Sterling Moss McMurrin (January 12, 1914 – April 6, 1996) was a liberal Mormon

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

and Philosophy professor at the

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...

. He served as

United States Commissioner of Education The Commissioner of Education was the title given to the head of the federal Office of Education, which was historically a unit within and originally assigned to the Department of the Interior in the United States. The position was created on March ...

in the administration of President

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...

Biography

Born in

Woods Cross, Utah Woods Cross is a city in Davis County, Utah, United States. It is part of the Ogden– Clearfield, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 9,761 as of the 2010 census, with an estimated population in 2019 of 11,431. Histor ...

, McMurrin's family moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

in the 1920s while he was at a young age. There he attended high school and the

University of California at Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

(UCLA), but he gained his A.B. in history and M.A. in philosophy from the

. Returning to California for doctoral studies, the

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...

awarded him a Ph.D. in philosophy in 1946. McMurrin also did postdoctoral studies at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...

, and Union Theological Seminary. For a time McMurrin worked for the LDS Church Educational System, first as a seminary teacher in 1937, then a teacher at Arizona State University, and

Institute of Religion An Institute of Religion is a local organization that provides religious education for young adults (ages 18–30) who are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Local institutes may function in church meetinghous ...

director at the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory. T ...

.Original publication:
Reprint, with additions: Regarding his religion, McMurrin argued that the LDS Church concealed parts of its history and had been declining in intellectual freedom. He believed that an honest study of religion would erode faith, and he personally did not believe in the

historicity of the Book of Mormon Historicity is the historical actuality of persons and events, meaning the quality of being part of history instead of being a historical myth, legend, or fiction. The historicity of a claim about the past is its factual status. Historicity denot ...

. However, he remained devoted to Mormonism, despite his lack of faith and criticism from more "orthodox" church members. In the early 1950s, Joseph Fielding Smith and Harold B. Lee believed McMurrin should be excommunicated. David O. McKay met with McMurrin and agreed to testify on McMurrin's behalf, but the apostles did not pursue the excommunication. Joseph Fielding Smith suggested again that McMurrin be excommunicated in 1965, but McKay declined to take action. In McMurrin's noted career, he worked with universities, large corporations, foundations, and governmental agencies, as a teacher, an administrator, and an advisor.

Works

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Edited volumes

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Chapters and articles

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References

Sources

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External links

Biographical Sketch
Inventory of the Sterling M. McMurrin papers (1830-2006), University of Utah
"Inventory of Sterling McMurrin Papers at John F. Kennedy Presidential Library"McMurrin Interviews
Symposium Media: Interviews, Lectures, and Panel Discussions {{DEFAULTSORT:McMurrin, Sterling M. 1914 births 1996 deaths 20th-century American writers Academics from Utah American Christian theologians American Latter Day Saints People from Davis County, Utah Philosophy academics United States Bureau of Education people University of Southern California alumni University of Utah alumni University of Utah faculty Mormon theologians