Sunstone Podcast

LDS Churches have been closed for two months now, which means we can only talk about religion online. And often our attempts at discussion blow up in our virtual faces. This panel explores how to discuss religion constructively online. Panelists include Gina Colvin, Michael Austin, Blaire Ostler, and Stephen Carter.

We live in unprecedented times, with unprecedented problems, that demand unprecedented solutions—solutions that only a prophetic people can provide. But what does being prophetic even mean? And when is a person being prophetic? What stops Mormons from being prophetic, and what can help them? This panel discussion includes Mica McGriggs, Daniel Carter, Lindsay Hansen Park, and Stephen Carter.

The COVID-19 pandemic has upended normal life the world over. And things will likely be very different after the pandemic subsides. This panel discussion explores the kinds of changes the LDS Church might go through, including in its temple worship, and what theological possibilities the pandemic could spawn. Panelists include Blaire Ostler, Carl Youngblood, Michaelann Gardner, and Stephen Carter.

In this episode, Sunstone assembles a panel from across the belief spectrum to help us dig in to not only what happened at this most recent conference, but also what happens at General Conference … generally. Panelists include Lindsay Hansen Park, John Larsen, Blaire Ostler, Jaxon Washburn, and Stephen Carter. Join us for a vigorous discussion that ends with everyone still liking each other.

From Zion’s Camp to the Willie and Martin handcart companies, the LDS Church is great at retelling tragedies as triumphs. In this episode, Stephen Carter talks about how every group does the same thing, and how it can actually create even more tragedy.

When it comes to religion and politics, it seems like everyone is talking in a different language. What if that’s a good thing? Stephen Carter reinterprets the story of the Tower of Babel to show how the “Babel Cycle” has spun out of control, and how harnessing it again could help heal the political and religious divide.

As LDS wards look for ways to “have church” during social distancing, the question comes up: “Why in the world have we never ever streamed sacrament meetings?” In this episode, Stephen Carter answers that question with his own personal conspiracy theory, supported with dozens of rolls of toilet paper.

George R. Compton believes that the eventual legalization of polygamy is inevitable, and the Utah legislature recently took a giant step in that direction by voting to stop prosecuting polygamy as a felony. In what ways would the legalization of polygamy be useful to current American culture? This episode presents Compton’s fascinating article as narrated by Stephen Carter.

For more than a century, Mormonism has been married to the Republican Party, conservative political values being preached unapologetically from both the general and ward pulpit. But a rift seems to be occurring between the two, as evidenced by LDS senators Mitt Romney and Mike Lee voting on opposite sides of the recent impeachment. In this episode, John Larsen lays out the history of the LDS Church and the Republican Party and argues that the the LDS Church may be rethinking its Republican affinity.

Brittney Hartley sees a huge gap between the colorful world of Mormon academia and the average church member. In this episode, Jaxon Washburn talks with her about the book she published to fill that gap and how it can steer LDS Church members away from fundamentalist thinking.