Philip Layton Barlow (born 1950) is a

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

-trained scholar who specializes in

American religious history Religion in the United States began with the religions and spiritual practices of Native Americans. Later, religion also played a role in the founding of some colonies, as many colonists, such as the Puritans, came to escape religious perse ...

, religious geography, and

Mormonism Mormonism is the religious tradition and theology of the Latter Day Saint movement of Restorationist Christianity started by Joseph Smith in Western New York in the 1820s and 1830s. As a label, Mormonism has been applied to various aspects o ...

. In 2019, Barlow was appointed associate director of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship (Maxwell Institute). Barlow was the first full-time professor of

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 no ...

at a secular university as the inaugural

Leonard J. Arrington Leonard James Arrington (July 2, 1917 – February 11, 1999) was an American author, academic and the founder of the Mormon History Association. He is known as the "Dean of Mormon History" and "the Father of Mormon History" because of his man ...

Chair of Mormon History and Culture 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 ...

(USU), from 2007 to 2018.

Biography

Barlow was raised in

Bountiful, Utah Bountiful is Davis city. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 42,552, a three percent increase over the 2000 figure of 41,301. The city grew rapidly during the suburb growth of the late 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s and was Davis County's l ...

. He is a 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 ...

(LDS Church). In 1975, he graduated with a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to si ...

in history from

Weber State College Weber State University (pronounced ) is a public university in Ogden, Utah. It was founded in 1889 as Weber Stake Academy. It is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. History Weber State University was founded ...

. In 1980 and 1988, respectively, he received a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

in theological studies and a doctorate of theology (Th.D.) from the

Harvard Divinity School Harvard Divinity School (HDS) is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school's mission is to educate its students either in the academic study of religion or for leadership roles in religion, gov ...

. While in the Boston area, Barlow taught at the LDS Church's local Institute of Religion. He also served as a counselor in a

bishopric In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

Mitt Romney Willard Mitt Romney (born March 12, 1947) is an American politician, businessman, and lawyer serving as the junior United States senator from Utah since January 2019, succeeding Orrin Hatch. He served as the 70th governor of Massachusetts ...

. In 2017, Barlow held the first fellowship at the Maxwell Institute at

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-d ...

The Arrington Chair of Mormon History and Culture

The establishment in 2007 of the Arrington Chair at USU was one prominent symbol of a new era for the study of the Mormon faith in secular higher education. It was part of the new religious studies program at the university, the first program in Utah enabling students to major in religion. Since the establishment of the Arrington Chair, Richard Bushman was inaugurated as the Howard W. Hunter Chair of Mormon Studies at

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 ...

of Religion, which was followed by the 2012 creation of the Richard Lyman Bushman chair of Mormon Studies at

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...

Publications

As Author: *''New Historical Atlas of Religion in America.'' Oxford University Press, 2001. (Co-authored with

Edwin Scott Gaustad Edwin Scott Gaustad (November 14, 1923 – March 25, 2011) was a professor of history at the University of California, Riverside. He achieved fame with his study of the genealogy of religion in the United States, ''Historical atlas of religion in ...

) *''Mormons and the Bible: The Place of the Latter-day Saints in American Religion.'' Oxford University Press, 1991. As Editor: *''Religion and Public Life in the Midwest: America’s Common Denominator?'' Alta Mira Press, 2004. (co-edited with

Mark Silk Mark Silk is an American academic. He is Professor of Religion in Public Life at Trinity College, where he also serves as the Director the Leonard E. Greenberg Center for the Study of Religion in Public Life. In addition, Silk is a Contributing ...

) *''A Thoughtful Faith: Essays on Belief by Mormon Scholars.'' Canon Press, 1986. *''The Oxford Handbook of Mormonism.'' Oxford University Press, 2015, . (co-edited with Terryl L. Givens)

Notes

References

"Past MHA Presidents". Mormon History Association.

12 Questions for Philip Barlow. Times and Seasons Blog.

External links

*

Barlow's curriculum vitae
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barlow, Philip 1950 births American Latter Day Saint writers American religion academics Church Educational System instructors Hanover College Harvard Divinity School alumni Historians of the Latter Day Saint movement Living people Mormon studies scholars People from Bountiful, Utah Religious studies scholars Utah State University faculty Weber State University alumni American historians of religion American male non-fiction writers Maxwell Institute people Latter Day Saints from Utah Latter Day Saints from Massachusetts Latter Day Saints from Indiana Latter Day Saint biblical scholars