Mormon Stories Podcast

Today we’re premiering part one of our epic interview with an awesome mother and daughter duo, Linda and Savannah Clyde. Growing up in a mixed-faith Mormon home, Linda worked through the resentment she felt towards her father’s lack of belief in the church with beautiful results. Linda’s talents as a writer eventually landed her a job at LDS church headquarters in the marketing department where she was instrumental in assisting the church soften it’s tone and messaging. Hearing her talk about the inner workings of the church is fascinating stuff to say the least! Once an extremely faithful teenager, Linda’s daughter Savannah’s curious spirit led her to dig deeper into the narrative of the church and become a new kind of pioneer for her Mormon family. Listen along as they describe their journey to understanding one another, their non-Mormon loved ones, and the beauty that can come from embracing non-conformity as a family in Utah county.

In September of 2020, professional Mormon apologists Terryl and Fiona Givens were invited to speak at a Mormon church fireside for the Sunderland England Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  During this fireside Terryl Givens was asked to recount an experience he once had with a Mormon missionary woman who was doubting her testimony because of troubling things she learned about Mormon church founder Joseph Smith,  Terryl's recounting of the story was as follows: "I was fortunate that there was a mission president in our area who knew us and our work.  And there was a sister missionary who decided that she was going to leave the church.  She was finishing her mission the next week and she'd made the decision to go home and leave.  And her companion of course deeply distraught over this and asked the mission president "Could we go talk to brother Givens?"  And he gave them permission to come and stay as long as they needed so they stayed long into the night.  And I listened to one after another question and then finally it occurred to me to ask this one question.  And I said to her in regard to one question in particular about Joseph Smith, and I said "Sister" I said, "Why does the answer to that question matter?"  And it changed everything.  It just caught her up short.  And she thought for a minute and she said, "I don't know" (Terryl chuckles).  "I don't know." Many (including myself) were disturbed by Terryl Givens' story/response - particularly since it was directed at currently doubting Mormon church members.  We were primarily puzzled, shocked, and somewhat disturbed that the Mormon church's leading professional apologist - who has spent many years writing books for, and speaking/ministering to doubting Mormons - would provide such a glib and seemingly uninformed response.  That said, we understand that belief issues are complex, and take Terryl at his word that he sincerely does not understand why troubling aspects of Mormon history, including newly-discovered details about Joseph Smith's life, would matter to a questioning or doubting Mormon. Consequently, I am launching a new social media campaign with which I could use your help.  The goal of the campaign is to help educate Terryl, Fiona, other Mormon Church apologists, and the Mormon church leadership about as to why "Informed Consent" is crucial to both active Mormons and Mormon investigators.

Luna Corbden is the author of "Recovering Agency - Lifting the Veil of Mormon Mind Control." In this multi-part Mormon Stories Podcast series, Lindsey employs the tools of social psychology to identify ways in which the Mormon church uses various coercive techniques often associated with high demand religions (also referred to as cults). Throughout the series we will be asking, "In what ways does the Mormon church behave in ways similar to other high demand religions (or cults), and what can it do to become less cult-like?" The primary goal of this series is to help people raised within the Mormon Church unpack and separate their own identity from church doctrine and policies. In their book. Luna explores 31 different mind control techniques used by high demand religions generally, and by the Mormon church specifically.. In Part 5, we will cover the final set of methods (of the 31 in total): Indirect Directives, Identification & Example, Induced Phobias, Trace Induction & Dissociative States, Euphoria Induction, and Proselytizing. -------- Luna Corbden (who also writes as Luna Lindsey) was born into the LDS Church and left the faith in 2001, at age 26. They now live in Washington state and write about topics of interest to them, including psychology, mind control, culture, and autism. They also write science fiction and fantasy novels, and write short stories for speculative fiction publications like the Journal of Unlikely Entomology, Crossed Genres, and the Recognize Fascism anthology. When they're not busy traveling to improbable worlds, they're thinking hard about this improbable world. Luna's book can be found here: https://www.amazon.com/Recovering-Agency-Lifting-Mormon-Control/dp/1489595937 Show Notes: Recovering Agency: Lifting the