Two metro-area landmarks, the stainless steel-spired Temple and the domed Auditorium, accentuate the world headquarters of the Community of Christ in Independence, Missouri.

Formerly called the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, the denomination emerged after the 1844 death of Mormon prophet and leader Joseph Smith Jr. A significant faction of followers formed the RLDS, and Joseph Smith III later accepted its presidency. Including an opposition to polygamy, the younger Smith and his successors navigated a difficult course for decades between Utah Mormonism and mainstream Christianity.

Drawing from his recent two-volume history The Journey of a People, historian Mark Scherer traces the early history of the Community of Christ, its restoration and reorganization, and the subsequent search for a separate identity.