The world often feels rigged. And this episode is a wake-up call to recognize the barriers that exist for those who don’t fit the traditional mold. In this episode, which is a kind of tribute to my dear departed Dad, I recount some powerful lessons from the man who was a brilliant psychiatrist and my biggest champion. He taught me that if something feels off about the environment you’re in, it probably is—and it’s absolutely hella-not your fault. We dare to break into the uncomfortable truth that many workplaces are designed for a very specific demographic, leaving neurodivergent individuals, particularly those on the autism spectrum, feeling excluded. I share three stories in which my Dad imparted to me more than my fair share of his wisdom, and I'm hoping you to can feel empowered. You'll learn that we can advocate for ourselves and others to create a more inclusive work culture. Newsletter Paste this into your browser if the newsletter link is broken - https://www.lbeehealth.com/ Join our Patreon - https://differentnotbrokenpodcast.com/patreon Mentioned in this episode: Sign Up For Our Newsletter Stay updated on all the things! Get added to our newsletter mailing list. Newsletter…
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Parenting challenges and choices from which schools to attend and whether to stick with the church | Episode 361
Manage episode 445482636 series 3602158
Вміст надано The Salt Lake Tribune. Весь вміст подкастів, включаючи епізоди, графіку та описи подкастів, завантажується та надається безпосередньо компанією The Salt Lake Tribune або його партнером по платформі подкастів. Якщо ви вважаєте, що хтось використовує ваш захищений авторським правом твір без вашого дозволу, ви можете виконати процедуру, описану тут https://uk.player.fm/legal.
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.”
100 епізодів
ПоширитиManage episode 445482636 series 3602158
Вміст надано The Salt Lake Tribune. Весь вміст подкастів, включаючи епізоди, графіку та описи подкастів, завантажується та надається безпосередньо компанією The Salt Lake Tribune або його партнером по платформі подкастів. Якщо ви вважаєте, що хтось використовує ваш захищений авторським правом твір без вашого дозволу, ви можете виконати процедуру, описану тут https://uk.player.fm/legal.
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.”
100 епізодів
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1 Announcing a new podcast partnership all about Latter-day Saints in pop culture | Episode 389 38:01
Taylor Frankie Paul. Litia Garr. Shari Franke. Andy Reid. Lisa Barlow. Hannah Neeleman. What do all these people have in common? For our online friends, the answer is obvious: All are Latter-day Saints. Maybe you’ve heard of them. Maybe not. But these are just some of the names representing and defining, albeit unofficially, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for millions around the world. Put simply, they matter. So do the Mormon-themed Netflix miniseries and Hulu tell-alls that studios are churning out at ever faster rates. Here at “Mormon Land,” we’ve done our best to blend those conversations with all the other reporting our readers and listeners care about. And we will continue to host some of those conversations. But there’s no way we can do it all anymore. There’s just too much happening that deserves attention. And that is why the “Mormon Land” brand is expanding. We are excited to announce a new partnership with “Mormons in Media,” a podcast and Instagram account that has been tracking pop culture’s portrayal of Latter-day Saints and their church since 2024. Co-hosts of this monthly “Mormon Land” bonus podcast will be Salt Lake Tribune guest columnist Rebbie Brassfield — the creator of “Mormons in Media” and perhaps the only person in the world to equate playing pickleball to crossing the Plains with handcarts — and Nicole Weaver, a Tribune audience team manager whom our superfans will recognize as a co-producer of our “Mormon Land” podcast. Brassfield is an active Latter-day Saint. Weaver has no background in the faith. What she does have are a keen interest in this genre and a range of questions. Together, the two plan to track the developments of Latter-day Saint representations in the media — from “Under the Banner of Heaven” to “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” and everything in between. On this week’s show, they tell us more about what listeners can expect from this new venture.…
While the racist priesthood/temple ban in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is indeed in the past, racism itself remains very much in the present — for the faith and for society as a whole. In fact, the Utah-based church recently published a new webpage addressing the topic, reminding members that President Russell Nelson directed them to “lead out in abandoning attitudes and actions of prejudice” and his top counselor, Dallin Oaks , urged Latter-day Saints to “help root out” the sin of racism. The article went so far as to encourage members to speak up when racism arises in their congregations. So how can Latter-day Saints play their part? And do they need to start by looking honestly in the mirror and asking: Do I hold racist views? Mauli Bonner — a well-known Black Latter-day Saint, and an award-winning filmmaker and songwriter — penned an opinion piece recently for The Salt Lake Tribune to help members examine themselves and answer their leaders’ call. On this week’s show, he shares those ideas, assesses how the faith and the faithful are doing in combating racism, addresses how more inclusive art and music can help, and offers suggestions for ways top church leaders can help propel the battle against prejudice.…
