Mormon Stories Podcast

Join us now for Part 3 of what many are calling a truly groundbreaking Mormon Stories Podcast series - my interview with teen convert, former All-American athlete, and former Mormon seminary teacher and CES employee Marc Oslund. In today's episode Marc shares with us: An insider's view of how the Mormon church began realizing that it was hemorrhaging its youth and young adults, and how the church has experimented in seminary/institute/CES with both "inoculation" and "avoidance" when confronting its long-denied problematic history. How the Mormon church relied on Terryl Givens and other progressive Mormons to help re-train Mormon CES employees, the backlash that ensued from orthodox instructors and managers, and how the Mormon church worked hard to simultaneously distance itself from Terryl Givens' teachings. An observation that Mormon apostles no longer act as guardians of doctrine and theology, and how they have now "outsourced" that work to progressive theologians like Terryl Givens and others, in part so that they can maintain plausible deniability. Marc's transition from an orthodox Mormon to a progressive/liberal (Terryl Givens)-type Mormon as a Mormon seminary teacher, in response to the training the church provided him, and how that ultimately undermined his own career in CES. How Marc was ultimately and literally pushed out of CES for explicitly following the advice of Mormon apostles like Elder Ballard to openly discuss the problematic issues. How the CES System continues to promote orthodox leaders in spite of its lip service to promoting openness and tolerance for diversity. You will not regret the length and depth of this interview.

Join us today as we continue with part two of our three-part interview with former baseball player and LDS seminary teacher, Marc Oslund. Fascinating for so many reasons, I believe this is one of the most important Mormon Stories Podcast episodes I've ever released. Marc was a heavily recruited high school baseball and football player in the L.A., California area. He converted to the Mormon church as a teen. He was drafted to the baseball Major Leagues three different times, and turned down those offers to go on an LDS mission and to BYU. He was an all-American baseball player at BYU. He served an LDS mission where he was often racked with guilt and shame - almost sent home for it. When his baseball career ended (due to post-mission injuries), he became a Mormon CES seminary teacher, and served from around 2013 to 2019 - while the Mormon church was trying to become more open/honest about its history, and deal with public activists like Kate Kelly, myself, Sam Young, Jeremy Runnells, etc. Even though he constantly had doubts/questions/concerns, his position as a seminary teacher caused major rifts in his marriage when his wife expressed occasional doubts, specifically about the Mormon temple ceremony. Marc became a liberal/progressive/Givens Mormon while a seminary teacher - but was punished by CES for his progressive stances. Marc ultimately lost his orthodox Mormon faith as a seminary teacher, and was pressured to quit his job. In part 2 of his story, we will hear about Marc's experience working for the Church Educational System as a seminary teacher, his attempts to be open with students about church doctrines, and why he eventually began to question the leadership of the LDS church - all while working within the CES program.

Join us today as we kick off our three-part interview with former baseball player and LDS seminary teacher, Marc Oslund. Fascinating for so many reasons, I believe this is one of the most important Mormon Stories Podcast episodes I've ever released. Marc was a heavily recruited high school baseball and football player in the L.A., California area. He converted to the Mormon church as a teen. He was drafted to the baseball Major Leagues three different times, and turned down those offers to go on an LDS mission and to BYU. He was an all-American baseball player at BYU. He served an LDS mission where he was often racked with guilt and shame - almost sent home for it. When his baseball career ended (due to post-mission injuries), he became a Mormon CES seminary teacher, and served from around 2013 to 2019 - while the Mormon church was trying to become more open/honest about its history, and deal with public activists like Kate Kelly, myself, Sam Young, Jeremy Runnells, etc. Even though he constantly had doubts/questions/concerns, his position as a seminary teacher caused major rifts in his marriage when his wife expressed occasional doubts, specifically about the Mormon temple ceremony. Marc became a liberal/progressive/Givens Mormon while a seminary teacher - but was punished by CES for his progressive stances. Marc ultimately lost his orthodox Mormon faith as a seminary teacher, and was pressured to quit his job. In part 1 of this incredible story, Marc talks about his upbringing in LA, his conversion to Mormonism, and why he gave up multiple opportunities to play major-league baseball in order to pursue a career in the Church Education System. This is a long one...probably deserves its own podcast...but it's really, really important. I hope you enjoy.

