For decades before he entered the First Presidency at age 61, Utah native J. Reuben Clark had been pro-war in philosophy and actions. As chief legal adviser in the US State Department, he even wanted to jail all pacifists. Despite this background, he played a different role in Mormon leadership circles by becoming a puzzling and strident anti-militarist, anti-interventionist, and pro-pacifist from 1933 to his death in 1961. His experiences and views have something for everyone on the spectrum between stridentmilitarism to strident pacifism.

D. Michael Quinn