As a proselytizing faith with a committed corps of volunteer missionaries, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is forever driven to boost its ranks and broaden its reach. It did so last year at a level not seen in decades. Convert baptisms topped 308,000 in 2024, a 27-year high, and pushed total membership above 17.5 million. The army of missionaries shot past 74,000, a number not seen since 10 years ago after leaders lowered the age minimum for full-time service. And the tally of missions around the globe swelled to 450, more than at any point in the faith’s 195-year history. Amid all these encouraging statistics for the church, discouraging trends persisted. Babies added to the rolls continued to fall and the loss of members continued to rise. This week’s show aims to make sense of all these figures, including nations where the church is growing the fastest or shrinking the quickest, with the help of independent researcher Matt Martinich, who tracks such data for the websites cumorah.com and ldschurchgrowth.blogspot.com .…
When news broke last fall that redesigned temple garments — including a sleeveless version — were already on sale in some foreign countries, it became a hot topic among members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Would the sacred underclothes, which are expected to be worn under daily clothing, be visible under tank tops? Would the new slip or half-slip allow women to wear their own underwear? Would they be accepted by other members or seen as caving to modern fashion? Perhaps the biggest question was about modesty. For years, Latter-day Saint women had been taught that the typical garment, with its capped sleeves to cover shoulders and upper arms, was meant, at least in part, as a display of modesty. Some members even joked about “porn shoulders.” What do the new “open sleeves” say about those previous ideas? How do the new styles fit in practice? And what other changes would members like to see? Discussing those questions and more on this week’s show are Latter-day Saints Andrea Fausett, a Hawaii-based Instagram influencer who has reviewed and showcased the new garments, and Northern California-based Instagrammer Rachel Gerber, who runs the LDS Changemakers social media account.…
In the mid-1970s, a tiny group of Latter-day Saint women in Boston launched a modest effort to discuss women’s issues — past and present — in a magazine they called Exponent II (named after the newspaper of their Mormon foremothers, Woman’s Exponent ). These modern feminists did not challenge the teachings of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on, say, polygamy , priesthood or other doctrines. They focused primarily on the challenges of motherhood, marriage and material culture. Their first editor was Claudia Lauper Bushman , who exemplified Mormonism as wife of famed historian and Latter-day Saint Stake (regional) President Richard Bushman and as a mother of six. After she was asked to resign the editorship, she went on to other professional and personal projects. Though the Exponent II group was hardly revolutionary, 50 years later it remains an important voice in the Latter-day Saint world, while Claudia Bushman went on to influence an entire generation of feminists in the church. Hundreds of men and women gathered recently to honor her life and work. On this week’s show, Laurel Thatcher Ulrich, one of Exponent II’s founders who would eventually teach history at Harvard and win a Pulitzer Prize for her work humanizing ordinary women, talks about the Claudia conference, the trajectory of Latter-day Saint feminism, and how today’s activists are different from the past.…
As practicing Latter-day Saints with nuanced faith, Valerie and Nathan Hamaker wanted to help fellow believers grappling with a “faith crisis” or how they have been “wounded” by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. So, in 2022, Valerie, a mental health counselor in Kansas City, Missouri, and Nathan launched a podcast, called “ Latter Day Struggles ,” to address some of their issues and find peace. Their podcast drew wide appeal, but it also came to the attention of their local Latter-day Saint leaders. After numerous conversations, they say, those leaders summoned the couple to a disciplinary council. Expecting to be formally tossed out of the church, the couple instead chose to resign their membership . Since news of their resignation became public, the Hamakers have heard from thousands of friends and supporters. On this week’s show, the couple share their experience, their interactions in their congregation, their views of church discipline, their decision to leave, their efforts to help fellow Latter-day Saints, and whether they would consider rejoining the fold when their local leadership changes.…
