Armand Lind Mauss (June 5, 1928 – August 1, 2020) was an American sociologist specializing in the

sociology of religion Sociology of religion is the study of the beliefs, practices and organizational forms of religion using the tools and methods of the discipline of sociology. This objective investigation may include the use both of quantitative methods (surveys, ...

. He was

Professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...

Emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

Sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of Empirical ...

and Religious Studies at

Washington State University Washington State University (Washington State, WSU, or informally Wazzu) is a public land-grant research university with its flagship, and oldest, campus in Pullman, Washington. Founded in 1890, WSU is also one of the oldest land-grant unive ...

and was the most frequently published author of Sociology works on

Mormons Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into several ...

during his long career. A special conference on his work in

Mormon studies Mormon studies is the interdisciplinary academic study of the beliefs, practices, history and culture of individuals and denominations belonging to the Latter Day Saint movement, a religious movement associated with the Book of Mormon, though not ...

was held in 2013 at California's

Claremont Graduate University The Claremont Graduate University (CGU) is a private, all-graduate research university in Claremont, California. Founded in 1925, CGU is a member of the Claremont Colleges which includes five undergraduate (Pomona College, Claremont McKenna Co ...

(CGU), the papers from which were subsequently published by the

University of Utah Press The University of Utah Press is the independent publishing branch of the University of Utah and is a division of the J. Willard Marriott Library. Founded in 1949 by A. Ray Olpin, it is also the oldest university press in Utah. The mission of th ...

in the format of a ''

Festschrift In academia, a ''Festschrift'' (; plural, ''Festschriften'' ) is a book honoring a respected person, especially an academic, and presented during their lifetime. It generally takes the form of an edited volume, containing contributions from the h ...

'', where he was honored as "one of the most prominent Mormon intellectuals of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries."

Early life and family

Mauss was born on 5 June 1928 in

Salt Lake City, Utah Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Sal ...

, and grew up in California, graduating from Oakland High School in 1946. A lifelong member of

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...

, as a young adult he served a full-time, two-year

mission Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to: Organised activities Religion *Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity *Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...

for the church in

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

, and he served throughout his life in many other lay ecclesiastical roles. In 1949, he accompanied his family to

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

where his father was called to preside over the missionary work of the LDS Church in

east Asia East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Korea and ...

. In 1954, Mauss graduated from

Sophia University Sophia University (Japanese: 上智大学, ''Jōchi Daigaku''; Latin: ''Universitas Sedis Sapientiae'') is a private research university in Japan. Sophia is one of the three ''Sōkeijōchi'' (早慶上智) private universities, a group of the to ...

of Tokyo, a distinguished

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

institution, with a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in History and

Asian Studies Asian studies is the term used usually in North America and Australia for what in Europe is known as Oriental studies. The field is concerned with the Asian people, their cultures, languages, history and politics. Within the Asian sphere, Asian ...

. While in Japan, he was also inducted into the

US Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

, serving four years in

military intelligence Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist commanders in their decisions. This aim is achieved by providing an assessment of data from a ...

. In 1950, he met Ruth E. Hathaway, and they married in 1951. They eventually became parents of six sons and two daughters. After returning to

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, Mauss earned in 1957 an

M.A. A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

degree in history, with an emphasis on Asia, and in 1970, he earned a

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

in Sociology, with a dissertation titled ''Mormonism and Minorities'', both at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

Academic work

After several years of

community college A community college is a type of educational institution. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an "open enrollment" for students who have graduated from high school (also known as senior sec ...

teaching in California, Mauss joined the faculty at

Utah State University Utah State University (USU or Utah State) is a public land-grant research university in Logan, Utah. It is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. With nearly 20,000 students living on or near campus, USU is Utah's ...

(USU) for two years. He next served on the Sociology faculty at Washington State University (WSU) for three decades, starting in 1969 and formally retiring from WSU in 1999. During his career, he taught and published in several different fields of Sociology and

Social Problems A social issue is a problem that affects many people within a society. It is a group of common problems in present-day society and ones that many people strive to solve. It is often the consequence of factors extending beyond an individual's cont ...

, but his work in the Sociology of Religion was ultimately the most visible. He has enjoyed invitations as a visiting professor to several

universities A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. During 2004–2010, he was a visiting scholar in the School of Religion at CGU, where he taught courses on the History and Sociology of the Mormons. While at CGU, he helped develop the Mormon Studies Council and the

Howard W. Hunter Howard William Hunter (November 14, 1907 – March 3, 1995) was an American lawyer and the 14th president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1994 to 1995. His nine-month presidential tenure is the shortest ...

