Mormon Stories Podcast

In Part 2 of our 3-part interview with Emma about being raised as a Mormon "prepper," Emma discusses what it was like to serve an LDS mission in the Philippines, which included a corrupt wherein missionaries were encouraged to baptize impoverished Filipinos at any cost and by any  means necessary, largely out of a desire to inflate mission statistics. See Parts 1 and 3 of this series with Emma to learn about the Mormon "Prepper" movement. Show Notes: "I-Thou vs I-It Conversions: The Mormon 'Baseball Baptism' Era," by D. Michael Quinn, Sunstone Magazine, December 1993 "Dr. Ted Lyon on LDS Church Change, Latin American Missions, LDS Membership Statistics, and Thoughtful Faith" on Mormon Stories "Kiddie Baptisms? My Mission Experience in Guatemala," John Dehlin on Mormon Stories "Stories from a CES Director, Mission President, and Trustee for Deseret Trust Company," Roger Hendrix on Mormon Stories "How a Mormon Mission President Lost His Testimony," Roger Hendrix on Mormon Stories "Tithing and the LDS/Mormon Church," Understanding Mormonism Church Membership Information for the Philippines "New Temples Veil Mormonism's Decline," Simon Southerton on Mormon Stories ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— MSP on Spotify MSP on Apple Podcasts MSP Blog Instagram Patreon TikTok Discord   Contact Us! *MormonStories@gmail.com *PO Box 171085 Salt Lake City, UT 84117

Since the founding of Mormonism in 1830 there has been a core belief in the imminent 2nd coming of Jesus Christ (thus the "Latter-day Saints" portion of the Mormon church's official name).  Within modern Mormonism over the past few decades there has been an increasing trend towards "end times" preparedness - wherein ultra-orthodox Mormons begin preparing for the 2nd coming of Jesus by selling their 401k's and retirement plans, moving to rural areas, attending "Prepper" conferences like "Preparing a People," building fortresses, stockpiling food/weapons/ammunition/tents/trailers, denying traditional health care to children, etc., and preparing (i.e., "prepping") for the arrival of Jesus.  This movement has been at best benign (for a few), but for many has led to extreme behaviors, divided families, financial ruin, a host of emerging "prophets" (e.g., charlatans) who prey on this mentality (e.g., Julie Rowe), and in some cases murder (e.g., Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow story). Emma was raised in a Mormon Prepper household.  In Part 1 of our 3 part series with Emma, she discusses what it was like to grow up in a Mormon Prepper household. Show Notes: Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover "Tara Westover, Author of Educated: A Memoir" on Mormon Stories "Ezra Taft Benson and the Making of the Mormon Right" with Matt Harris on Mormon Stories Part 1 Part 2 "The Mormon Influences on Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow" on Mormon Stories Visions of Glory: One Man's Astonishing Account of the Last Days by John Pontius Mormon Doctrine by Bruce R. McConkie Doctrines of Salvation: Sermons and Writings of Joseph Fielding Smith by Bruce R. McConkie "Is the Mormon Church in Decline? An Insider Report" on Mormon Stories "Rodney Meldrum: Founder of the Book of Mormon Heartland Model" on Mormon Stories "Rodney Meldrum and the Book of Mormon Heartland Model" on Mormon Stories Saturday's Warrior "Examining Mormon Mind Control with Luna Lindsey Corbden" on Mormon Stories "Entrata founder who accused 'Jews' of Covid-19 vaccine conspiracy steps down from software company's board," by Bryan Schott, Salt Lake Tribune, January 4, 2020 ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— MSP on Spotify MSP on Apple Podcasts MSP Blog Instagram Patreon TikTok Discord   Contact Us! *MormonStories@gmail.com *PO Box 171085 Salt Lake City, UT 84117