Veil of Mormon Mind Control by Luna Lindsey Corbden "Ideas on Singularity and Post-Human Intelligence," by Luna Lindsey Corbden "The Psychology of Religion with Dr. James Nagel," Mormon Stories "What the Mormon Church Can Learn from Cults to Do/Be Better," Steven Hassan on Mormon Stories "How to Help a Loved One Who Believes in QAnon," Steven Hassan on Mormon Stories Combating Cult Mind Control: The Guide to Protection, Rescue, and Recovery from Destructive Cults by Steven Hassan Thought Reform and the Psychology of Totalism: A study of "brainwashing" in China by Robert Jay Lifton A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance by Leon Festinger Escaping Utopia: Growing Up in a Cult, Getting Out, and Starting Over by Janja Lalich Take Back Your Life: Recovering from Cults and Abusive Relationships by Janja Lalich and Madeleine Tobias Captive Hearts, Captive Minds: Freedom and Recovery from Cults and Other Abusive Relationships by Janja Lalich and Madeleine Tobias Cults in Our Midst: The Continuing Fight Against Their Hidden Menace by Margaret Thaler Singer Recovery from Cults: Help for Victims of Psychological and Spiritual Abuse by Michael Langone Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert Cialdini International Cultic Studies Association When Prophecy Fails by Leon Festinger "Obedience Brings Blessings," Thomas S. Monson, General Conference April 2013 "An Open Letter to Students: On Having Faith and Thinking for Yourself," by C. Terry Warner, New Era, November 1971 "Using Our Free Agency," by Delbert L. Stapley, Ensign, May 1975 Losing My Mind Bit by Bit: A Story of Mormon Motherhood by Pam Kazmaier "Be Not Deceived," Dallin H. Oaks, General Conference October 2004 The Jonestown "Death Tape" (CW: Disturbing content) Mormon Stories interview with Mike Rinder John Dehlin on Scientology: Fair Game with Leah Remini and Mike Rinder The Miracle of Forgiveness by Spencer W. Kimball "The negative impact of perfectionism among Mormons," by Kristine Doty-Yells, Utah State University 2013 "If Thou Art Faithful," Gordon B. Hinckley, General Conference October 1984 "Listening to Shame," Brené Brene Brown TEDTalk, March 2012 "The Power of Vulnerability," Brené Brown, TEDTalk, June 2010 "Social rejection shares somatosensory representations with physical pain," Ethan Kross, et. al., Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, April 2011 "The pain of social rejection," by Kirsten Weir, Monitor on Psychology, 2012 Releasing the Bonds: Empowering People to Think for Themselves by Steven Hassan Freedom of Mind: Helping Loved Ones Leave Controlling People, Cults, and Beliefs by Steven Hassan Thinker of Thoughts with Jonathan Streeter "Undue Influence in General Conference," with Jonathan Streeter and Luna Lindsey Corbden "Fellowshipping: A Priesthood Responsibility," Lesson 10, Duties and Blessing of the Priesthood Manual The Pattern of Double-Bind in Mormonism by Marion Stricker Coercive Persuasion: A Socio-psychological Analysis of the "Brainwashing" of American Civilian Prisoners by the Chinese Communists by E.H. Schein "Put Off the Natural Man and Come Off Conqueror," Neal A. Maxwell, General Conference October 1990 "The Mantle is Far, Far Greater Than the Intellect," Boyd K. Packer address at BYU in 1981 "The Rise and Fall of BH Roberts with Shannon Caldwell Montez," Mormon Stories "The Secret Mormon Meetings of 1912 with Shannon Caldwell  Montez," Mormon Stories No Man Knows My History by Fawn Brodie Influence: Science and Practice by Robert Cialdini "Full Conversion Brings Happiness," Richard G. Scott, General Conference April 2002 "Trial of Your Faith," Neil L. Andersen, General Conference October 2012 "Striving for Perfection," Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Harold B. Lee, Ch. 21 "As Good As Our Bond," Sheldon F. Child, General Conference April 1997 "LDS Church leaders cut mic when young girl talks about being gay" "Pure Testimony," M. Russell Ballard, General Conference October 2004 "How Do I Help People Make and Keep Commitments?" Preach My Gospel, Ch. 11 "The Atonement," Gospel Principles, Ch. 12 The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion by Jonathan Haidt "Personal Revelation: The Gift, the Test, and the Promise," Boyd K. Packer, General Conference October 1994 "The Lifespan of a Lie: The most famous psychology study of all time was a sham. Why can't we escape the Stanford Prison Experiment?" by Ben Blum Street Epistemology The Godmakers: A Shocking Expose of What the Mormon Church Really Believes by Ed Decker FilmBook "Make Peer Pressure a Positive Experience," The Presidents of Church Teachers Manual Ch. 19 Under the Influence by John Goldhammer Spiritual Perversion by Steve Sanchez "The How and Why of Faith-Promoting Stories," by Bruce R. McConkie, New Era, 1978 "Obedience to Law is Liberty," L. Tom Perry, General Conference April 2013 1984 by George Orwell Suddenly Strangers by Brad and Chris Morin "Gaining a Testimony Through the Holy Ghost," Family Home Evening Resource Book, Ch. 16 The Mormon Cult: A Former Missionary Reveals the Secrets of Mormon Mind Control by Jack B. Worthy Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl Saintspeak: The Mormo