Chair in Mormon Studies, first occupied by Richard L. Bushman. Author or editor of several books and scores of academic articles, Mauss also served as editor of the ''

Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion The ''Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion'' (''JSSR'') is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal published by Wiley-Blackwell in the United States under the auspices of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, dedicated to p ...

'' from 1989 to 1992. He has received three different awards from the

Mormon History Association The Mormon History Association (MHA) is an independent, non-profit organization dedicated to the study and understanding of all aspects of Mormon history to promote understanding, scholarly research, and publication in the field. MHA was founded i ...

for his books and other works and two awards from the

Dialogue Foundation ''Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought'' is an independent quarterly journal that addresses a wide range of issues on Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint Movement. The journal publishes peer-reviewed academic articles on subjects such as anth ...

for his articles in '' Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought'', the major independent scholarly journal in

Mormon Studies Mormon studies is the interdisciplinary academic study of the beliefs, practices, history and culture of individuals and denominations belonging to the Latter Day Saint movement, a religious movement associated with the Book of Mormon, though not ...

. Mauss had a formative influence on the rise and survival of ''Dialogue'', serving 20 years on its editorial or advisory boards and then ten years as either chairman or member of the Dialogue Foundation's board of directors. Mauss was, additionally, president of the

from 1997 to 1998.

Publications

;Books * * (Edited with Julie C. Wolfe). * (Second Author/Editor with Lester E. Bush, Jr.) * * * ;Representative essays and articles * "Mormonism and Secular Attitudes toward Negroes," ''Pacific Sociological Review'' 9(2):91–99l (1966). (Journal later renamed ''

Sociological Perspectives ''Sociological Perspectives'' is the official publication of the Pacific Sociological Association. It is a peer-reviewed academic journal published in six issues each year by SAGE. It was first published in 1957 as ''The Pacific Sociological Revie ...

''.) * "Mormon Semitism and Anti-Semitism," ''Sociological Analysis'' 29(1):11–27 (1968). (Journal later rename
Sociology of Religion
) *"Skidders and their Servants: Variable Goals and Functions of the Skidroad 'Rescue Mission,'" ''Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion'' 13(4):421–36 (1974). (Second author with Reginald W. Bibby.) * "On Being Strangled by the Stars and Stripes:The New Left, the Old Left, and the Natural History of American Radical Movements," ''Journal of Social Issues'' 27(1):183–202 (1971). *The Problematic Prospects for Prevention: Should Alcohol Education Programs Be Expected to Reduce Drinking by Youth? ''Journal of Studies on Alcohol'' 49(1): 51-61 (1988). (First author with Ronald H. Hopkins, Ralph A. Weisheit, and Kathleen A. Kearney.) *Salvation and Survival on Skid Row: A Critical Comment, ''Social Forces'' 60(3): 898-904 (1982). * "Strictly Speaking . . . : Kelley's Quandary and the Vineyard Christian Fellowship," ''Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion''32(2):125–135 (1993). (Second author with Robin D Perrin.) *"Apostasy and the Management of Spoiled Identity" in ''The Politics of Apostasy: The Role of Apostates in the Transformation of Religious Movements'', ed. David G. Bromley (New York: Praeger, 1998), 51–73. * "Mormonism's Worldwide Aspirations and Its Changing Conceptions of Race and Lineage," ''Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought'' 34(3-4):103–133 (2001). * "The Emergence of Mormon Studies in the Social Sciences, in "''American Sociology of Religion: Histories''," ed. Anthony J. Blasi (Leiden and Boston: Brill Academic Publishers, 2007), 121–150. * "Seeking the 'Second Harvest'? Controlling the Costs of Latter-day Saint Membership in Europe," ''Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought'' 41:1–54 (2008). * Authority and Dissent among the Latter-day Saints, in ''The Oxford Handbook of Mormonism'', eds. Terry L. Givens and Philip Barlow (New York and Oxford, UK:Oxford University Press,2015).

References

Notes

Works cited

External links

Claremont Graduate University 2013 special conference on Mauss work

Howard W. Hunter FoundationMauss' faculty page
WSU Department of Sociology
Mauss' Professional C. V.

Society for the Scientific Study of Religion
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mauss, Armand 1928 births 2020 deaths American Latter Day Saint writers American historians of religion American male non-fiction writers American sociologists Editors of Latter Day Saint publications Historians of the Latter Day Saint movement Historians of race relations Mormon studies scholars Writers from Salt Lake City University of California, Berkeley alumni Washington State University faculty Sociologists of religion American Mormon missionaries in the United States 20th-century Mormon missionaries American memoirists Mormon memoirists Latter Day Saints from Utah Latter Day Saints from Washington (state)