Benjamin Park
@benjaminepark.bsky.social
Historian & nerd. Author/editor of 5 books, including AMERICAN ZION: A NEW HISTORY OF MORMONISM. views = my own
https://linktr.ee/benjaminepark
https://linktr.ee/benjaminepark
Pinned
I guess I should do a more formal intro, too.
I teach US history in Texas & write on intersections of religion, politics, & culture. I’ve authored 3 books & edited 2 more. My most recent is AMERICAN ZION: A NEW HISTORY OF MORMONISM. I’m currently working on Theodore Parker, religion, & abolition.
I teach US history in Texas & write on intersections of religion, politics, & culture. I’ve authored 3 books & edited 2 more. My most recent is AMERICAN ZION: A NEW HISTORY OF MORMONISM. I’m currently working on Theodore Parker, religion, & abolition.
I'm worried I'm gonna jinx things but...that first "game" in the NBA All Start tournament was incredible. The players really wanted it, actually played defense, and genuinely cared.
I'm pretty flummoxed right now. And happily so.
I'm pretty flummoxed right now. And happily so.
February 15, 2026 at 10:56 PM
I'm worried I'm gonna jinx things but...that first "game" in the NBA All Start tournament was incredible. The players really wanted it, actually played defense, and genuinely cared.
I'm pretty flummoxed right now. And happily so.
I'm pretty flummoxed right now. And happily so.
Every time I watch the giant slalom skiers I just can’t comprehend how they don’t blow out their knees on every turn.
February 15, 2026 at 1:03 AM
Every time I watch the giant slalom skiers I just can’t comprehend how they don’t blow out their knees on every turn.
Reposted by Benjamin Park
In the Forum on John Taylor's 1886 revelation in @jmormonhist.bsky.social Vol. 52, No. 1, @benjaminepark.bsky.social contributes "J. Reuben Clark's Fundamentalist Reasons for Rejecting Mormon Fundamentalism." Read it on @projectmuse.bsky.social: muse.jhu.edu/pub/34/artic...
February 13, 2026 at 4:03 PM
In the Forum on John Taylor's 1886 revelation in @jmormonhist.bsky.social Vol. 52, No. 1, @benjaminepark.bsky.social contributes "J. Reuben Clark's Fundamentalist Reasons for Rejecting Mormon Fundamentalism." Read it on @projectmuse.bsky.social: muse.jhu.edu/pub/34/artic...
How can history help us understand the current crisis? Mormons don’t have to look too far to see when they were denigrated as “foreign threats” & targets of an oppressive government. I spoke to 2 experts on how the past frames the present.
When Mormons Were “Illegal” in America
youtu.be/xN-Ci8nZjSk
When Mormons Were “Illegal” in America
youtu.be/xN-Ci8nZjSk
When Mormons Were “Illegal” in America
YouTube video by Benjamin Park, Historian
youtu.be
February 11, 2026 at 11:05 PM
How can history help us understand the current crisis? Mormons don’t have to look too far to see when they were denigrated as “foreign threats” & targets of an oppressive government. I spoke to 2 experts on how the past frames the present.
When Mormons Were “Illegal” in America
youtu.be/xN-Ci8nZjSk
When Mormons Were “Illegal” in America
youtu.be/xN-Ci8nZjSk
It’s days like today that make me wish I chose a historical subject with better handwriting.
February 10, 2026 at 5:15 PM
It’s days like today that make me wish I chose a historical subject with better handwriting.
Reposted by Benjamin Park
Join me tonight to chat about Mormon polygamy and my book, The Fourth Wife!
This week on RfRx: author & historian Linda Hamilton explores the history and lived realities of Mormon polygamy—through research, personal heritage, and her novel The Fourth Wife. Watch live on YouTube or join Zoom + hangout: https://www.youtube.com/@RecoveringfromReligion/streams
February 9, 2026 at 10:11 PM
Join me tonight to chat about Mormon polygamy and my book, The Fourth Wife!
Reposted by Benjamin Park
Hey guess what? @ryanjhaas.bsky.social and I are creating our own news outlet to cover the PNW, launching soon.
Please consider subscribing.
Please consider subscribing.
Are you tired of journalism by parachuting east coasters?
Sick of stories with clickbait headlines that lack context and reporting to explain what's really happening?
Want stories that illuminate the Northwest without bombarding you constantly for your attention?
Welcome to the Western Edge.
Sick of stories with clickbait headlines that lack context and reporting to explain what's really happening?
Want stories that illuminate the Northwest without bombarding you constantly for your attention?
Welcome to the Western Edge.
February 7, 2026 at 6:17 PM
Hey guess what? @ryanjhaas.bsky.social and I are creating our own news outlet to cover the PNW, launching soon.
Please consider subscribing.
Please consider subscribing.
Great breakdown of Bad Bunny’s genius.
Disturbingly detailed analysis of my first rewatch incoming
February 9, 2026 at 4:34 AM
Great breakdown of Bad Bunny’s genius.
Reposted by Benjamin Park
Everybody: That show was beautiful.
Me: OVERRULE THE INSULAR CASES TOMORROW FFS
Me: OVERRULE THE INSULAR CASES TOMORROW FFS
February 9, 2026 at 1:45 AM
Everybody: That show was beautiful.
Me: OVERRULE THE INSULAR CASES TOMORROW FFS
Me: OVERRULE THE INSULAR CASES TOMORROW FFS
The Super Bowl Halftime Show should return to traditional classics, like the performer accusing another prominent artist of being a pedophile.
February 9, 2026 at 1:26 AM
The Super Bowl Halftime Show should return to traditional classics, like the performer accusing another prominent artist of being a pedophile.
I still don’t understand this Backstreet Boys resurgence.
February 9, 2026 at 1:03 AM
I still don’t understand this Backstreet Boys resurgence.
Another Saturday, another afternoon spent writing in a random high school cafeteria as my daughter participates in some orchestra/science/nerdy event.
February 7, 2026 at 8:57 PM
Another Saturday, another afternoon spent writing in a random high school cafeteria as my daughter participates in some orchestra/science/nerdy event.
An incredibly moving and quite appropriate tribute to the late Gabor Boritt, a titan in Civil War studies, who was a great historian but even more inspiring person. emergingcivilwar.com/2026/02/05/i...
In Memoriam: Gabor S. Boritt (1940-2026) - Emerging Civil War
Editor’s Note: Emerging Civil War was saddened to hear of the death this week of Civil War scholar Gabor Boritt. He died on February 2, 2026, at the age of 86, having just celebrated his birthday, ent...
emergingcivilwar.com
February 6, 2026 at 11:17 PM
An incredibly moving and quite appropriate tribute to the late Gabor Boritt, a titan in Civil War studies, who was a great historian but even more inspiring person. emergingcivilwar.com/2026/02/05/i...
I want to teach a grad seminar this fall on the American Revolution that assigns all the new books on the Revolution--many of them that look great!--that will be published between now and then.
February 6, 2026 at 7:35 PM
I want to teach a grad seminar this fall on the American Revolution that assigns all the new books on the Revolution--many of them that look great!--that will be published between now and then.
A modest proposal:
If we all promise to never use AI to draft our emails,
We should also promise not to rely on those dumb AI summaries of emails that are now being pushed in gmail.
How about we just write human-based emails that are worth being read by humans?
If we all promise to never use AI to draft our emails,
We should also promise not to rely on those dumb AI summaries of emails that are now being pushed in gmail.
How about we just write human-based emails that are worth being read by humans?
February 6, 2026 at 2:42 AM
A modest proposal:
If we all promise to never use AI to draft our emails,
We should also promise not to rely on those dumb AI summaries of emails that are now being pushed in gmail.
How about we just write human-based emails that are worth being read by humans?
If we all promise to never use AI to draft our emails,
We should also promise not to rely on those dumb AI summaries of emails that are now being pushed in gmail.
How about we just write human-based emails that are worth being read by humans?
Huzzah for @rickbell.bsky.social's fabulous book getting its shine in New Republic! newrepublic.com/article/2027...
What the American Revolution Owes the Rest of the World
Historian Richard Bell’s new book traces a global upheaval stretching from Philadelphia and London to Freetown and Madras.
newrepublic.com
February 5, 2026 at 7:38 PM
Huzzah for @rickbell.bsky.social's fabulous book getting its shine in New Republic! newrepublic.com/article/2027...
I was very fortunate to fly out to Salt Lake City last week and attend the Utah Historical Society’s glamorous awards banquet held in the amazing Hill Aerospace Museum, where my book AMERICAN ZION was recognized as a finalist for their Best Book in Utah History. A true honor.
February 4, 2026 at 10:33 PM
I was very fortunate to fly out to Salt Lake City last week and attend the Utah Historical Society’s glamorous awards banquet held in the amazing Hill Aerospace Museum, where my book AMERICAN ZION was recognized as a finalist for their Best Book in Utah History. A true honor.
So glad Bezos was able to afford the $75mil spent on the Melania documentary.
INBOX: Washington Post Ukraine Correspondent Lizzie Johnson announces that she has been laid off in the middle of a below-freezing war zone without power, heat, or running water.
February 4, 2026 at 5:30 PM
So glad Bezos was able to afford the $75mil spent on the Melania documentary.
Reposted by Benjamin Park
Please circulate and share this important resource: thepanorama.shear.org/2025/04/09/t...
The Early Republic Tracker
The Early Republic Tracker documents instances where the federal government is removing facts and stories essential to the public’s understanding American history from public historical sites, muse…
thepanorama.shear.org
February 2, 2026 at 10:39 PM
Please circulate and share this important resource: thepanorama.shear.org/2025/04/09/t...
For those interested in such things, here's my latest newsletter with links to recent videos, events, and other updates. I only send these out every-other-week or so, and it's an easy way to keep up with all my various activities. benjaminpark.kit.com/posts/upcomi...
Upcoming Live Discussion on Mormonism & Polygamy: The History Nerd's Newsletter for 2/1/2026
benjaminpark.kit.com
February 2, 2026 at 12:31 AM
For those interested in such things, here's my latest newsletter with links to recent videos, events, and other updates. I only send these out every-other-week or so, and it's an easy way to keep up with all my various activities. benjaminpark.kit.com/posts/upcomi...
I love that the Melania documentary proved once and for all that documentaries can be successful at the box office, and all you need to make $8mil in ticket sales is spend $35mil in marketing. A true lesson for us all.
February 1, 2026 at 8:08 PM
I love that the Melania documentary proved once and for all that documentaries can be successful at the box office, and all you need to make $8mil in ticket sales is spend $35mil in marketing. A true lesson for us all.
Reposted by Benjamin Park
I may have a stroke.
Someone said protests don’t belong in church and it took every ounce of self-censure within me not to say “Deborah you are literally a Protestant.”
A PROTESTant.
I assume they think Luther was nailing Bed, Bath, & Beyond coupons to the door.
Someone said protests don’t belong in church and it took every ounce of self-censure within me not to say “Deborah you are literally a Protestant.”
A PROTESTant.
I assume they think Luther was nailing Bed, Bath, & Beyond coupons to the door.
January 30, 2026 at 5:15 PM
I may have a stroke.
Someone said protests don’t belong in church and it took every ounce of self-censure within me not to say “Deborah you are literally a Protestant.”
A PROTESTant.
I assume they think Luther was nailing Bed, Bath, & Beyond coupons to the door.
Someone said protests don’t belong in church and it took every ounce of self-censure within me not to say “Deborah you are literally a Protestant.”
A PROTESTant.
I assume they think Luther was nailing Bed, Bath, & Beyond coupons to the door.
Reposted by Benjamin Park
📖 "An immediate classic."
@benjaminepark.bsky.social reviews "Second-Class Saints: Black Mormons and the Struggle for Racial Equality" Matthew L. Harris, #OpenAccess in @dialoguejournal.bsky.social Vol. 58.4, edited by @taylorpetrey.bsky.social. scholarlypublishingcollective.org/uip/dial/art...
@benjaminepark.bsky.social reviews "Second-Class Saints: Black Mormons and the Struggle for Racial Equality" Matthew L. Harris, #OpenAccess in @dialoguejournal.bsky.social Vol. 58.4, edited by @taylorpetrey.bsky.social. scholarlypublishingcollective.org/uip/dial/art...
January 30, 2026 at 5:04 PM
📖 "An immediate classic."
@benjaminepark.bsky.social reviews "Second-Class Saints: Black Mormons and the Struggle for Racial Equality" Matthew L. Harris, #OpenAccess in @dialoguejournal.bsky.social Vol. 58.4, edited by @taylorpetrey.bsky.social. scholarlypublishingcollective.org/uip/dial/art...
@benjaminepark.bsky.social reviews "Second-Class Saints: Black Mormons and the Struggle for Racial Equality" Matthew L. Harris, #OpenAccess in @dialoguejournal.bsky.social Vol. 58.4, edited by @taylorpetrey.bsky.social. scholarlypublishingcollective.org/uip/dial/art...
Finally watched Testament of Ann Lee this week. Still thinking about it. What a phenomenal meditation on religion, creative use of texts and music, and moving choreography. Not to mention Amanda Seyfried’s amazing performance. Will be going again this weekend.
January 30, 2026 at 1:51 AM
Finally watched Testament of Ann Lee this week. Still thinking about it. What a phenomenal meditation on religion, creative use of texts and music, and moving choreography. Not to mention Amanda Seyfried’s amazing performance. Will be going again this weekend.
Reposted by Benjamin Park
Now on @projectmuse.bsky.social! @jmormonhist.bsky.social Vol. 52, No. 1, new articles, book reviews, a forum on John Taylor's 1886 revelation, and Brooks Lecture from the 2025 Conference on Utah History. With @benjaminepark.bsky.social & @rachelhelps.bsky.social. muse.jhu.edu/issue/55826
January 28, 2026 at 8:01 PM
Now on @projectmuse.bsky.social! @jmormonhist.bsky.social Vol. 52, No. 1, new articles, book reviews, a forum on John Taylor's 1886 revelation, and Brooks Lecture from the 2025 Conference on Utah History. With @benjaminepark.bsky.social & @rachelhelps.bsky.social. muse.jhu.edu/issue/55826