Luna Corbden is the author of "Recovering Agency - Lifting the Veil of Mormon Mind Control." In this multi-part Mormon Stories Podcast series, Lindsey employs the tools of social psychology to identify ways in which the Mormon church uses various coercive techniques often associated with high demand religions (also referred to as cults). Throughout the series we will be asking, "In what ways does the Mormon church behave in ways similar to other high demand religions (or cults), and what can it do to become less cult-like?" The primary goal of this series is to help people raised within the Mormon Church unpack and separate their own identity from church doctrine and policies. In their book. Luna explores 31 different mind control techniques used by high demand religions generally, and by the Mormon church specifically. In Part 4, we will cover the 4rd set of methods (of the 31 in total): Dispensing of Existence, Social Pressure, Elitism, Us-vs-Them Thinking, Double-Bind, and Confession. -------- Luna Corbden (who also writes as Luna Lindsey) was born into the LDS Church and left the faith in 2001, at age 26. They now live in Washington state and write about topics of interest to them, including psychology, mind control, culture, and autism. They also write science fiction and fantasy novels, and write short stories for speculative fiction publications like the Journal of Unlikely Entomology, Crossed Genres, and the Recognize Fascism anthology. When they're not busy traveling to improbable worlds, they're thinking hard about this improbable world. Luna's book can be found here: https://www.amazon.com/Recovering-Agency.../dp/1489595937 Show Notes: Recovering Agency: Lifting the Veil of Mormon Mind Control by Luna Lindsey Corbden "Ideas on Singularity and Post-Human Intelligence," by Luna Lindsey Corbden "The Psychology of Religion with Dr. James Nagel," Mormon Stories "What the Mormon Church Can Learn from Cults to Do/Be Better," Steven Hassan on Mormon Stories "How to Help a Loved One Who Believes in QAnon," Steven Hassan on Mormon Stories Combating Cult Mind Control: The Guide to Protection, Rescue, and Recovery from Destructive Cults by Steven Hassan Thought Reform and the Psychology of Totalism: A study of "brainwashing" in China by Robert Jay Lifton A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance by Leon Festinger Escaping Utopia: Growing Up in a Cult, Getting Out, and Starting Over by Janja Lalich Take Back Your Life: Recovering from Cults and Abusive Relationships by Janja Lalich and Madeleine Tobias Captive Hearts, Captive Minds: Freedom and Recovery from Cults and Other Abusive Relationships by Janja Lalich and Madeleine Tobias Cults in Our Midst: The Continuing Fight Against Their Hidden Menace by Margaret Thaler Singer Recovery from Cults: Help for Victims of Psychological and Spiritual Abuse by Michael Langone Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert Cialdini International Cultic Studies Association When Prophecy Fails by Leon Festinger "Obedience Brings Blessings," Thomas S. Monson, General Conference April 2013 "An Open Letter to Students: On Having Faith and Thinking for Yourself," by C. Terry Warner, New Era, November 1971 "Using Our Free Agency," by Delbert L. Stapley, Ensign, May 1975 Losing My Mind Bit by Bit: A Story of Mormon Motherhood by Pam Kazmaier "Be Not Deceived," Dallin H. Oaks, General Conference October 2004 The Jonestown "Death Tape" (CW: Disturbing content) Mormon Stories interview with Mike Rinder John Dehlin on Scientology: Fair Game with Leah Remini and Mike Rinder The Miracle of Forgiveness by Spencer W. Kimball "The negative impact of perfectionism among Mormons," by Kristine Doty-Yells, Utah State University 2013 "If Thou Art Faithful," Gordon B. Hinckley, General Conference October 1984 "Listening to Shame," Brené Brene Brown TEDTalk, March 2012 "The Power of Vulnerability," Brené Brown, TEDTalk, June 2010 "Social rejection shares somatosensory representations with physical pain," Ethan Kross, et. al., Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, April 2011 "The pain of social rejection," by Kirsten Weir, Monitor on Psychology, 2012 Releasing the Bonds: Empowering People to Think for Themselves by Steven Hassan Freedom of Mind: Helping Loved Ones Leave Controlling People, Cults, and Beliefs by Steven Hassan Thinker of Thoughts with Jonathan Streeter "Undue Influence in General Conference," with Jonathan Streeter and Luna Lindsey Corbden "Fellowshipping: A Priesthood Responsibility," Lesson 10, Duties and Blessing of the Priesthood Manual The Pattern of Double-Bind in Mormonism by Marion Stricker Coercive Persuasion: A Socio-psychological Analysis of the "Brainwashing" of American Civilian Prisoners by the Chinese Communists by E.H. Schein "Put Off the Natural Man and Come Off Conqueror," Neal A. Maxwell, General Conference October 1990 "The Mantle is Far, Far Greater Than the Intellect," Boyd K. Packer address at BYU in 1981 "The Rise and Fall of BH Roberts with Shannon Caldwell Montez," Mormon Stories "The Secret Mormon Meetings of 