Written by Randi Tubbs // Photo provided by Nathaniel Wiewora
Associate Professor of history Dr. Nathaniel Wiewora published his book “Sins of Christendom” this month. Wiewora worked with an editor at the University of Illinois Press who guided the project from a proposal to a completed book.
The lead time for university presses takes longer than trade presses since academic publishing requires peer review approval. Wiewora said he submitted his first manuscript in the fall of 2021.
“The manuscript was reviewed by several expert reviewers,” Wiewora said. “The process is blind review, in the sense that I do not know the reviewers. When their comments came back, I submitted a revised manuscript. That was then copyedited and designed and became the final book, which was published in March 2024.”
The book is based around evangelical criticism of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Wiewora said.
“This book uses the diverse animus expressed by evangelicals to illuminate how they used an imaginary Church as a proxy to disagree, attack, compromise and settle differences among themselves,” Wiewora said. “The evangelical practice to contrast itself with the emerging faith not only encompassed but also went beyond religious matters.”
Wiewora explored similar conflicts expressed by attacks on the Latter-day Saints, the Book of Mormon and Nauvoo ideas.
The main audience for the book was historians of evangelicalism, Mormonism and religious intolerance, Wiewora said. It appeals to audiences and readers interested in both evangelicalism and Mormonism, as well as the broader American crowds.
Chair and Associate Professor of history Dr. Shawn Fisher works with Wiewora in their shared department.
“Dr. Wiewora has taught me a lot about anti-Mormonism in the antebellum period and about the ways evangelicals defined themself to some degree through comparisons with Mormons,” Fisher said. “He is speaking to professional historians, but it is a useful book for anyone interested in the development of Christianity in America.”
Fisher expressed the importance of continued education and exploration of academic professions shown by Wiewora.
“Academics should be constantly working to seek the truth,” Fisher said. “This is an arduous journey, and sometimes, we discover things we would like to share with others. We historians do this mostly by writing. Dr. Wiewora has worked hard in the field to establish himself as an authority, and that process produces the kind of discipline and competency that pays off in the classroom, too.”
Wiewora said he hopes his book will introduce a topic that will leave readers inquiring about how their own religion or the ones discussed can influence lives.
“As a historian of American religion, I am interested in the ways that religion influences people’s lives,” Wiewora said. “This book is about the myriad of ways people use religious intolerance to advance their own religious consequences and the unexpected consequences that follow.”
Wiewora served as visiting faculty on the Harding University in Greece abroad program in fall 2023 with sophomore Abby Davidson. Davidson said she admires Wiewora’s character and teaching.
“He is the kind of teacher that makes sure his students are engaged and are understanding the material,” Davidson said. “He would allow for a space of conversation where we could discuss the sights seen and our feelings about them.”
The official publish date was March 12. Wiewora held an event on campus March 14 at 5:30 p.m. in the Holland-Waller commons for the publishing announcement and a signing.