A new report by the Pew Research Center, the Religious Landscape Study , has given members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints plenty to pat themselves on the back about. According to the survey of 37,000 U.S. adults, including 565 self-identified Latter-day Saints, active members of the Utah-based faith are some of Christianity’s workhorses, showing up for church each Sunday and finding time in between services to pray, read scriptures and teach their children about their faith — all at enviable rates. At the same time, the study’s authors found a significant drop in U.S. retention rates since the last time they polled members in 2014. And women, long heralded as the more reliable sex, appear to now be in the minority. On this week’s show, sociologists Marie Cornwall and Tim Heaton, former professors at church-owned Brigham Young University and editors of the 2001 book “ Contemporary Mormonism: Social Science Perspectives ,” contextualize those numbers and other findings — including Latter-day Saint views on politics, abortion and climate change .…
Pornography — broadly defined as sexually explicit images — has become a sort-of wallpaper of modern lives. It is everywhere: in our books, movies, computers, video games, social media posts, music and phones. For many years, leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saint warned members that porn was “dangerous,” “evil” and “damnable. ” They taught that viewing porn was a sin. In the past decade, though, the church has suggested that repeated porn watching is an addiction , like alcohol and drugs, often requiring professional help to overcome. Earlier this month, apostle Patrick Kearon addressed attendees at the Utah Coalition Against Pornography conference, saying he was no expert but acknowledging he did have “painful and heartbreaking personal experience with loved ones entrapped by addictions.” Some Latter-day Saint — and other — therapists now question the addiction hypothesis. Count Idaho psychologist Cameron Staley, author of “ Confessions of an LDS Sex Researcher ” and creator of the “ Life After Pornography ” online program, among them. On this week’s show, he discusses whether viewing porn is a compulsive behavior; why men and women watch it; how the church has improved its rhetoric on the topic; and how to help those who want to stop looking at such images.…
1 The conservative LDS prophet who led fights over evolution, the age of the Earth and orthodoxy | Episode 381 46:09
Joseph Fielding Smith’s family tree alone makes him a significant player in the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. His father, Joseph F. Smith, was the faith’s sixth president. His grandfather was Hyrum Smith, who was slain with his great-uncle, church founder Joseph Smith. His son-in-law, in fact, was apostle Bruce R. McConkie, a theological kindred spirit. Joseph Fielding Smith served as an apostle for 60 years, church historian for 49 and as the church’s 10th president for two. But he will forever be remembered more for his prose and his polemics than for his positions or his pedigree. A conservative and orthodox thinker, he wrote more than two dozen books, answered religious questions from lay members and engaged in high-level, high-stakes debates with fellow apostles James Talmage, John Widtsoe and other leading Latter-day Saint intellectuals. They discussed, debated and disputed issues ranging from scriptural interpretation to the age of the Earth and the theory of evolution. Joseph Fielding Smith was, scholar Matthew Bowman argues, “the most important Latter-day Saint theologian of the 20th century.” On this week’s show, Bowman, head of Mormon studies at Claremont Graduate University and author of the recently released “ Joseph Fielding Smith: A Mormon Theologian ,” talks about this towering Latter-day Saint man of letters.…
Certainly not for the first time, the United States has become a hotbed of hot takes and even hotter debates over men’s roles in the home and society. Fueling this fiery crisis of masculinity is, of course, social media, podcasts and other online forums. Enter the “manosphere,” a conservative- and Christian-leaning media ecosystem aimed at male empowerment. On this week’s show, Amy Chapman , a faculty member at Arizona State University’s teachers college, and Levi Sands , a graduate student in sociology at the University of Iowa, discuss this growing subculture and its influence on Latter-day Saint men .…
When Brigham Young University teams play on the road, they, like any visiting opponent, expect to encounter their share of jeers from the home crowd. But what happens when the razzing turns raunchy and the boos give way to bigotry? That occurs all too often at Cougar games. Obscene choruses, often emanating from opposing student sections, break out, mocking BYU’s sponsoring religion, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and members of that faith. Why have Latter-day Saints and their beliefs become the target of such openly prejudiced chants? Do Catholics and Notre Dame run into the same hostility? And what, if anything, could or should BYU and Latter-day Saint leaders do in responding to such discrimination? Answering those questions and more are Salt Lake Tribune sports writer Kevin Reynolds, who covers the Cougars and wrote about this issue in a recent special report , and Britain Covey , a practicing Latter-day Saint who starred at BYU’s rival school, the University of Utah, plays for the world champion Philadelphia Eagles and has deep familial ties to BYU.…
1 Johnathan Rauch on the LDS Church's trailblazing compromises for the good of the country | Episode 378 32:20