1912 with Shannon Caldwell  Montez," Mormon Stories No Man Knows My History by Fawn Brodie Influence: Science and Practice by Robert Cialdini "Full Conversion Brings Happiness," Richard G. Scott, General Conference April 2002 "Trial of Your Faith," Neil L. Andersen, General Conference October 2012 "Striving for Perfection," Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Harold B. Lee, Ch. 21 "As Good As Our Bond," Sheldon F. Child, General Conference April 1997 "LDS Church leaders cut mic when young girl talks about being gay" "Pure Testimony," M. Russell Ballard, General Conference October 2004 "How Do I Help People Make and Keep Commitments?" Preach My Gospel, Ch. 11 "The Atonement," Gospel Principles, Ch. 12 The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion by Jonathan Haidt "Personal Revelation: The Gift, the Test, and the Promise," Boyd K. Packer, General Conference October 1994 "The Lifespan of a Lie: The most famous psychology study of all time was a sham. Why can't we escape the Stanford Prison Experiment?" by Ben Blum Street Epistemology The Godmakers: A Shocking Expose of What the Mormon Church Really Believes by Ed Decker FilmBook "Make Peer Pressure a Positive Experience," The Presidents of Church Teachers Manual Ch. 19 Under the Influence by John Goldhammer Spiritual Perversion by Steve Sanchez "The How and Why of Faith-Promoting Stories," by Bruce R. McConkie, New Era, 1978 "Obedience to Law is Liberty," L. Tom Perry, General Conference April 2013 1984 by George Orwell Suddenly Strangers by Brad and Chris Morin "Gaining a Testimony Through the Holy Ghost," Family Home Evening Resource Book, Ch. 16 The Mormon Cult: A Former Missionary Reveals the Secrets of Mormon Mind Control by Jack B. Worthy Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl Saintspeak: The Mormon Dictionary by Orson Scott Card

Luna Corbden is the author of "Recovering Agency - Lifting the Veil of Mormon Mind Control." In this multi-part Mormon Stories Podcast series, Lindsey employs the tools of social psychology to identify ways in which the Mormon church uses various coercive techniques often associated with high demand religions (also referred to as cults). Throughout the series we will be asking, "In what ways does the Mormon church behave in ways similar to other high demand religions (or cults), and what can it do to become less cult-like?" The primary goal of this series is to help people raised within the Mormon Church unpack and separate their own identity from church doctrine and policies. In their book. Luna explores 31 different mind control techniques used by high demand religions generally, and by the Mormon church specifically. In Part 3, we will cover the 3rd set of methods (of the 31 in total): Mystical Manipulation, Milieu Control, Loading the Language, Totalist Reframing, Thought-Terminating Cliches, and Time Control. -------- Luna Corbden (who also writes as Luna Lindsey) was born into the LDS Church and left the faith in 2001, at age 26. They now live in Washington state and write about topics of interest to them, including psychology, mind control, culture, and autism. They also write science fiction and fantasy novels, and write short stories for speculative fiction publications like the Journal of Unlikely Entomology, Crossed Genres, and the Recognize Fascism anthology. When they're not busy traveling to improbable worlds, they're thinking hard about this improbable world. Luna's book can be found here: https://www.amazon.com/Recovering-Agency-Lifting-Mormon-Control/dp/1489595937 Show Notes: Recovering Agency: Lifting the Veil of Mormon Mind Control by Luna Lindsey Corbden "Ideas on Singularity and Post-Human Intelligence," by Luna Lindsey Corbden "The Psychology of Religion with Dr. James Nagel," Mormon Stories "What the Mormon Church Can Learn from Cults to Do/Be Better," Steven Hassan on Mormon Stories "How to Help a Loved One Who Believes in QAnon," Steven Hassan on Mormon Stories Combating Cult Mind Control: The Guide to Protection, Rescue, and Recovery from Destructive Cults by Steven Hassan Thought Reform and the Psychology of Totalism: A study of "brainwashing" in China by Robert Jay Lifton A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance by Leon Festinger Escaping Utopia: Growing Up in a Cult, Getting Out, and Starting Over by Janja Lalich Take Back Your Life: Recovering from Cults and Abusive Relationships by Janja Lalich and Madeleine Tobias Captive Hearts, Captive Minds: Freedom and Recovery from Cults and Other Abusive Relationships by Janja Lalich and Madeleine Tobias Cults in Our Midst: The Continuing Fight Against Their Hidden Menace by Margaret Thaler Singer Recovery from Cults: Help for Victims of Psychological and Spiritual Abuse by Michael Langone Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert Cialdini International Cultic Studies Association When Prophecy Fails by Leon Festinger "Obedience Brings Blessings," Thomas S. Monson, General Conference April 2013 "An Open Letter to Students: On Having Faith and Thinking for Yourself," by C. Terry Warner, New Era, November 1971 "Using Our Free Agency," by