Glorious Truths about Mary, Mother of Jesus

by Susan Easton Black

Throughout the world, millions of devout followers of Christ look to the Virgin Mary as a sacred figure, a woman to be revered and worshipped. While Latter-day Saints do not worship this chosen vessel of the Lord, we do esteem Mary as one of the most influential people in history. Her faithfulness changed the course of the world, but even so, much detail of her life remains unknown to most. In Glorious Truths about Mary, Mother of Jesus, readers are invited to join distinguished LDS scholar Susan Easton Black on a journey of discovery spanning the life and legacy of this unparalleled faith-filled giant. Discover, through scriptural and historical sources, the compelling look at how Mary, mother of Jesus, has been characterized over the centuries and the true story and lasting influence she has had—this woman whose incomparable example continues to guide and inspire religious women today.

Genres: Lds, Religion, Nonfiction, Biography, Church, Christmas

96 pages, Paperback

Published November 1, 2018

About the author

Susan Easton Black is a retired professor of Church History and Doctrine at Brigham Young University (BYU) in Provo, Utah. She is also an author of several books related to Joseph Smith, Jr. and the early history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (from Wikipedia)

Reviews

[Sydney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Glorious Truths about Mary, Mother of Jesus by Susan Easton Black is a short and sweet book that shares interesting information of Mary the Mother of Jesus. This book is fun because not many women are mentioned in the scriptures, but Mary is one of them. This short book does an excellent job of capturing the beauty of Mary and is the perfect kick-off to the Christmas season.

Genre: non-fiction; biblical
Publisher: Covenant Communications
Publication date: November 1, 2018
Number of pages: 96

A review copy of this book was provided by Covenant Communications. A review was not required and all views and opinions expressed are my own.

[Sheila (sheilasbookreviewer) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Glorious Truths About Mary, Mother of Jesus is a great book to read this time of the year. The thing that I was surprised about was how much historical information was included in this book. It's written so well and presented in such an interesting way you can hardly tell you're reading a non-fiction book. There is also such a spiritual and awe inspiring feeling as you read about Mary and her devotion to God and to her son, Jesus, the Savior of the World. You realize even more how humble and special Mary was and why she was the chosen one to be the mother of God's son.

At only 84 pages this is a quick, but inspirational read. It will leave you with a new love and understanding of the Virgin Mary and her huge contribution to the world. This book would make a great gift for anyone. I'm grateful I had the opportunity to review this and learn more about the life of Mary, her husband Joseph, and of course Jesus's wondrous life and mission.

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[Avid reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like this one better than her book about Eve, but I think I was still hoping for more. Her insights about Jewish culture and history were helpful in understanding Mary's life and story.

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great historical and cultural explanation of what we know, both in and out of the church, about Mary, Mother of Jesus as we see her in the New Testament.

[ABRAHAM WRIGHT · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good book. It wasn't a waste of time or anything; however while there were some neat facts I felt like this book was mostly a list of opinions.

[Suzan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short but very interesting and inspirational book. I really liked learning more about the culture of that time and place.

[Cathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Isn’t it the perfect time of year to learn more about Mary, the Mother of Jesus?! I was really excited to get to read this book. I’ve always been interested in the women that are mentioned in the scriptures. And Mary is one of the main, most amazing ones.

I loved reading this book! It isn’t long, it’s under 100 pages. The author did a great job making the book be full of information about Mary, yet not boring in the slightest. I loved that she includes where she got her information. I had wondered where she’d get it, because Mary isn’t mentioned in the scriptures a lot. Women really aren’t, in general.

I loved starting the Christmas season learning more about this amazing woman! Make sure you take the time to read and learn about her yourself!

[Casey · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I learned some more historical context surrounding Mary’s life, the book was still plenty of conjecture. And without much concrete information about Mary, the text often spoke of Jesus or Joseph or John, or any number of New Testament stories contemporary to her time. Her story is interwoven with those, but I don’t know that I learned anything more about her, or that anything new, insightful, or “glorious” about her could be found in this short text. The author had to stretch for content, and it shows.

I also found the author’s claims selective. Sometimes she writes with authority, sometimes she lists various theories as conjecture. For example, she was adamant that Jesus was born in a limestone cave. Even though there is also strong evidence that he was born in a relative’s home, a “kataluma,” she makes no mention of this idea. Additionally, she doesn’t delve into what a mother’s role or day-to-day life would have been like for Mary. She theorizes about whether or not Mary had other children or was a lifelong virgin, but does not paint the picture of Mary as an Israelite mother. Or even as a woman in Israel, for that matter— I would have loved to know more about the roles of women during this time, and what life would have been like for Mary!

So while the book felt like a stretch, it also didn’t feel fully fleshed out.

[Aeslin Bard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most of the book is Black merely offering a narrative retelling of the scenese involving Mary found in the Gospels. The most interesting chapter is the final chapter where she shares some passages found in the extra-biblical New Testament apocryphal texts, though, constantly referring back to D&C 91 which had evolved into just an excuse for those of the LDS faith not to even read any of the apocryphal texts. An interesting read, though, I wouldn't go out of my way to buy the book.

[Jamille Parks · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've never read a book about the mother of Christ because I didn't know that any existed. This was very insightful and uplifting and the questions that it made me ask helped me understand the life of my SAVIOR and understand my scripture study more. This would be a great read for Easter or any day in between.

[Kate Pratt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this book to give myself a more faith-based perspective going into Christmas 2024. It definitely helped me achieve that goal.

I wish there was a bit more scriptural information about Mary to build out my understanding of her purpose & character, but that is more a limitation of the New Testament and not the writer.

[Genevieve Stiles · Rating 2 out of 5]

A sweet little book with some fun and insightful information about Mary, the mother of Jesus. Unfortunately, the writing felt rushed, and because of that feeling I couldn't find the authors heart behind the written words.

[NaDell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved reading this book at this time of year to remember Mary, the mother of Jesus. It is a short book, but packed FULL of insight and scriptural accounts of Mary and her connection with Jesus and as a disciple of Christ.

[Sandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to learn more about Mary. I did like that the author went to outside sources to find out a few thoughts but there was so much on all the other Mary's and about Christ, which isn't a bad thing, just not quite what I was hoping for.

[Raylene · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great info, a bit dry.

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book. I loved reading about Mary around Christmas time!

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick run-through about conditions at the time of the birth of Jesus. Not much information about Mary, but there isn't much to go on. The historical setting was interesting and informative.

[Jan Ostler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love, love, love this book.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love this insight of the times and traditions.

[C · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. Not a lot to build off of and it shows here.

[Sheri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well-researched story and lots of interesting insights about Mary, Mother of Jesus

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars. It was just okay. The writing felt rushed and there wasn't a ton of new information. I did enjoy the inclusion of writings from the Apocrypha that I had never heard before.

[Marissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not too much new information here, but a refreshing way to consider the Life of Christ through the life of his mother, Mary. The customs and traditions of the time are explained and the last chapter had some interesting information from the Apocrypha that I have never heard about Mary.