Since America’s founding, Christianity has been a “load-bearing wall” of democracy, but in recent decades it has given up that role — and that, argues writer and scholar Jonathan Rauch , has led to the country’s current crisis. In his latest book, “Cross Purposes: Christianity’s Broken Bargain With Democracy ,” the self-described gay, Jewish atheist critiques secular Americans who think Christianity should be abandoned and Christian Americans who blame secular culture for their grievances. He shows why the two must work together — and points to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as an example of how to do it. On this week’s show, Rauch, a senior fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution, discusses why he believes top Latter-day Saint leaders, including senior apostle Dallin H. Oaks , have landed on a prescription for compromising and healing a polarized nation’s ills.…
As a candidate, he promised “mass deportations” of undocumented immigrants. And now, as president, he is setting the wheels in motion in an effort to do just that. While President Donald Trump’s next move — and that of immigration enforcement agents — is uncertain, this much is sure: The country is on edge — so much so that the governing First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints expressed concern about the “complex challenges and hardships now faced by members who are undocumented immigrants living in the United States” and outlined guidelines for the faith’s local lay leaders to follow. Questions abound: The church stresses obedience to the law, but how does that jibe with its desire to show compassion to all of God’s children and keep families together? How do human-made borders have any relevance in a divinely created world without such barriers? And, at a basic level, how far should a church, with a rich immigrant history, go in supporting or resisting a sweeping crackdown? Discussing the issue on this week’s show are Sam Brunson, a Latter-day Saint law professor who has written recently about the topic, and Erikala Herrera Urena, a Latter-day Saint immigrant from the Dominican Republic who lives near Atlanta and is now a U.S. citizen.…
In 2017, Laurie Lee Hall publicly shared her remarkable journey as a transgender Latter-day Saint. It took her through joining The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, serving a two-year mission, marrying and having children, being called as a bishop and stake president, and becoming head architect for the faith’s sacred temples. Transitioning to her “authentic self,” she said, caused her to lose her job, her marriage and her church membership. Yet, she is more at peace with herself than she has ever been. On this week’s show, Hall details the twists and turns her life took as she moved inexorably toward acceptance of her true identity, discusses her new memoir, “Dictates of Conscience: From Mormon High Priest to My New Life as a Woman,” and the stricter limitations her former faith has imposed on its transgender members.…
1 Understanding the big courtroom showdown in the tithing lawsuit against the LDS Church | Episode 375 25:45
Tithing has long been seen by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as a test, a trial, if you will, of faith. Well, now the practice of donating a tenth of one’s income is essentially on trial — in the courts. Nine plaintiffs are suing the global church, accusing Latter-day Saint leaders of soliciting and amassing these donations by the billions to support the faith’s religious and charitable purposes and instead spending money on commercial ventures, including the construction and development of a mall in downtown Salt Lake City. Last week, in a key hearing, a federal judge heard arguments in the lawsuit, which, if it is allowed to move forward as a class action, could end up involving thousands, even millions, of plaintiffs and exposing hidden financial dealings within the church. Lawyers for the faith say the suit unconstitutionally violates religious freedom and should be tossed out. Attorneys for the other side counter that their case is about deception and fraud, not faith. In this week’s show, Salt Lake Tribune reporter Tony Semerad — who has covered this lawsuit and similar ones for several years, along with other aspects of the church’s vast economic empire — sorts through the various arguments, how the judge received them and what comes next.…
Note to listeners • This episode contains spoilers for “American Primeval.” It’s bleak. It’s bloody. It’s barbaric. It’s also the No. 1 TV show on Netflix. But what millions of viewers may misunderstand about “ American Primeval ” is that it is fictional. While the six-part series is centered around real places, a few real events and some real people — ranging from the Utah War and the Mountain Meadows Massacre to mountain man Jim Bridger and pioneer-prophet Brigham Young, the show is not a docudrama. It gets many historical facts “wrong,” though the filmmakers weren’t necessarily trying to get everything “right.” Did, for instance, any Latter-day Saints die in the Mountain Meadows Massacre carried out by Mormon militiamen ? Did Native tribes participate in the atrocity? Did Brigham Young order the massacre? Did Latter-day Saints torch Fort Bridger? And are the portrayals of Young, Bridger and various Native American tribes accurate? Answering those questions and more are Barbara Jones Brown, director of Signature Books and co-author of the critically acclaimed “ Vengeance Is Mine: The Mountain Meadows Massacre and Its Aftermath ,” and Darren Parry, former chair of the Northwestern Band of the Shoshone Nation and author of “ The Bear River Massacre: A Shoshone History .”…