Delbert L. Stapley, Ensign, May 1975 Losing My Mind Bit by Bit: A Story of Mormon Motherhood by Pam Kazmaier "Be Not Deceived," Dallin H. Oaks, General Conference October 2004 The Jonestown "Death Tape" (CW: Disturbing content) Mormon Stories interview with Mike Rinder John Dehlin on Scientology: Fair Game with Leah Remini and Mike Rinder The Miracle of Forgiveness by Spencer W. Kimball "The negative impact of perfectionism among Mormons," by Kristine Doty-Yells, Utah State University 2013 "If Thou Art Faithful," Gordon B. Hinckley, General Conference October 1984 "Listening to Shame," Brené Brene Brown TEDTalk, March 2012 "The Power of Vulnerability," Brené Brown, TEDTalk, June 2010 "Social rejection shares somatosensory representations with physical pain," Ethan Kross, et. al., Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, April 2011 "The pain of social rejection," by Kirsten Weir, Monitor on Psychology, 2012 Releasing the Bonds: Empowering People to Think for Themselves by Steven Hassan Freedom of Mind: Helping Loved Ones Leave Controlling People, Cults, and Beliefs by Steven Hassan Thinker of Thoughts with Jonathan Streeter "Undue Influence in General Conference," with Jonathan Streeter and Luna Lindsey Corbden "Fellowshipping: A Priesthood Responsibility," Lesson 10, Duties and Blessing of the Priesthood Manual The Pattern of Double-Bind in Mormonism by Marion Stricker Coercive Persuasion: A Socio-psychological Analysis of the "Brainwashing" of American Civilian Prisoners by the Chinese Communists by E.H. Schein "Put Off the Natural Man and Come Off Conqueror," Neal A. Maxwell, General Conference October 1990 "The Mantle is Far, Far Greater Than the Intellect," Boyd K. Packer address at BYU in 1981 "The Rise and Fall of BH Roberts with Shannon Caldwell Montez," Mormon Stories "The Secret Mormon Meetings of 1912 with Shannon Caldwell  Montez," Mormon Stories No Man Knows My History by Fawn Brodie Influence: Science and Practice by Robert Cialdini "Full Conversion Brings Happiness," Richard G. Scott, General Conference April 2002 "Trial of Your Faith," Neil L. Andersen, General Conference October 2012 "Striving for Perfection," Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Harold B. Lee, Ch. 21 "As Good As Our Bond," Sheldon F. Child, General Conference April 1997 "LDS Church leaders cut mic when young girl talks about being gay" "Pure Testimony," M. Russell Ballard, General Conference October 2004 "How Do I Help People Make and Keep Commitments?" Preach My Gospel, Ch. 11 "The Atonement," Gospel Principles, Ch. 12 The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion by Jonathan Haidt "Personal Revelation: The Gift, the Test, and the Promise," Boyd K. Packer, General Conference October 1994 "The Lifespan of a Lie: The most famous psychology study of all time was a sham. Why can't we escape the Stanford Prison Experiment?" by Ben Blum Street Epistemology The Godmakers: A Shocking Expose of What the Mormon Church Really Believes by Ed Decker FilmBook "Make Peer Pressure a Positive Experience," The Presidents of Church Teachers Manual Ch. 19 Under the Influence by John Goldhammer Spiritual Perversion by Steve Sanchez "The How and Why of Faith-Promoting Stories," by Bruce R. McConkie, New Era, 1978 "Obedience to Law is Liberty," L. Tom Perry, General Conference April 2013 1984 by George Orwell Suddenly Strangers by Brad and Chris Morin "Gaining a Testimony Through the Holy Ghost," Family Home Evening Resource Book, Ch. 16 The Mormon Cult: A Former Missionary Reveals the Secrets of Mormon Mind Control by Jack B. Worthy Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl Saintspeak: The Mormon Dictiona

Luna Lindsey Corbden is the author of "Recovering Agency - Lifting the Veil of Mormon Mind Control." In this multi-part Mormon Stories Podcast series, Lindsey employs the tools of social psychology to identify ways in which the Mormon church uses various coercive techniques often associated with high demand religions (also referred to as cults). Throughout the series we will be asking, "In what ways does the Mormon church behave in ways similar to other high demand religions (or cults), and what can it do to become less cult-like?" The primary goal of this series is to help people raised within the Mormon Church unpack and separate their own identity from church doctrine and policies. In their book. Luna explores 31 different mind control techniques used by high demand religions generally, and by the Mormon church specifically. In Part 2, we will cover the 2nd set of methods (of the 31 in total): Love Bombing, Destabilization, Deception, Belief Follows Behavior, Public Commitment, Creating Dependency, and Emotion Over Intellect. -------- Luna Corbden (who also writes as Luna Lindsey) was born into the LDS Church and left the faith in 2001, at age 26. They now live in Washington state and write about topics of interest to them, including psychology, mind control, culture, and autism. They also write science fiction and fantasy novels, and write short stories for speculative fiction publications like the Journal of Unlikely Entomology, Crossed Genres, and