Y Religion

The Lord has invited, “Teach ye diligently and my grace shall attend you, that you may be instructed more perfectly in theory, in principle, in doctrine, in the law of the gospel, in all things that pertain unto the kingdom of God, that are expedient for you to understand” (Doctrine & Covenants 88:78, emphasis added). In this episode President Mark L. Pace and Professor Ken Alford discuss resources and methods for organizing ourselves and preparing to teach a lesson.   Y Religion Presents: Gospel Teaching is a limited series podcast where, each week during summer 2025, expert teachers share insights that highlight key principles and practices of effective gospel teaching. Resources Teaching in the Savior's Way Book of Mormon Art Catalog Gospel Art BYU Studies Religious Studies Center Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship Scripture Citation Index The Joseph Smith Papers  

How do you prepare and adjust a message to connect with those you are leading? What methods can teachers—from all backgrounds and experiences—use when preparing for different teaching moments? In this episode, sister Emily Belle Freeman and Professor Brad Wilcox discuss tips on knowing and connecting with your audience when preparing and leading lessons. Y Religion Presents: Gospel Teaching is a limited series podcast where, each week during summer 2025, expert teachers share insights that highlight key principles and practices of effective gospel teaching.

Chad Webb, First Counselor in the Sunday School General Presidency, and Clark Gilbert, Commissioner of the Church Educational System, delve into the essence of powerful gospel teaching. They discuss essential teaching principles that invite the Spirit and foster faith in learners. The importance of integrating Jesus Christ's teachings into lessons is highlighted, along with strategies for engaging young adults in meaningful spiritual dialogues. Personal anecdotes and transformative teaching methods showcase how passionate educators can profoundly impact their students' faith journeys.

A new project is unveiled focused on enhancing gospel teaching through collaborative storytelling. The series will explore diverse teaching methods, emphasizing the importance of both large group and one-on-one engagement. Listeners can learn to adapt their messages effectively for various audiences. Insights from educators highlight the impact of compassionate teaching at home, fostering deeper understanding and connection to gospel principles. Prepare to refine your teaching skills and touch hearts with inspiring techniques!

When some elders criticized the language of Joseph Smith’s revelations in 1831, the Lord provided powerful truths in Doctrine and Covenants 67 to strengthen their faith—truths that remain vital for us today. In this podcast, Professor Searle outlines five key principles from the section that can help us build greater trust in prophetic counsel: (1) act on the prophet’s invitations, (2) recognize righteousness within revelations, (3) sincerely seek Jesus Christ, (4) follow the guidance of the Spirit, and (5) move forward in faith. Trusting prophets is crucial for spiritual growth and navigating uncertainty, and learning from the challenges of past can give us greater power to follow the prophet in our day.   Publications: ·      “Following Prophets When We Have Questions (Section 67)” in Doctrine and Covenants Insights (Religious Studies Center, 2025).    Click here to learn more about Travis Searle

The John A. Widtsoe Foundation recently introduced the Understanding Our Neighbors series to “foster respect and interfaith dialogue.” In this episode Professor Shon Hopkin, Department Chair of BYU Ancient Scripture, discusses the second book in this series Understanding Our Jewish Neighbors co-written with Rabbi Mark S. Diamond. The book presents guide to understanding the similarities and differences between The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and leading Jewish traditions. Professor Hopkin explains how listeners can take away a succinct understanding, reverence, and appreciation for both faiths, their traditions, and their members.      Publications:  Understanding Our Jewish Neighbors by Rabbi Mark S. Diamond & Professor Shon D. Hopkin, Cedar Fort, 2024 John A. Widtsoe Foundation website  “Teaching That Leads to Enduring Conversion,” Religious Educator, 25.3, 2024  “The Covenant among Covenants: The Abrahamic Covenant and Biblical Covenant Making,” Religious Educator, 23.2, 2022  “Supersessionism and Latter-day Saint Thought: An Appraisal,” Jared W. Ludlow, Andrew C. Reed, and Shon D. Hopkin, in Understanding Covenants and Communities: Jews and Latter-day Saints in Dialogue, Mark S. Diamond and Andrew C. Reed, ed., Religious Studies Center, 2020  Opening Isaiah: A Harmony, with Ann N. Madsen, Religious Studies Center, 2018  Abinadi: He Came Among Them in Disguise, Religious Studies Center, 2018    Click here to learn more about Shon Hopkin 

The first witnesses of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ were some of his female disciples. Mary Magdalene witnessed the empty tomb and was the first to encounter the risen Savior. Additionally, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and other unnamed women, who had come to the tomb to anoint the body of Jesus, saw the empty tomb and reported it to the apostles. In this episode, Professor Gaye Strathearn explores the profound impact of the Easter events through the experiences of the women who witnessed the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. She explains how Luke’s narrative, with support from the other Gospels, connects these women to Jesus’s ministry in Galilee and portrays them as dedicated disciples who ministered to Jesus and followed him to Jerusalem. Further, the discussion underscores the women’s loyalty and sacrifice, emphasizing their presence at the Crucifixion and their discovery of the empty tomb. In exploring these narratives, we can increase our knowledge of the enduring hope and faith that the Easter events inspire and add our own witness that “he is risen” (Mark 16:6).      Publications: “Women Witnesses of the Easter Events” in He Was Seen: Witnessing the Risen Christ, David M. Calabro and George A. Pierce, ed., Religious Studies Center, 2024. "The Chosen's Amplification of Women's Voices in Scripture," in Watching The Chosen: History, Faith, and Biblical Interpretation, Robert K. Gtarcia, Paul Gondreau, Patrick Gray, and Douglas F. Huffman, ed., Eerdmans, 2025. “Experiencing the Doctrine of Christ,” Religious Educator, 25.3, 2024. Sacred Time: The Sabbath as a Perpetual Covenant, Religious Studies Center, 2023. “Discipleship in the Olivet Discourse in Mark’s Gospel,” in “Behold the Lamb of God”: An Easter Celebration, Richard Neitzel Holzapfel, Frank F. Judd Jr. , and Thomas A. Wayment, ed., Religious Studies Center, 2008.  “‘Holiness to the Lord’ and Personal Temple Worship,” Religious Educator, 23.1, 2022.   Click here to learn more about Gaye Strathearn