Brigham Young University has a “unique and compelling faith-based mission to develop disciples of Jesus Christ,” says school spokesperson Carri Jenkins. To that end, the school has long required students and faculty to hold a “ temple recommend ,” which attests to belief and behavior standards set out by BYU’s owner, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Under the leadership of the church’s commissioner of education, Clark Gilbert, the school has added extra layers of rules, meant to ensure devotion to beliefs beyond what the church expects of its members — namely a firm “testimony” of the faith’s current teachings on marriage, family and gender. To a number of faculty members , the extra demands feel onerous and unfairly compel employees and prospective employees to embrace a conservative interpretation of church doctrine. Here to discuss BYU’s new approaches to hiring and firing, as well as the atmosphere on campus are Latter-day Saint historian Benjamin Park , author of “ American Zion: A New History of Mormonism ,” and Latter-day Saint researcher Jana Riess , author of “The Next Mormons: How Millennials Are Changing the LDS Church ” and columnist for Religion News Service.…
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1 New garments, social media stars, temple push (and pushback) and 2024′s other big LDS news | Episode 372 50:01
While Russell Nelson, the 100-year-old leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is, by his own admission, slowing a bit, the pace of news in the global faith he oversees is hardly letting up. The headlines from 2024 prove it. Temples top the list. The centenarian prophet-president dedicated the church’s 200th temple and has now announced more than half of its 367 planned or existing temples. The Utah-based faith also bought the church’s first temple — the historic edifice in Kirtland, Ohio — from a sister sect. The Angel Moroni statue returned to its perch on the Salt Lake Temple, but the yearslong renovation work still going on inside the iconic six-spired structure came under fire. Meanwhile, temples planned for places across the U.S. encountered community pushback, often over the height of proposed steeples. Money also drew attention as the church’s publicly reported reserve fund added billions to its bottom line and lawsuits accusing Latter-day Saint higher-ups of fraudulent financial practices wended their way through the courts. Speeches from Relief Society leaders about women’s authority, careers and motherhood stirred up controversy, while Latter-day Saint women gained national recognition as social media stars. Nothing, though, caused more of a sensation than the church’s crackdown on the wearing of temple garments and its unveiling of new “sleeveless,” full-slip and half-slip styles. On this week’s show, Emily Jensen, web editor for Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, and Patrick Mason, head of Mormon history and culture at Utah State University, discuss an eventful 2024.…
Steve Young — yes, that Steve Young, the Hall of Fame quarterback and former Brigham Young University star who earned multiple MVP awards and Super Bowl rings with the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers — is talking about love and faith. In 2022, he wrote “ The Law of Love ,” in part to dispel the idea that love should be transactional. “If I do this, God will love me, or God will reward me.” Rather, Young wrote, love is about following Christ, helping to heal others and embracing all people, no matter where they are in their personal journeys. He drew on his football experiences and revealed much about his own shyness, anxiety and insecurity. Now Young is back with a follow-up book, “ The Law of Love in Action ,” that moves from theory to practice, from believing to doing. He turns to Latter-day Saint scriptures as well as other faith traditions and personal experiences — his own and those of dozens of others. On this week’s show, Young explains why he continues to think about these issues, and why it’s important to love without expectation, how not to “over-elevate” obedience, why perfectionism is a problem and how the “law of love” can improve everyday living.…
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Dan McClellan was working full time as a scripture translation supervisor for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 2023, when he quit his post of 10 years to go all-in as a podcaster and social media influencer. Rather than peddling parenting or workout tips, McClellan , who has a doctorate in theology and religion, has attracted more than 1 million followers with his hot takes on the Good Book. Through it all, the author of “ The Bible Says So ,” due out in April, is particularly interested in rooting out misconceptions about what the text teaches. On this week’s Yuletide “Mormon Land,” McClellan help us better understand the evolution of the story of the Nativity and how the rendition enacted in countless Christian households this season — scenes dominated by toddlers donning bath robes and lightsabers doubling as shepherds’ hooks — strays from the descriptions found in the Gospels and historical records.…