the Recognize Fascism anthology. When they're not busy traveling to improbable worlds, they're thinking hard about this improbable world. Luna's book can be found here. Show Notes: Recovering Agency: Lifting the Veil of Mormon Mind Control by Luna Lindsey Corbden "Ideas on Singularity and Post-Human Intelligence," by Luna Lindsey Corbden "The Psychology of Religion with Dr. James Nagel," Mormon Stories "What the Mormon Church Can Learn from Cults to Do/Be Better," Steven Hassan on Mormon Stories "How to Help a Loved One Who Believes in QAnon," Steven Hassan on Mormon Stories Combating Cult Mind Control: The Guide to Protection, Rescue, and Recovery from Destructive Cults by Steven Hassan Thought Reform and the Psychology of Totalism: A study of "brainwashing" in China by Robert Jay Lifton A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance by Leon Festinger Escaping Utopia: Growing Up in a Cult, Getting Out, and Starting Over by Janja Lalich Take Back Your Life: Recovering from Cults and Abusive Relationships by Janja Lalich and Madeleine Tobias Captive Hearts, Captive Minds: Freedom and Recovery from Cults and Other Abusive Relationships by Janja Lalich and Madeleine Tobias Cults in Our Midst: The Continuing Fight Against Their Hidden Menace by Margaret Thaler Singer Recovery from Cults: Help for Victims of Psychological and Spiritual Abuse by Michael Langone Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert Cialdini International Cultic Studies Association When Prophecy Fails by Leon Festinger "Obedience Brings Blessings," Thomas S. Monson, General Conference April 2013 "An Open Letter to Students: On Having Faith and Thinking for Yourself," by C. Terry Warner, New Era, November 1971 "Using Our Free Agency," by Delbert L. Stapley, Ensign, May 1975 Losing My Mind Bit by Bit: A Story of Mormon Motherhood by Pam Kazmaier "Be Not Deceived," Dallin H. Oaks, General Conference October 2004 The Jonestown "Death Tape" (CW: Disturbing content) Mormon Stories interview with Mike Rinder John Dehlin on Scientology: Fair Game with Leah Remini and Mike Rinder The Miracle of Forgiveness by Spencer W. Kimball "The negative impact of perfectionism among Mormons," by Kristine Doty-Yells, Utah State University 2013 "If Thou Art Faithful," Gordon B. Hinckley, General Conference October 1984 "Listening to Shame," Brené Brene Brown TEDTalk, March 2012 "The Power of Vulnerability," Brené Brown, TEDTalk, June 2010 "Social rejection shares somatosensory representations with physical pain," Ethan Kross, et. al., Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, April 2011 "The pain of social rejection," by Kirsten Weir, Monitor on Psychology, 2012 Releasing the Bonds: Empowering People to Think for Themselves by Steven Hassan Freedom of Mind: Helping Loved Ones Leave Controlling People, Cults, and Beliefs by Steven Hassan Thinker of Thoughts with Jonathan Streeter "Undue Influence in General Conference," with Jonathan Streeter and Luna Lindsey Corbden "Fellowshipping: A Priesthood Responsibility," Lesson 10, Duties and Blessing of the Priesthood Manual The Pattern of Double-Bind in Mormonism by Marion Stricker Coercive Persuasion: A Socio-psychological Analysis of the "Brainwashing" of American Civilian Prisoners by the Chinese Communists by E.H. Schein "Put Off the Natural Man and Come Off Conqueror," Neal A. Maxwell, General Conference October 1990 "The Mantle is Far, Far Greater Than the Intellect," Boyd K. Packer address at BYU in 1981 "The Rise and Fall of BH Roberts with Shannon Caldwell Montez," Mormon Stories "The Secret Mormon Meetings of 1912 with Shannon Caldwell  Montez," Mormon Stories No Man Knows My History by Fawn Brodie Influence: Science and Practice by Robert Cialdini "Full Conversion Brings Happiness," Richard G. Scott, General Conference April 2002 "Trial of Your Faith," Neil L. Andersen, General Conference October 2012 "Striving for Perfection," Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Harold B. Lee, Ch. 21 "As Good As Our Bond," Sheldon F. Child, General Conference April 1997 "LDS Church leaders cut mic when young girl talks about being gay" "Pure Testimony," M. Russell Ballard, General Conference October 2004 "How Do I Help People Make and Keep Commitments?" Preach My Gospel, Ch. 11 "The Atonement," Gospel Principles, Ch. 12 The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion by Jonathan Haidt "Personal Revelation: The Gift, the Test, and the Promise," Boyd K. Packer, General Conference October 1994 "The Lifespan of a Lie: The most famous psychology study of all time was a sham. Why can't we escape the Stanford Prison Experiment?" by Ben Blum Street Epistemology The Godmakers: A Shocking Expose of What the Mormon Church Really Believes by Ed Decker FilmBook "Make Peer Pressure a Positive Experience," The Presidents of Church Teachers Manual Ch. 19 Under the Influence by John Goldhammer Spiritual Perversion by Steve Sanchez "The How and Why of Faith-Promoting Stories," by Bruce R. McConkie, New Era, 1978 "Obedience to Law is Liberty," L. Tom Perry, General Conference April 2013 1984 by George Orwell

