Talk:Vardis Fisher

Latest comment: 5 years ago by Rachel Helps (BYU) in topic influence on Anthro

Untitled edit

All the information in the new page is taken from the dust jacket and list of books in the hardcover edition of Pemmican, plus personal knowledge about the movie Jeremiah Johnson and the contents of The Mothers, Children of God, and God or Caesar?. Alan Nicoll 16:35, 11 October 2005 (UTC)Reply

The Testament of Man series, after Jesus Came Again, also includes Peace Like A River, My Holy Satan, and Orphans in Gethsemane -- the latter a reworking of the Hunter stories.

Ex-Mormon? edit

Fisher is listed both in the category here as an Ex-Mormon, as well as on the list of Former Latter-day Saints. But the impression I get from the references listed on the article, Fisher was never Mormon. None of them come right out and say "Fisher was never affiiliated with the LDS church", but that's the distinct impression left... The article at atheists.org has the most information... Should he he removed from those two listings? I don't know enough about Fisher to know myself, but certainly if he should be listed as an ex-mormon, there needs to be something about it on his article and a reference... -Porlob 02:43, 15 October 2006 (UTC)Reply


Fisher was born to a Mormon family, studied and taught at a Morman University. Was he ever baptisted a Morman? I don't remember ever reading that he was. In Ophans in Gethsemane Vridar Hunter, (Vardis Fisher's alter ego?) had only the Bible to read and studied it constantly. If he was never a Mormon he definitely studied it and practiced it while at home in Antelope Hills country. Defenbaugh 01:36, 18 July 2007 (UTC) defenbaugh July 17, 2007Reply


I think the confusion here stems from what one means by suggesting that someone has a religious affiliation. Does it mean actual membership or is it simply being raised or oriented in a faith tradition? If we insist upon the first, Vardis Fisher was not a Mormon. But if we accept the common convention that someone raised in a faith tradition is identified as such then Vardis Fisher was a Mormon who separated from his faith. The Roman Catholic Church and the Church of England, as two well known denominations, each contend that anyone baptized in their churches are Catholic or Anglican. Fisher's father was active in the Mormon Church and Vardis Fisher's youth was thoroughly Mormon even though he did not adhere to this faith as an adult. LAWinans (talk) 04:14, 16 March 2008 (UTC)Reply

The American Atheist insistence that Fisher "was not a Mormon" has its source in the rabid anti-Mormonism of Fisher's third wife, Opal. Fisher's father was a Mormon bishop in an area settled by Mormons (Swan Valley). His mother was a Campbellite, which is why he had the Bible scorched into him. Fisher's sister Irene was a lifelong Mormon. His wife Leona was Mormon. His parents did Temple work. He was "called to a mission," which is when he broke from the LDS Church. Fisher was certainly an apostate, but the idea that he does not depict Mormonism from "within" (unlike, say, Wallace Stegner) is simply ridiculous. My website reprints my own essay on Fisher's Mormon heritage (http://www.dancingbadger.com/vfmormonf.htm), which was written at Opal Fisher's request and with her assistance, then attacked and vilified by Mrs. Fisher and the American Atheist crowd. So yeah, I have a dog in this fight (I am "essayist Mick McAllister," though I can't figure out how to fix "citation needed."), but I also have among the top five academic credentials to settle it. — Preceding unsigned comment added by MMcA (talkcontribs) 22:04, 26 March 2013 (UTC)Reply

Where was the essay originally published? Rachel Helps (BYU) (talk) 19:31, 2 August 2018 (UTC)Reply

.com edit

Unable to access VardisFisher.com for some time now --Calypsoparakeet 18:38, 22 February 2007 (UTC)Reply

Okay. I deleted it. Pepso 22:43, 22 February 2007 (UTC)Reply

Peace Like a River - References Different Book edit

The hyperlink to the Wiki entry about "Peace Like a River" discusses a different book, same title, but different author ---- how can we remedy this? LAWinans (talk) 04:03, 16 March 2008 (UTC)Reply

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influence on Anthro edit

An unsourced statement in the article stated that Testament of Man influenced the comic book Anthro. The only thing I could find, an interview with Joe Orlando, stated that Orlando had been reading some of Fisher's work when he started editing Anthro. Please comment if you find a source that defines the relationship as an "influence." Rachel Helps (BYU) (talk) 20:18, 27 August 2018 (UTC)Reply