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The long-standing cultural practice of courting, pursuing or wooing prospective romantic partners by asking them out to dinner, a movie, a hike or a play is often called the “dating game” — and for a reason. There are rules, sometimes written but mostly unwritten. There are bad moves and good moves. There are winners and losers. In Utah, this tradition takes on additional twists, turns and even, as some see it, traps . Some members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, for instance, desire to date only fellow believers so that if the couple marry someday, they can be “sealed” in one of the faith’s temples. Others rule out ever dating a Latter-day Saint, worried perhaps that they may be pressured to convert or at least hoping to avoid any entanglements with the religion. All of these factors — plus a multitude of other scenarios — make dating a pinch point in the “ Unspoken Divide ” between those who belong to the state’s predominant faith and those who don’t. On this week’s show, Utahns Kristen Jex and Jimmy Henderson, two single Latter-day Saints, discuss those dating dynamics.…
It wasn’t until 1978 (after the priesthood/temple ban on Black members ended) that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints began sending full-time missionaries in earnest to sub-Saharan Africa. Since then, though, the Utah-based faith has seen dramatic growth on the continent , and now Latter-day Saint chapels and temples can be found in a multitude of African nations. So, what are the appeals of this American-born faith in lands so physically and culturally distant? Why do some Africans see this patriarchal faith as a “woman’s church”? How has the Word of Wisdom helped transform African families? And why is the church’s wealth sometimes viewed as a “double-edged sword” in these countries? On this week’s show, Laurie Maffly-Kipp, the director of Mormon studies at the University of Virginia, answers these questions after delivering her first major speech at the school. It was titled, appropriately enough, “Mormonism Through an African Lens.”…
For more than 160 years, Americans have celebrated a public holiday to express thankfulness — whether for a bountiful harvest, a successful business, a happy marriage, healthy children or a welcoming community. And, in 2020, President Russell M. Nelson , leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, urged members to flood the internet with messages of gratitude , even as a global pandemic was sewing death and disease in every nation. These days, there seems to be a national trend for keeping gratitude journals or practicing mindfulness. But what’s the benefit of it? Does it really help anyone, or is it just glib talk? Can those in dire circumstances really feel grateful, or is that just a naive view of life? On this week’s show, Marybeth Raynes , a licensed clinical social worker, discusses the benefits of giving thanks.…
Six years after the first volume in the “Saints” series hit the stands, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is out with its fourth and final installment in the faith’s latest official history. Titled “ Saints: Sounded in Every Ear ,” the text documents the years of 1955 to 2020 and covers a range of milestones, including the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic , the end of the priesthood/temple ban against Black members, the struggles over LGBTQ rights , and the church’s opposition to the Equal Rights Amendment . On this week’s show, Jed Woodworth, the managing historian of the series, and Tesia Tsai, a writer for the volume, discuss the memorable experiences of top church leaders and everyday members from this period in the quickly globalizing faith.…
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Like most Americans in the buildup to the 2024 election, members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints found themselves caught up in the polarizing tug-of-war over who should be the next president of the United States. Four years ago, a number of Latter-day Saints, for decades a reliably Republican voting bloc, had bucked Donald Trump and backed Joe Biden , helping to deliver a crucial battleground state, Arizona, for the Democrat. Those forces were at play again this time around in Arizona and neighboring Nevada for Kamala Harris , with the Trump campaign courting Latter-day Saints as well. In the end, the nail-biter results pundits had predicted for months never materialized. Trump won the Electoral College count by a comfortable margin and even captured the popular vote. Early exit polls have shown Latter-day Saints again overwhelmingly stuck with Trump, though his support among these voters may have slipped since 2020. That could be significant, given that the former president’s margins improved among many other constituencies. So, what happened? What does the election say about the partisan breakdown among Latter-day Saints in the pews? And what might a second Trump administration mean for the church and its members? On this week’s podcast, McKay Coppins , an award-winning Latter-day Saint journalist who covers national politics for The Atlantic , helps to answer those questions and more. Coppins is the author of “ The Wilderness ,” exploring the GOP’s post-2012 drive to win back the White House, and, more recently, “ Romney: A Reckoning ,” a biography of Utah Sen. Mitt Romney , the Latter-day Saint politician who famously became one of the most visible and vocal anti-Trump Republicans.…
