Saints: The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days
In February 2018, Elder Steven E. Snow, General Authority Seventy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Church historian and recorder, announced a four-volume series called Saints: The Story of the Church of Jesus Christ in the Latter Days. The series was prepared in response to the Lord’s commandment to “keep the church record and history continually” (Doctrine and Covenants 47:3).
Saints is a narrative history but it is not historical fiction. It is a true story based on the records of people from the past. “Every detail and every line of dialogue is supported by historical sources.” Those sources and additional records are specified in the notes at the end of each chapter. There are links for more stories at the back of the book and online. Saints is available digitally here and on The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints app.
The volumes are currently available in print edition in 14 languages through the Church distribution centers.
According to Elder Snow, the four volumes “tell the story of the Lord’s Church striving to fulfill its mandate to perfect the Saints (see Ephesians 4:11–13).” It tells the stories of ordinary men and women from the earliest days of the Church until now. More prominent people are also included with more insights and new details about them. As Elder Snow said, “Like you, they sacrificed to establish Zion, and they had challenges and successes as they sought to understand and implement divine direction. Woven together, their stories—and yours—create the rich tapestry of the Restoration.”[1]
- Saints is not just about imperfect people in the past who became better with the help of the Lord. It is also for imperfect people now who want to always remember Him. It will help you remember how merciful the Savior has been to His people, how He has made weak people strong, and how Saints around the globe have joined together to further God’s work.[2]
Volume 1 ("The Standard of Truth" 1815–1846) tells the story of the Restoration, from Joseph Smith’s childhood to the Saints receiving ordinances in the Nauvoo Temple in 1846.
Volume 2 ("No Unhallowed Hand" 1846–1893) covers the Saints’ challenges in gathering to the western United States and finishes with the dedication of the Salt Lake Temple in 1893.
Volume 3 ("Boldly, Nobly, and Independent" 1893–1955) narrates the global growth of the Church, ending with the dedication of the temple in Bern, Switzerland, in 1955.
Volume 4 ("Sounded in Every Ear" 1955–2020) brings the reader to the recent past, a period marked by rapid global growth in membership and temple building.
The First Presidency has encouraged “all to read the book [Saints] and make use of the supplementary material available online.”[3]
The series has sold nearly 1.2 million printed volumes and reached another 1.5 million online readers and 500,000 audiobook listeners. More than a thousand reviewers, translators, editors, historians and writers have contributed to the work over the past decade and a half.
While there are no current plans for a fifth volume of Saints, historians hope to expand the Saints brand and storytelling style through other Church history projects.