Join Margi, John, and Gerardo for our next episode of Thrive Stories this coming Tuesday at noon (MST). Come listen and participate in the conversation as we talk to Jake Bellenfant. Find out how Jake has processed the damaging experiences of his youth and young adulthood growing up gay in the church and how he has reclaimed his own mental health. In addition, listen to how Jake has navigated grief and loss in witnessing both the death of his mother and the loss of his community. Jake is now a mental health advocate, studying at the #1 ranked Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner program at Vanderbilt University. He aspires to improve the mental health of populations across the lifespan and in marginalized groups that are struggling with mental illness-- particularly those who have suffered the mental health effects of undue influence, high demand belief systems, abusive family dynamics, and religious trauma. Thrive Stories is a new podcast series where Margi (alongside John and Carah) will be interviewing a member of the community twice per month. The interviews will be shorter (1-2 hours), story-based, but will be focused on a particular aspect of healing and growth AFTER a Mormon faith crisis (thus the THRIVE name). They will happen on Tuesdays at noon (MST). Some examples of areas of thriving include: Family Relationships, Healthy Boundaries, Finding Community, Finding Meaning/Purpose, Dealing with Grief/Death, Religion after Mormonism, Health Sexuality, Parenting, Improving Physical Health, Identity, Health Marriage/Relationships, Secular Spirituality, Word of Wisdom 2.0, and Women Finding Their Own Voice after Mormonism. If you would like to nominate someone you know who would be a great candidate for a THRIVE interview, please nominate them (or yourself) HERE. Show Notes: THRIVE story application form link Prop 8 Podcast (icarly) Jennette McCurdy Empty Inside Podcast Kolby Sorensen MS Episode Combating Cult Mind Control Steven Hassan website Mind Over Mood Utah Crisis Line Mindfulness Meditation Steven Hassan - Influence Continuum Podcast Recovering Agency Documentaries on cult control and mental control: Bad Vegan - Netflix Wild Wild Country - Netflix The Matrix - HBO Max, Peacock TV & Redbox Pleasantville - Prime Video, Vudu Movie & TV Store, Redbox., Apple TV Tangled - Disney + Holy Hell - Amazon Prime The Invention of Lying - Prime Video, Vudu Movie & TV Store, VUDU, Apple TV or Redbox Smallfoot - Prime Video, VUDU, Vudu Movie & TV Store or Redbox The Vow - Hulu ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— MSP on Spotify MSP on Apple Podcasts MSP Blog Instagram Patreon TikTok Discord   Contact Us! *MormonStories@gmail.com *PO Box 171085 Salt Lake City, UT 84117

We've whipped up another epic episode discussing the context left out of LDS church curriculum around early Mormon polygamy. Sandra Tanner joins Mormon Stories as a special guest to address comments made on the followHIM podcast by church historian Kate Holbrook. Join John, Sandra, and Gerardo live Monday at 4:30pm MT. Show Notes: "Doctrine and Covenants 129-132 with Dr. Kate Holbrook," on followHIM followHIM podcast with Hank Smith and John Bytheway Full text of "The Happiness Letter," Joseph Smith's Alleged 1842 Letter to Nancy Rigdon "A Study in Religious Manipulation," Jonathan Streeter on "The Happiness Letter" "Nancy Rigdon and the Happiness Letter," on Mormon Discussion podcast Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith by Jon Krakauer "Kingdom Come," by David Van Biema, Time, June 24, 2001 A Woman's View, Helen Mar Kimball Whitney's Journals "Joseph Smith and Other Men's Wives," by Dan Vogel Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Full court transcript of the "Temple Lot Case" "'Warts and all' in Smith biography," Deseret News, October 1, 2005  Joseph Smith's Polygamy by Brian Hales Let's Talk About Polygamy by Brittany Nash "Polygamy and the Church's Past," Brittany Chapman Nash on All-In podcast "Rebuking Iniquity," 1856 Brigham Young address threatening to divorce his wives if they didn't stop "whining,"Journal of Discourses Vol. 4 In Heaven as It Is on Earth: Joseph Smith and the Early Mormon Conquest of Death by Samuel Brown In Sacred Loneliness: The Plural Wives of Joseph Smith by Todd Compton "For Eternity Alone," a poem by Helen Mar Kimball in which "for time" may mean she agreed to be sealed to Joseph, only to find out later that she was expected to have sex with him "The Joseph Smith-Sylvia Sessions Plural Sealing: Polyandry or Polygyny?" by Brian Hales, Mormon Historical Studies, April 2013 Elder Jeffrey R. Holland at Sisters Devotional in Lima, Peru, in January 2020 Utah Lighthouse Ministry ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— MSP on Spotify MSP on Apple Podcasts MSP Blog Instagram Patreon TikTok Discord   Contact Us! *MormonStories@gmail.com *PO Box 171085 Salt Lake City, UT 84117