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Listener alert • Be advised that while we strived to keep spoilers to a minimum, the discussion reveals some elements from the film. So, if you plan to see “Heretic,” you may want to view the movie first, and then go to our podcast. Two female missionaries for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints enter the home of “Mr. Reed,” apparently a welcoming seeker with, it turns out, his own marked-up copy of the Book of Mormon, the faith’s foundational scripture. Could this be a heaven-sent “golden contact” eager to embrace the Latter-day Saint gospel? Hardly. The young proselytizers have instead begun a hellish descent into the dungeonous world of a bright but demented psychopath determined to test their religion — and all religions — in a terrorizing contest between belief and disbelief. Therein lies the heart of “ Heretic ,” the new psychological thriller starring Hugh Grant and due out in theaters nationwide this week. The film already has earned praise from some reviewers , drawn criticism from the church , and spurred flashbacks to real-life frightening moments among former missionaries . The week’s show focuses on the merits and demerits of “Heretic” as both a movie, with our longtime film critic Sean P. Means , and as an argument for and against religion, with our award-winning faith reporter Peggy Fletcher Stack .…
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1 President Nelson is betting big that more LDS temples will keep more members in the church | Episode 363 35:35
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 .…
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1 Parenting challenges and choices from which schools to attend and whether to stick with the church | Episode 361 39:25
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 .”…
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1 How the Tabernacle Choir wows crowds and spreads global goodwill for the LDS Church | Episode 360 27:30
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.…
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1 If you’re Christian, BYU ecologist says, you’ll work for the Earth and against climate change | Episode 359 36:00
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.…
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Two federal appellate courts. Two historic hearings. Two tithing lawsuits. One overarching allegation: namely, that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-days has misled its members — whether about its finances or its history. In one case, prominent former Latter-day Saint James Huntsman insists top church leaders misrepresented how they spent $1.4 billion of the faith’s funds to build the for-profit City Creek Center shopping mall in downtown Salt Lake City. Topics ranging from religious autonomy and the U.S. Constitution to outright fraud and even a Beatles classic surfaced last week before a full panel of judges in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. In the other, ex-members accuse church authorities of hiding important details of Mormonism’s beginnings in order to persuade the faithful to pay their tithes. Oddly enough, founder Joseph Smith, his “seer stone” and translation of the faith’s signature scripture, the Book of Mormon, were openly discussed before a three-judge panel of the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals . So where do these lawsuits go from here? What are their prospects? And how do they fit into the continued media attention on the church’s wealth and a potentially expansive and expensive class-action case ? On this week’s show, Salt Lake Tribune reporter Tony Semerad, who has reported on these lawsuits from the get-go and brought to light other aspects of the faith’s financial empire , helps us wind through this legal maze.…
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1 Utah rabbi talks about forgiveness and atonement while Middle East fighting rages | Episode 357 29:05
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.…
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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.…
Like Salt Lake City’s mayor, he oversees a major Western municipality founded by 19th-century Mormon pioneers. Like Salt Lake City’s mayor, the heart of his diverse, dynamic and growing city features a historic temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saint bounded by a sparkling mixed-use development built by the Utah-based faith. And like Salt Lake City’s mayor, he supports Kamala Harris for president. But unlike Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall, Mesa Mayor John Giles is a Republican and a Latter-day Saint — and that’s why his support of the Democratic ticket is grabbing national headlines. A graduate of Brigham Young University, Giles is a lawyer serving his 10th and final year leading Arizona’s third-largest city. He also has run dozens of marathons, but it’s his stance in 2024′s presidential race — in a swing state that could determine who wins the White House — that catapulted this moderate Mormon mayor into a prime-time speaking slot at the Democratic National Convention. On this week’s show, Giles discusses his decision to buck Donald Trump and instead back Harris, along with his desire to see the reemergence of a more-centrist Republican Party and a less-polarized political climate.…
