If the Community of Christ is downgrading their archives, perhaps this is a good time for the LDS Church (with their new historical library) to approach the Independence-based church and acquire some or all of the collections for future research.

This is the type of thinking that comes from the LDS Church. Sort of like - hey they can't afford to keep up the Kirtland Temple so just hand it over to big brother. This story is about a great guy that has bridged a gap between the two churches. It is a tragedy that they are letting him go. He is a scholar and a gentleman!

Ron is a good man. It would be a mistake for the CofC to lose him. Surely there are other positions that could be eliminated instead of his important one. Ron brings a great deal of credibility to their Church archives and research.

But another thing that might help would be for the CofC to sell the LDS some of their historical artifacts. I am certain there is great interest in many of these items. The LDS have come to the rescue before. It might be time again. For instance, with a decreased interest in the Joseph Smith translation of the Holy Bible on the part of the CofC, I am sure the LDS would love to get the Phinney Bible and Edited Manuscript that Emma kept. Although the LDS have some JST selections, it would be even better to have the manuscript and Bible used by Joseph Smith in making his restoration of plain and precious truths to the Holy Bible.

Interesting times. Interesting article. Interesting to see what happens.

The idea that 18 letters (or even 1800) could save Romig's job ia pretty typical of professional historians nowadays. They write to each other, instead of to the general public, and when someone's job is in jeopardy they try to save it with a letter-writing campaign from the few who care.

It is not a big brother mentality that suggests acquiring some of the downgraded collections, but rather a desire to do what an archivist should do, which is to preserve documents for the public.

I attended two conferences of the MHA and John Whitmer Association and found both of them full of arrogant professionals who think the general public should buy their books but shut up. If historians don't wake up they will discover that all of them have denigrated the public until they become completely irrelevant themselves.