Join us for Part 3 of our interview with Rodney Meldrum, wherein we discuss his beliefs regarding the Book of Mormon Heartland model. Show Notes: Steven Hawkings Ancient Society - Lewis Henry MorganRodney Meldrum Book Jonathan Neville Camorah Gospel Topic Essays Charles Darwin  Kay Godfrey Heartland Model Thomas Stuart Ferguson Gregory Smith’s article Hannah Stoddard Mormon Stories Interview with Thomas Murphy ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— MSP on Spotify MSP on Apple Podcasts MSP Blog Instagram Patreon TikTok Discord   Contact Us! *MormonStories@gmail.com *PO Box 171085 Salt Lake City, UT 84117

Join Margi, John, and Carah for our next episode of Thrive Stories this coming Tuesday at noon (MST). Come listen and participate in the conversation as we discuss sexuality, body confidence, and owning our own stories from this minute forward. Faith has found deeper meaning and exhilaration in celebrating sexuality and body autonomy in her life after Mormonism. Thrive Stories is a new podcast series where Margi (alongside John and Carah) will be interviewing a member of the community twice per month.  The interviews will be shorter (1-2 hours), story-based, but will be focused on a particular aspect of healing and growth AFTER a Mormon faith crisis (thus the THRIVE name).  They will happen on Tuesdays at noon (MST). Some examples of areas of thriving include:  Family Relationships, Healthy Boundaries, Finding Community, Finding Meaning/Purpose, Dealing with Grief/Death, Religion after Mormonism, Health Sexuality, Parenting, Improving Physical Health, Identity, Health Marriage/Relationships, Secular Spirituality, Word of Wisdom 2.0, and Women Finding Their Own Voice after Mormonism. If you would like to nominate someone you know who would be a great candidate for a THRIVE interview, please nominate them (or yourself) here. Show Notes: "Mindy Gledhill Discusses Her Mormon Faith Transition" on Mormon Stories "Broken Open," Margi Dehlin on Mormon Stories How to Change your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence by Michael Pollan Fantastic Fungi documentary Sex at Dawn: How We Mate, Why We Stray, and What It Means for Modern Relationships by Christopher Ryan Come As You Are: The Surprising New Science that Will Transform Your Sex Life by Emily Nagoski Faith's Facebook Faith's Instagram ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— MSP on Spotify MSP on Apple Podcasts MSP Blog Instagram Patreon TikTok Discord   Contact Us! *MormonStories@gmail.com *PO Box 171085 Salt Lake City, UT 84117

Join us for Part 1 of a multi-part series where John Larsen discusses Mormonism and logical fallacies. We talk about how fallacious arguments are natural to the human brain and how people in and outside of the Mormon church use bad reasons to keep their line of thinking alive. Please support this content and having John Larsen on by donating to the Mormon Expressions fund HERE! Show Notes: Encyclopedia of Mormonism Mormonism - What everyone needs to know By Terryl Givens Richard Bushman Rough Stone Rolling Rodney Meldrum Books Mormon Expression Donations Mormon Expression Podcast Link ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— MSP on Spotify MSP on Apple Podcasts MSP Blog Instagram Patreon TikTok Discord   Contact Us! *MormonStories@gmail.com *PO Box 171085 Salt Lake City, UT 84117