According to the earliest gospel accounts, on the night before his crucifixion, Jesus dined with his disciples to observe the feast of the Passover and institute what would later become the Christian eucharist (or sacrament). What would it have looked like to sit down with them that night? In this episode, Professor Matthew Grey reassesses the New Testament narratives of the Last Supper, especially its physical setting and manner of dining, by examining modern research on early Jewish dining customs with archaeological data. He challenges traditional views of Jesus and his disciples dining in an affluent upper room with a Roman triclinium (banquet hall), as the event is often depicted in art. Instead, he argues that the meal likely took place in a modest, non-elite home and reflected the lower-class dining practices of the time: sitting on reed mats, sharing cooking pots in clusters of 3—4 individuals, dipping their hands or bread into the shared vessels, and passing around a shared cup of wine. Professor Grey details how examining these new perspectives might help us envision and experience a more accurate understanding of the Last Supper’s historical and social setting as described in the synoptic gospels.   Publications: “‘Where May I Eat the Passover with My Disciples?’: Reassessing the Urban Setting, Furnished Room, and Dining Practices of Jesus’s Last Supper,” in Pushing Sacred Boundaries in Early Judaism and the Ancient Mediterranean, Brill, 2023 A Place Called Gethsemane: Seeing the New Testament Story and Site in its First-Century Context with Richard Holzapfel, Deseret Book, 2025 “Simon Peter in Capernaum: An Archaeological Survey of the First-Century Village,” in The Ministry of Peter, the Chief Apostle, Religious Studies Center, 2014   Click here to learn more about Matthew Grey

How does understanding the interconnected purposes of the sacrament, as presented in Doctrine & Covenants 27, deepen our appreciation for this sacred ordinance? In this episode Matthew O. Richardson, professor of Church history and doctrine, discusses several key themes and gospel principles related to the ordinance of the sacrament. He presents three specific purposes: remembering the past, specifically the Atonement and Resurrection of Jesus Christ; looking forward to future redemption; and providing safety and protection in the present. Further, he discusses the historical context and symbolism of the sacramental emblems and connects them to putting on the armor of God and illustrates its role in providing spiritual protection. In understanding the symbolism of these emblems, we can enhance our worship experience and foster a closer relationship with the Savior.     Publications:  “Sacramental Connections: Deliverance, Redemption, and Safety (Doctrine & Covenants 27)” originally published in You Shall Have My Word: Exploring the Text of the Doctrine and Covenants (Religious Studies Center, 2012)  “We Have Now Received the Atonement” in Shedding Light on the New Testament: Acts—Revelation (Religious Studies Center, 2009)  “The Savior’s Love” in Our Savior’s Love: Hope & Healing in Christ (Religious Studies Center, 2015)  “Losing the Sacred Perspective: Social Ethics and Character Development” in Moral Foundations: Standing Firm in a World of Shifting Values (Religious Studies Center, 2008)    Click here to learn more about Matthew O. Richardson 

Prior to their exodus west, nearly 90,000 converts journeyed across the seas to join the saints in America. In this episode Fred E. Woods, professor of Church history and doctrine, details the faith and immigration experiences of these saints as he discusses his recent publication Ports to Posts: Latter-day Saints Gathering in the Nineteenth Century. Professor Woods explores the port of Liverpool, England, the main point of embarkment for many converts, examines sailing conditions across the Atlantic for converts and non-converts alike, and details the arrival of these early pioneers into American harbors and the various posts they made contact with along the way. In addition to exploring how these converts gathered unto Zion, Professor Woods shares why so many members left their homelands to “be gathered in unto one place” (Doctrine & Covenants 29:7).     Publications:  Ports to Posts: Latter-day Saint Gathering in the Nineteenth Century (University of Nebraska Press, 2025)   Saints by Sea—Latter-day Saint Immigration to America website  “The Saints of Las Vegas” (Y Religion, episode 82, 2023)  Bright Lights in the Desert: The Latter-day Saints of Las Vegas (University of Nevada Press, 2023)  The Latter-day Saint Image in the British Mind (Greg Kofford Books, 2022)  “The Ascension of Abraham: A Mortal Model for the Climb to Exaltation” (Religious Educator, 23.2, 2022)  “Conversions, Arrests, and Friendships: A Story of Two Icelandic Police Officers” (Religious Educator, 20.1, 2019)  Saints of Tonga: A Century of Island Faith (Religious Studies Center, 2019)  Kalaupapa: The Mormon Experience in an Exiled Community (Religious Studies Center, 2017)  Sacred and Historical Places Hawai’i: A Guide to LDS Historic Sites in Hawai’i with Mary Jane Woodger and Riley Moffat (Mormon Historic Sites Foundation, 2016)  “Launching Mormonism in the South Pacific: The Voyage of the Timoleon” in The Growth and Development of Mormon Missionary Work (Religious Studies Center, 2012)    Click here to learn more about Fred E. Woods