As the COVID pandemic begins to slow in Spring of 2021, we are seeing a surge in vocal Mormon church members being summoned to disciplinary councils for excommunication on the charges of apostasy. Last week Natasha Helfer was excommunicated from the Mormon church for nothing less than advocating for ethical mental health and sexuality. Today we interview Neesha and Kyle Brost, who were recently threatened with excommunication by their Mormon leaders for posting videos to their very popular TikTok channel. This is Neesha and Kyle's Mormon Story

Join us as we talk to Shannon Flynn, who was an associate of bomber and forger Mark Hofmann, as well as a major figure in the new Netflix documentary "Murder Among the Mormons."

Please join us now as we interview Marriage and Sex therapist Natasha Helfer as she discusses her pending Mormon disciplinary council for apostasy. Natasha Helfer's membership council is taking place on April 18th at 7:30 pm central time zone.   How you can support Natasha: Write letters of support to President Stephen Daley, Attend the council itself as an "approved" participant or in a more general way (details below), Sign a mental health professional letter that is currently being drafted (if this is your profession) - please contact Lisa Butterworth to sign this, and Spread the word on social media. Contact information: Derby, Kansas Stake President: Stephen Daley: stevemdaley@gmail.com Natasha Helfer, LCMFT, CST, CST-S: natashahelfermft@gmail.com Lisa Butterworth, LCPC, NCC: lisabutterworth@gmail.com Event taking place at the Derby, Kansas Stake.

Today we have Shannon Flynn and Tonya and Scott Reiter in studio to remember the life of their friend, Lyn Jacob’s, associate of Mormon forger and bomber Mark Hofmann.

Returning Mormon Stories Podcast guest, Roger Hendrix, is a former LDS Bishop, Mission President, and CES director, and was also called by Gorden B. Hinkley as a Trustee for the Deseret Trust Company for 18 years. And as if that weren't enough, Roger also worked as a business Management Consultant for 35 years, and did a syndicated daily radio commentary on social, political, and economic trends for nine years. Join Roger and myself today as we provide an analysis of the LDS church as a multi-billion-dollar corporation, and discuss "the future of Mormonism" - as Roger sees it. Books by Roger Hendrix: Bend, Create, and Plan Your Future, author Roger Hendrix Choosing the Dream, The future of Religion in American Public Life. Co- authored with Fred Gedicks Leverage Point, a novel written with Gerald Lund. The Idea Economy, Why your ideas will have to create personal wealth and hope in an age of uncertainty. Co- authored with Rob Brazell.

For as long as the Mormon Internet has existed, Ex-Mormon women have been expressing concerns about abusive behavior by Ex-Mormon men. Today a panel of Ex-Mormon women come together on Mormon Stories Podcast to introduce athe following six concepts: 1) Consent, 2) Deference to Patriarchy, 3) Gender Roles, 4) Modesty, 5) Sex Shaming, and 6) Victim Blaming. The intent of this episode is to help educate Ex-Mormon men about how to treat Ex-Mormon women, particularly online and in Ex-Mormon communities. Participants in the panel are: Hannah Dunnigan, Sarah Hess, Margaret Frances Phillips, and Elisha Lee.

Since Title IX passed in 1972 to prevent sex discrimination under any education program receiving Federal financial assistance, the religious exemption clause has gone virtually unchaellenched. For decades, the Department of Educations has granted Title IX exemptions allowing dozens of religious colleges like BYU and Liberty University to discriminate based on sex, gender identity, and sexual orientation, even when they receive millions of taxpayer dollars every single year. Join us today at 4:00 pm MT as we interview attorney Paul Southwick, Chandler Horning (BYU) and Luke Wilson (Liberty University), about their groundbreaking class action lawsuit filed against the Department of Education. Chandler and Luke are among 33 former and current students from different federally-funded religious colleges who have been harmed by their discriminatory policies. The lawsuit argues that the Title IX religious exemptions “as applied to sexual and gender minority students, is unconstitutional and that the Department must enforce the protections of Title IX at all taxpayer-funded educational institutions, including at those institutions that discriminate and cause harm on the basis of sincerely held religious beliefs.”