Join hosts John Dehlin and Gerardo Sumano as they explore what happens when a Mormon missionary reads the CES Letter. Kolby Sorensen was raised a devout Mormon in West Valley and West Jordan, Utah. In 2020, he was called to serve a mission as the COVID pandemic began, when missionaries were encouraged to use social media to proselytize.   Show Notes: Letter to a CES Director by Jeremy Runnells "Reflections on the CES Letter," Daniel Peterson, FAIRmormon Conference 2014 "Belief after the CES Letter," Jim Bennett on Mormon Stories "A Faithful Reply to the CES Letter from a Former CES Employee," by Jim Bennett Jeremy Runnell's responses to "Debunkings of the CES Letter" "Missionaries returning home at their own insistence," Mission President's Handbook, Ch 4 Kolby's posts on Ex-Mormon Reddit Kolby’s Instagram "Telling Your Loved Ones About Losing Your Faith," on Mormon Stories "Mormon Inoculation" on Mormon Stories "Personal Peace in Challenging Times," Quentin L. Cook, General Conference October 2021 "Britvengers React: The Mormon British Rescue" on Mormon Stories "LDS Church addresses health of church president," by Ric Wayman, St. George News, May 3, 2015 "Is the Mormon Church in Decline?" An Insider Report on Mormon Stories "No More Strangers," by Alexander B. Morrison, Ensign, September 2000 "Strong Impressions of the Spirit," by D. Todd Christofferson, New Era, June 2013 "Founder of the Book of Mormon Heartland Model," Rodney Meldrum on Mormon Stories Video by Shane Carpenter, an out gay LDS missionary "Jesus Christ is the Answer," Ronald A Rasband, Evening With a General Authority, February 8, 2019 [CW: May be triggering for those experiencing suicidal thoughts] "Daughter of Mormon General Authority Hartman Rector, Jr." Lila Tueller on Mormon Stories "Vogel and Metcalfe in Da House!" on Mormon Discussion Gerardo Sumano interview on Mormon Stories Kolby and Cami Reddish interview on Mormon Stories "From TBM to RFM: Radio Free Mormon Discusses His Transition from Mormon Apologist to Non-Believer," on Mormon Stories ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— MSP on Spotify MSP on Apple Podcasts MSP Blog Instagram Patreon TikTok Discord   Contact Us! *MormonStories@gmail.com *PO Box 171085 Salt Lake City, UT 84117

Welcome back Lizzy and Spencer Bean for the third and final part to their delightful, authentic, hilarious Mormon Stories interview! We dive in head-on in this episode hearing about how marriage for these two young Mormons was not what they expected. But with an interesting reframe to spirituality from an LDS therapist, Lizzy and Spencer’s autonomous spirituality began to emerge like never before. After having enough of spiritual gatekeeping and finding a way to make marriage finally work from them, Spencer describes almost being kicked out of BYU and the situation he was put in by a bishop telling him he had one week to read the Book of Mormon or lose his ecclesiastical endorsement. There are too many topics to list that we cover in this epic final episode with Lizzy and Spencer, but among them are: How and why some Mormons decide to supplement LDS church teachings with New Age spirituality, how wearing garments and Mormon body standards affect women, how empathizing with friends in the LGBTQ community can wake a person up to the realities and harms of Mormon doctrine, and so many other great insights and analogies that help describe why a couple would love Mormonism and choose to leave it! ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— MSP on Spotify MSP on Apple Podcasts MSP Blog Instagram Patreon TikTok Discord   Contact Us! *MormonStories@gmail.com *PO Box 171085 Salt Lake City, UT 84117

Welcome back Lizzy and Spencer Bean for part 2 of their delightful Mormon Stories interview! In part two, we have Spencer tell us about his upbringing in Orem, Utah as the son of the bishop and what led him to develop a testimony of the church. We hope you like our chat as we let it take us into discussions on missionary work in the developing world, undue influence, death, and the Plan of Salvation. Stick around for some interesting insights from Spencer’s mission to Sweden and even a story about Midsummer with Hans Maddsen’s brother, Leif. We named this series “Loving and Leaving Mormonism” to allow our guests to speak authentically to their all-around good experiences being raised members of the LDS faith and hope you’ll stick around to listen to part three as Lizzy and Spencer describe the events and information that made them think twice about their membership in the religion they love. Part 2 show notes: Packer talk on funerals Hans Mattsen Mormon Stories episode Swedish Rescue episode Mormon Civil War YouTube - Peter Bleakley Nemo the Mormon YouTube 21st century Saints ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— MSP on Spotify MSP on Apple Podcasts MSP Blog Instagram Patreon TikTok Discord   Contact Us! *MormonStories@gmail.com *PO Box 171085 Salt Lake City, UT 84117