Recovering Agency - Examining Mormon Mind Control Pt. 1 (with Luna Lindsey Corbden) Luna Lindsey Corbden is the author of "Recovering Agency - Lifting the Veil of Mormon Mind Control." In this multi-part Mormon Stories Podcast series, Lindsey employs the tools of social psychology to identify ways in which the Mormon church uses various coercive techniques often associated with high demand religions (also referred to as cults). Throughout the series we will be asking, "In what ways does the Mormon church behave in ways similar to other high demand religions (or cults), and what can it do to become less cult-like?" The primary goal of this series is to help people raised within the Mormon Church unpack and separate their own identity from church doctrine and policies. In their book. Luna explores 31 different mind control techniques used by high demand religions generally, and by the Mormon church specifically. In Part 1, we explore the basics of how cognitive dissonance works, and we will cover the first six methods (of the 31 in total): Sacred Sciene, Demand for Purity, Doctrine Over Self, Black & White Thinking, Blame Reversal, and Guilt & Shame. And, if you have not already, tune in to my most recent livestream (episode number 1442) for an introduction to this fascinating series! -------- Luna Corbden (who also writes as Luna Lindsey) was born into the LDS Church and left the faith in 2001, at age 26. They now live in Washington state and write about topics of interest to them, including psychology, mind control, culture, and autism. They also write science fiction and fantasy novels, and write short stories for speculative fiction publications like the Journal of Unlikely Entomology, Crossed Genres, and the Recognize Fascism anthology. When they're not busy traveling to improbable worlds, they're thinking hard about this improbable world. Luna's book can be found here: https://recoveringagency.com Show Notes: Recovering Agency: Lifting the Veil of Mormon Mind Control by Luna Lindsey Corbden "Ideas on Singularity and Post-Human Intelligence," by Luna Lindsey Corbden "The Psychology of Religion with Dr. James Nagel," Mormon Stories "What the Mormon Church Can Learn from Cults to Do/Be Better," Steven Hassan on Mormon Stories "How to Help a Loved One Who Believes in QAnon," Steven Hassan on Mormon Stories Combating Cult Mind Control: The Guide to Protection, Rescue, and Recovery from Destructive Cults by Steven Hassan Thought Reform and the Psychology of Totalism: A study of "brainwashing" in China by Robert Jay Lifton A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance by Leon Festinger Escaping Utopia: Growing Up in a Cult, Getting Out, and Starting Over by Janja Lalich Take Back Your Life: Recovering from Cults and Abusive Relationships by Janja Lalich and Madeleine Tobias Captive Hearts, Captive Minds: Freedom and Recovery from Cults and Other Abusive Relationships by Janja Lalich and Madeleine Tobias Cults in Our Midst: The Continuing Fight Against Their Hidden Menace by Margaret Thaler Singer Recovery from Cults: Help for Victims of Psychological and Spiritual Abuse by Michael Langone Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert Cialdini International Cultic Studies Association When Prophecy Fails by Leon Festinger "Obedience Brings Blessings," Thomas S. Monson, General Conference April 2013 "An Open Letter to Students: On Having Faith and Thinking for Yourself," by C. Terry Warner, New Era, November 1971 "Using Our Free Agency," by Delbert L. Stapley, Ensign, May 1975 Losing My Mind Bit by Bit: A Story of Mormon Motherhood by Pam Kazmaier "Be Not Deceived," Dallin H. Oaks, General Conference October 2004 The Jonestown "Death Tape" (CW: Disturbing content) Mormon Stories interview with Mike Rinder John Dehlin on Scientology: Fair Game with Leah Remini and Mike Rinder The Miracle of Forgiveness by Spencer W. Kimball "The negative impact of perfectionism among Mormons," by Kristine Doty-Yells, Utah State University 2013 "If Thou Art Faithful," Gordon B. Hinckley, General Conference October 1984 "Listening to Shame," Brené Brene Brown TEDTalk, March 2012 "The Power of Vulnerability," Brené Brown, TEDTalk, June 2010 "Social rejection shares somatosensory representations with physical pain," Ethan Kross, et. al., Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, April 2011 "The pain of social rejection," by Kirsten Weir, Monitor on Psychology, 2012 Releasing the Bonds: Empowering People to Think for Themselves by Steven Hassan Freedom of Mind: Helping Loved Ones Leave Controlling People, Cults, and Beliefs by Steven Hassan Thinker of Thoughts with Jonathan Streeter "Undue Influence in General Conference," with Jonathan Streeter and Luna Lindsey Corbden "Fellowshipping: A Priesthood Responsibility," Lesson 10, Duties and Blessing of the Priesthood Manual The Pattern of Double-Bind in Mormonism by Marion Stricker Coercive Persuasion: A Socio-psychological Analysis of the "Brainwashing" of American Civilian Prisoners by the Chinese Communists by E.H. Schein "Put Off the Natural Man and Come Off Conqueror," Neal A. Maxwell, General Conference October 1990 "The Mantle is