Mormon Land

Sean P. Means, a film critic from the Salt Lake Tribune, shares insights on the psychological thriller 'Heretic,' which explores the dark journey of two female missionaries. The conversation unveils the film's dual nature—an engaging horror experience and a critique of religious beliefs. They discuss the authenticity of missionary portrayals, Hugh Grant's compelling performance, and the cultural implications of faith in cinema. The dialogue also hints at the movie's Oscar potential while inviting deeper reflection on mission safety and the nature of belief.

The ever-expanding tally of temples under President Russell M. Nelson is truly staggering. Since taking the helm of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, he has announced 185 — more than half — of the faith’s global total of 367 planned or existing temples. At the recently completed General Conference, the 100-year-old religious leader explained the reason for the building blitz rather succinctly: God commanded it, he declared, because “the Savior is coming again.” Historian Benjamin Park sees other forces at play as well. In a recent piece for The Salt Lake Tribune, titled “Russell Nelson’s billion-dollar gamble,” he points to the millions spent on each temple as among the faith’s justifications for the billions it has in its financial reserves. Even more, top church leaders view these relatively lavish buildings, with their promises of eternal blessings, as a way to cement Latter-day Saints in the faith. “If we build them,” the thinking goes, “they will stick.” On this week’s show, Park, author of “American Zion: A New History of Mormonism,” discusses the church’s temple frenzy — how it compares to the past, what it means in the present, and what it may portend for the faith’s future.

The biggest recent news for members, especially women, in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was the introduction in some hot, humid regions of “sleeveless” temple garments. Faithful Latter-day Saints wear temple garments underneath their clothing as a reminder of sacred covenants. They are not meant to be seen, but the style and cut of them have been difficult to conceal under ever-evolving fashions. That is why so many women were delighted by one of the redesign options — labeled “open sleeve” — because it looks more like a tank top than the current capped sleeve alternatives. They also liked the new “full slip” and “half-slip” designs meant to be worn under dresses. For now, these new garments are available in the Philippines and parts of Africa. But the church website shows they will be sold in the U.S. by the end of next year. Discussing the new garments on this week’s show are Laura Brignone, a Latter-day Saint research analyst at Sacramento State University who has assessed current garment cuts and how they work — or don’t work — with popular fashion, and Emily Jensen, a writer and web editor for Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought.

By following an unconventional parenting path, Latter-day Saints Gabrielle and Ben Blair have learned to buck conventional parenting wisdom — and, along the way, remove a lot of the stress that comes with raising kids. On this week’s show, Gabrielle Blair, founder of Design Mom and The New York Times bestselling author of “Ejaculate Responsibly: A Whole New Way to Think About Abortion,” and Ben Blair, co-founder and president of Newlane University, discuss what they have discovered on their parental journey. They spell all that out and more in their new book, “The Kids Are All Right: Parenting With Confidence in an Uncertain World.”

The Mormon Tabernacle Choir was launched on Aug. 22, 1847, just 29 days after the pioneers entered the Salt Lake Valley. After the Tabernacle on Temple Square in the heart of Salt Lake City was completed, the choir performed there for more than a hundred years. Millions have heard the group’s music via a weekly devotional radio program, “Music and the Spoken Word,” which The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints started in 1929, making it the longest continuously running network broadcast in history. The show is inspiring to insiders and outsiders but never dogmatic. Ronald Reagan called the troupe “America’s Choir.” The famed choir has sung at six U.S. presidential inaugurations, 13 World Fairs, as well as the 2002 Winter Olympics, and toured in dozens of countries. In 2018, the choir changed its name to The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square, and, in 2020, it was sidelined by the global pandemic. On this week’s show, former Utah Gov. Mike Leavitt, former Health and Human Services secretary and the choir’s current president, talks about how the choir navigated those changes and challenges, the group’s mission, and what’s in the future for the church’s most visible goodwill ambassadors.

More than three-fourths of Latter-day Saints say they revere nature and feel a responsibility to protect it. Classes on Earth stewardship at Brigham Young University are filling up as young members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints wrestle with the dangers caused by climate change and feel inexorably prompted to act — to do something. What if the church went all-in on protecting the planet, proposing concrete plans to be adopted in every region? Would being involved in an urgent global effort — much as the food storage mandates prepared members for lean times — give more young people a reason to stay in the fold? On this week’s show, Ben Abbott, professor of ecology at church-owned BYU, discuss environmental issues, his faith, and the activism and idealism he sees in his students. He also makes the case that safeguarding the Earth and fighting climate change are part of Christian discipleship.

Joining the discussion is Tony Semerad, a Salt Lake Tribune reporter specializing in the controversies surrounding the LDS Church's tithing lawsuits. He sheds light on the lawsuits alleging misrepresentation of funds used for the City Creek Center mall. The conversation navigates the legal complexities tied to religious autonomy and potential fraud. Additionally, Semerad discusses past church practices and the implications of recent court rulings, highlighting the tension between spirituality and financial transparency.

Next week, Jewish adherents across the globe will begin the annual 10-day examination of their lives and deeds. It starts with Rosh Hashana (Jewish New Year) on the evening of Oct. 2 and concludes with Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) on the evening of Oct. 11. It is a time for self-reflection, for commemoration, for celebration and for recommitment. It is a chance to think about forgiveness and to make amends to those they have harmed. This year’s High Holy Days are especially fraught for the world’s Jewry with so many eyes are on Israel and its ongoing battles against Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon. There’s also a war in Ukraine and deep divisions in the United States during this election season. On this week’s show, Rabbi Samuel Spector, leader of Salt Lake City’s Congregation Kol Ami, discusses the importance of these holidays at this particular time.

Latter-day Saint Jenna Carson, who became the first member ever to serve as a chaplain in the federal prison system, was a student at Harvard Divinity School when, she said, God called her to become a military chaplain. That was 2015. And although Carson did not yet know it, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints did not at that time grant women the all-important endorsement required by the Defense Department. Female Latter-day Saints could obtain endorsements to serve as chaplains in hospitals, education, hospice care and prisons — but not, it turned out, the military. Nevertheless, the feeling persisted. And so did she. Setbacks followed, but, in 2021, she won Salt Lake City’s go-ahead. The next year, she was on her way to boot camp. Two years into being an Air Force chaplain, Carson has more than a little to say about what it’s like to be a female spiritual authority operating if not within the LDS Church, then with its approval.

In 2014, Neylan McBaine wrote a groundbreaking book, “Women at Church: Magnifying LDS Women’s Local Impact.” Even given the patriarchal structure of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, McBaine argued that there was much more the global faith could do to see, hear and include women. “At that time, there were many who felt discussing these facts was unfaithful or dangerous,” McBaine told an audience of 4,000 at last week’s Restore conference. “We swim so entirely in the waters of patriarchy that many of us do not see the extent to which our organizational structure, the language we use, our understanding of God, our quoting of spiritual authorities, our visual representations in our meetings, and the stories of our scriptures center the experiences and viewpoints of men.” Now McBaine hopes Latter-day Saints will call out “patriarchy” and acknowledge how different its goals and rules are from other systems that exist in the U.S. On this week’s show, she discuss where women in the church are now and how it has — or has not — changed in the decade since she published her book.