Review
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Title: Making Space for Mormon Thought and Culture: The Enduring Influence of Eugene England
Editors: Robert A. Rees and Brent Rushforth
Publisher: Signature Books
Genre: Personal essay collection
Year Published: 2025
Number of Pages: 194
ISBN: 978-1560855231
Reviewed by Sherrie Gavin
Uttering the name “Eugene England” invokes a passionate response by those familiar with him. Editors Robert A. Rees and Brent Rushforth try to summarize England’s qualities in the introduction of Making Space for Mormon Thought and Culture: The Enduring Influence of Eugene England using subheadings such as “teacher,” “innovator,” and “disciple.” However, in reading this collection of essays, it seems to me that he was also, if not primarily—a friend. A true friend who genuinely expressed love for those around him; perhaps this love is what continued to inspire him as he traversed what was once the secreted, lonely path of intellectual Mormon thought. England seems to have touched every life he met, in person or online, and helped so very many of us to feel safe enough to open our eyes, to see that we can feel safe and surrounded by kinsfolk as we travel the increasingly widening and welcoming path of Mormon thought.
Safe: is another word that comes to mind as I read the contributors’ essays. From Scott Bradford’s refreshingly unpretentious bio (“Scott enjoys… sports often lazily watching them, sometimes actually participating in them”) at the start of his essay, “Gene, the Generous Genius” to Robin Zenger Baker’s “I Was Blessed to Have Known Him,” wherein she describes her childhood joint family outings with the England’s and “holding on to the luggage racks,” on the top of family station wagons “to enjoy… the thrill of breaking all reasonable child-rearing rules.” In each essay, it is made increasingly clear that no matter how one came to interact with England, there was safety and joyful encouragement in exploring and experiencing individual and distinct surroundings from various, personal vantage points.
This is yet another biographical submission that aims to better understand and appreciate England’s life. Two biographies of England were published in 2021. One, Terryl Givens’ Stretching the Heavens: The Life of Eugene England and Modern Mormonism, juxtaposed England’s ideas against the Church of his lifetime. The Church in much of England’s time was riddled with the censorship of the “all-Church coordinating council” (also called “Priesthood Correlation”), while England sought to engage with Mormon thought in a way that was personal, unscripted, and open to personal revelation. Whilst Givens describes some of England’s engagements as naïve, my personal perspective is that England’s testimony of Jesus Christ’s perfect inclusion also applied to him: in my mind, England’s seeking and engaging with general authorities was an act of pure and simple faith; one that encompassed anti-war and anti-racism ideas, and an approach to the atonement of Jesus Christ that are more acceptable in the Church of 2025 than they were in his day. Kristine Haglund’s Eugene England: A Mormon Liberal is more generous in characterizing England’s efforts in communicating with church authorities who bristled against England’s ideas. In Haglund’s assessment, England’s faith in writing about Christianity was astute and influential in a way that continues to influence Mormon thought. It was in England’s struggling to grasp ideas of organization and enlightenment, argues Haglund, that England developed a critical methodology that was personal, inviting, and perhaps even a sacred gift.
Even with the contributions of these fine biographies, I believe that this anthology, Making Space for Mormon Thought and Culture, is the most telling. Though not an academic biography, it expresses the wholeness and lifelong effect that England had with those who knew him, both intimately (“The Next Dance,” by his wife, Charlotte England) and all too briefly (“Gene England, the Master Teacher,” by Thomas Griffith). In some ways, the book read as though a eulogy; each participant expressed a short portion of well-chosen words intended to personally highlight their consecrated friendship with England. Each essay is meticulous, beautiful, and poignantly written, and I often felt my eyes brimming with tears, wishing each author had a little more time with the man they deeply respected, loved, and admired.
Wonderfully easy to read, with chapters of varying lengths from two pages to eight pages, the book can easily be read in an afternoon. The contributors represent a wide spectrum of relationships with England: there are mathematicians, historians, family members, fellow parishioners, and students of England’s—their diverse perspectives help to give a fuller picture of the man. This is a well-priced introductory treat for those interested in Mormon thought and literature. It is also a comforting reminder that even in the most mundane and brief encounters, our voices, words, and thoughts mean something. Perhaps everything. May we all keep welcoming, progressing, and perhaps more importantly, writing.
Sherrie Gavin is a PhD candidate at the University of New England, Australia. Her research focuses on interdisciplinary studies specific to women, religion, food, and culture. Her passion is in examining feminist food studies within distinct cultures, subcultures, applying broader explorations of cultural phenomena. These applications intersect with pop culture representations of women, religion, and food within historical landscapes. Having completed her undergraduate degree at Southern Utah University in analysing the socioeconomic perspectives of the state of North Carolina during the American Civil War, her graduate research is inclusive of the ongoing effects of eugenics, class distinctions, and inherited racism. Additionally, she is on the editorial board of Segullah and works as a Senior Cultural Engagement and Research Officer at PopCRN.