this book. They don’t give the prophets a pass, as one or another of them “sometimes engages in ideas of prosperity gospel, racism, sexism, and the justification of abuse and oppression.” But their critiques come from a place of respect and deep affection. I unreservedly recommend this entire series.
Olsen Hemming and Salleh bring myriad insights. (I counted more than 40 notes or highlights in my copy.) From underlining the unfairness of the justice system that locked up five innocent men in Helaman 9 (“how many times in the Book of Mormon do innocent people go to prison?”), to drawing attention to the failures of Nephi the prophet (“a promise from God that your work is right is not a promise of ease and safety”), to inviting readers to reflect on the likely fate of women and children carried away into the wilderness by robbers (“vulnerable bodies are frequently a casualty of men’s wars”). Again and again, the authors point to themes often largely neglected in discussions of these books. Olsen Hemming and Salleh provide questions for meditation or discussion related to many passages, making this an ideal volume to integrate into a class.
I’ll end on a personal note. I’ve had the privilege of discussing each volume in this trilogy with the authors, Fatimah Salleh and Margaret Olsen Hemming. If I’ve taken one thing from each of those conversations, it’s how much they love the Book of Mormon and how much they love the prophets in this book. They don’t give the prophets a pass, as one or another of them “sometimes engages in ideas of prosperity gospel, racism, sexism, and the justification of abuse and oppression.” But their critiques come from a place of respect and deep affection. I unreservedly recommend this entire series.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews