Lester E. Bush Jr.

Lester E. Bush, Jr. (November 22, 1942- ) is a historian and member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (popularly known as the LDS or Mormon Church) who has published influential research into the origins of the "Negro doctrine," a now-abandoned church policy which excluded African-Americans from membership in the Mormon priesthood and from participation in a number of other church practices.

Biography

Bush was born on November 22, 1942, in Atlanta, Georgia. He married Yvonne DeCarroll Snow on August 24, 1967. He is a physician with undergraduate and medical degrees from the University of Virginia, a master's in public health from Johns Hopkins University, and a long-standing interest in Mormon history. The Mormon History Associated awarded him the prize for best article in 1973 for "Mormonism's Negro Doctrine: An Historical Overview," which was published in Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought. He has also published historical research into other topics, including a medical history of Brigham Young and reviews of LDS health and medical practices.

According to the Juvenile Instructor, an academically leaning blog focused on the history of the Latter-day Saints, "Mormonism's Negro Doctrine" was "a master work of scholarship that not only revolutionized how historians, sociologists, and other academics view the church’s history of race relations, but was also a significant factor leading to (Official Declaration 2)," which ended the Negro priesthood ban.

Bush's research found that the priesthood ban was originally established by Brigham Young, the successor to church founder Joseph Smith and that there was no evidence of a prophetic revelation or doctrine which had caused the policy to be adopted. Official Declaration 2 was announced on June 8, 1978 as a "revelation" received by Spencer W. Kimball, the president of the church. According to his son, Edward L. Kimball, LDS apostle Mark E. Peterson "almost surely" recommended to Spencer Kimball on May 25 that he should consider Bush's article while Kimball was deliberating whether to change the church policy.

Works

• Bush, Lester E., Jr. (Spring 1973), "Mormonism's Negro Doctrine: An Historical Overview" (PDF), Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, 8 (1): 11–68, doi:10.2307/45227533, JSTOR 45227533, retrieved 2012-11-01{{citation}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
• Lester E. Bush, Jr. and Armand L. Mauss, eds., Neither White nor Black: Mormon Scholars Confront the Race Issue in a Universal Church, Signature Books, 1984.
• Bush, Lester E., Jr. (1978), "Brigham Young in Life and Death: A Medical Overview", Journal of Mormon History, 5: 79–103, JSTOR 23286038, retrieved 2023-09-04{{citation}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
• Bush, Lester E., Jr. (Summer 1985), "Ethical Issues in Reproductive Medicine: A Mormon Perspective", Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, 18: 41–66, retrieved 2023-09-04{{citation}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
• Bush, Lester E., Jr. (Spring 1999), "Writing "Mormonism's Negro Doctrine: An Historical Overview" (1973): Context and Reflections, 1998", Journal of Mormon History, 25 (1): 229–271, JSTOR 23287744, retrieved 2023-09-04{{citation}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

Further reading

• "Lester E. Bush papers, 1809-1999". 295 South 1500 East, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0860: University of Utah Libraries, Special Collections, J. Willard Marriott Library. Retrieved 2023-09-04.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: location (link). Contains correspondence, articles, bibliographies, research materials, editor materials for Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, surveys, textual excerpts, references, subject files, notes, theses transcripts, and pamphlets.
• "Lester E. Bush photographic collection, 1880-1886". 295 South 1500 East, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0860: University of Utah Libraries, Special Collections, J. Willard Marriott Library. Retrieved 2023-09-04.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: location (link). Contains family photos and advertisements for The Mormon Elder's Damiana Wafers from the Druggist's Journal.