Brian Cannon will be here to speak about Building a Global Zion: The Life and Vision of David O. McKay (published by Signature Books) on Wednesday, October 29. He will be here from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., will speak at 6:00, and answer questions and sign books before and after that time.
Called as an apostle in 1906, David O. McKay devoted the remaining sixty-four years of his life to serving in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, including nineteen as church president. That lengthy tenure, combined with his warmth, extensive personal ministry, broadmindedness, deep spirituality, and unprecedented global travel made him one of the church’s most beloved and influential leaders of all time. When he died in 1970, roughly 60 percent of the church’s membership had known no other church president. Memories of McKay’s teachings and ministry remain a taproot for the spiritual convictions and values of many Latter-day Saints.
Brian Q. Cannon’s biography offers a fresh perspective on important features of McKay’s life, showing how his mission to Scotland, round-the-world tour as an apostle, and service as president of the European Mission shaped his global vision and priorities. Building a Global Zion illuminates previously underappreciated facets of McKay’s reach, including his crusades against alcohol consumption and political corruption, his long-term administration of missionary work, his spiritual impressions, his personnel decisions, and his mediation of interpersonal impasses in administrative settings. Cannon carefully reconstructs facets of McKay’s vast ministry to individuals, highlights distinctive themes of his teachings, and explores challenges that confronted McKay’s associates as his health and acuity waned.
Gregory Prince says, "David O. McKay's prominence in Latter-day saint history allows for, and indeed demands, multiple biographies. Cannon focuses on the personal McKay, with half its length telling the story of his pre-presidential years. Filled with accounts of person-to-person interactions, it gives us access to McKay's extraordinary persona and influence. Its final chapter, dealing with McKay's declining years, is particularly timely as both the church and the United States grapple with the consequences of gerontocracy."
Building a Global Zion: The Life and Vision of David O. McKay. Signature Books. 287 pp. Paperback. $26.95.
https://www.benchmarkbooks.com/pages/books/40237/brian-q-cannon/building-a-global-zion-the-life-and-vision-of-david-o-mckay
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