Far, Far Greater Than the Intellect," Boyd K. Packer address at BYU in 1981 "The Rise and Fall of BH Roberts with Shannon Caldwell Montez," Mormon Stories "The Secret Mormon Meetings of 1912 with Shannon Caldwell  Montez," Mormon Stories No Man Knows My History by Fawn Brodie Influence: Science and Practice by Robert Cialdini "Full Conversion Brings Happiness," Richard G. Scott, General Conference April 2002 "Trial of Your Faith," Neil L. Andersen, General Conference October 2012 "Striving for Perfection," Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Harold B. Lee, Ch. 21 "As Good As Our Bond," Sheldon F. Child, General Conference April 1997 "LDS Church leaders cut mic when young girl talks about being gay" "Pure Testimony," M. Russell Ballard, General Conference October 2004 "How Do I Help People Make and Keep Commitments?" Preach My Gospel, Ch. 11 "The Atonement," Gospel Principles, Ch. 12 The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion by Jonathan Haidt "Personal Revelation: The Gift, the Test, and the Promise," Boyd K. Packer, General Conference October 1994 "The Lifespan of a Lie: The most famous psychology study of all time was a sham. Why can't we escape the Stanford Prison Experiment?" by Ben Blum Street Epistemology The Godmakers: A Shocking Expose of What the Mormon Church Really Believes by Ed Decker FilmBook "Make Peer Pressure a Positive Experience," The Presidents of Church Teachers Manual Ch. 19 Under the Influence by John Goldhammer Spiritual Perversion by Steve Sanchez "The How and Why of Faith-Promoting Stories," by Bruce R. McConkie, New Era, 1978 "Obedience to Law is Libe

  In cooperation with author Luna Lindsey Corbden (Recovering Agency) and Youtuber Jonathan Streeter (Thoughts on Things and Stuff), I have developed a short self assessment to help people: Determine if they were raised in a cult or high-demand religion, and/or Learn to more quickly identify the techniques used by unhealthy people and organizations to wield undue influence over family, friends, employees, or members. This self assessment should take no longer than 30 minutes to complete.  A PDF of the assessment can be found here.   We also highly encourage you to learn and study these principles to avoid being taken advantage of by unhealthy individuals and organization (including family members, businesses, corporations, governments, etc) .   Finally, if you enjoyed this episode, please check out our in-depth, 17+ hour exploration of the book "Recovering Agency: Lifting the Veil of Mormon Mind Control" with author Luna Lindsey Corbden on Mormon Stories Podcast. These episodes will be released starting Monday, June 28th.

This week we celebrate the birthday of faithful Mormon historian and scholar Richard Bushman – author of Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling, and former Mormon church stake president and patriarch. Some of you will remember that I had the privilege of interviewing Richard back in 2007. Most of you probably don’t know that Richard agreed to discuss 10 topics on the series, but quit the interview after only addressing 3 of the 10 topics, which was very disappointing to me at the time. But of course that was his prerogative. Since our original interview, Richard has declined to appear on Mormon Stories Podcast again – especially after my excommunication from the Mormon Church in 2015. Still, there are many questions that I would like to ask Richard (or any believing Mormon scholar), if he (they) would allow it. Unfortunately most faithful Mormon scholars avoid any forums where they are asked candid, difficult questions. This is not their fault, of course. It’s the price of doing business with a church that silences and punishes its truth-tellers. Consequently, I am recording a personal episode where I go ahead and ask the questions I’ve been wanting to ask Richard, along with expressing a few concerns with some of Richard’s public statements over the years. I hope you enjoy! If you enjoy this episode, I may do something similar a few other faithful scholars/historians/apologists.

Join us for Part 2 of our interview with Gerardo who is a dear friend of the podcast! Growing up in an orthodox Mormon home, his story gives a unique perspective on the church in Mexico and the “Laminate ancestry” that plays into the testimony of many of the members in Latin America. After realizing his attraction to men in his youth, Gerardo worked to keep up with expectations as the son of a prominent LDS family hoping God would “turn his weakness into strengths.” Through stories about Evergreen, conversion therapy, Mexican EFY, and serving a faithful mission, we hear how strongly Gerardo tried to pursue the covenant path and deny his gay identity. Gerardo went to BYU-I where he met his husband, a wild story filled with intense highs and lows. Eventually questioning his faith, losing his connection to being a descendant of the Laminates and working through disagreements with LDS family, Gerardo put his whole heart out there in this interview. Listen along for some life-changing insights from Gerardo on this epic episode of a Mexican Mormon Story!