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In 2017, a Utah family began discussing some of the challenging questions facing The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. From those modest beginnings, a multidimensional platform emerged called Faith Matters, which defines itself as a “space in which an expansive, radiant approach to the restored gospel can be considered.” The effort now includes a popular podcast, book publishing, online courses, and, coming next week, its third in-person “Restore” conference. The giant gathering at the Mountain West Expo Center in Sandy has attracted more than 3,000 paid registrants and will feature speakers, poets, musicians and artists — including Astrid Tuminez, Jennifer Finlayson-Fife, Jennifer Walker Thomas, Terryl and Fiona Givens, Mauli Bonner, Neylan McBaine, Allison Dayton and Eboo Patel. It is, organizers say, meant to “inspire, enlighten and nourish faith.” On this week’s show, Zachary Davis, executive director of Faith Matters, editor of its Wayfare magazine and co-director of the conference, discusses this organization, the upcoming conference and how they appeal to, help and inspire a range of Latter-day Saints.…
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1 How new church policies make trans members invisible and could push them to leave | Episode 352 47:40
The occasional updates to the online General Handbook of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are often routine, addressing relatively mundane policies, practices and procedures within the global faith of 17.2 million members. Not so this week. The new guidelines spelled out for local lay leaders and their approach to transgender individuals have created a firestorm among LGBTQ members and their allies not seen, perhaps, since the hotly disputed — and now-discarded — exclusion policy of November 2015 against same-sex couples. The new rules state, for instance, that members who have transitioned in any way — whether surgically, medically or socially — cannot receive a temple recommend, work with children, serve as teachers in their congregations or fill any gender-specific assignments, such as president of the women’s Relief Society. They cannot stay at most youth camps overnight. And they are urged to use single-occupancy restrooms at church meetinghouses or station a “trusted person” outside to keep others from entering when they use a restroom that aligns with their personal gender identity. Discussing these new policies and their potential impact on members are religion scholar Taylor Petrey, editor-in-chief of Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought and author of “Tabernacles of Clay: Sexuality and Gender in Modern Mormonism,” and Michael Soto, a transgender and queer man who grew up in the church and now serves as president of Equality Arizona.…
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A member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints wants to invite her daughter’s friend to join them for their congregation’s annual Halloween trunk-or-treat. But it’s being held in the parking lot of the church, and she worries the parents will think the invitation carries ulterior motives. Across the street, a couple plan a neighborhood dinner party. They want to throw the invite open to everyone, but there will be alcohol, and they fear offending their teetotaling Latter-day Saint neighbors. In the end, they opt to play it safe and invite only a few (non-Latter-day Saint) couples. The Salt Lake Tribune heard stories like this and more when, nearly a quarter century ago, it undertook no small task: an in-depth exploration of Utah’s religious divide. And we heard them again when, this year, we solicited feedback from readers about how the dynamic shapes their neighborhoods. On this week’s show, Latter-day Saint LaShawn Williams, a licensed clinical social worker with a doctorate in education, and Bob Goldberg, a U.S. historian, member of Utah’s Jewish community and former director of the Tanner Humanities Center at the University of Utah, discuss this “unspoken divide.”…
Religion, in general, has prompted believers to have a more positive view of their bodies, and Mormonism specifically teaches that Heavenly Parents are embodied, that humans are created in their divine image, and that the body is a temple. Why, then, do some members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints struggle with their body image? Why do many turn to cosmetic surgery to “improve” their bodies? Two researchers from Brigham Young University have just completed what they say is the largest study ever done of how Latter-day Saint doctrine and culture may affect body image. On this week’s show, study co-author Lauren Barnes, a licensed therapist and professor in BYU’s School of Family Life, discuss the findings — and suggestions for improving body image.…
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Last August, nearly 20,000 Latter-day Saint young single adults came together to sing, dance, play, pray, run and worship over three weekends. By all accounts, it was a smashing success. They’re back again this weekend for a three-day festival to celebrate their membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, to strengthen their faith, and to feel a sense of belonging. And, they say, to try to break a mark recognized by the Guinness World Records for “the most contributions to a birthday card” — for President Russell M. Nelson, who turns 100 in September. Earlier this month, the Utah-based faith raised the age limit for “young single adults” from 30 to 35, while the term “single adults” now describes unmarried members ages 36 and older. Here to talk about the coming event and the changing demographics is Sara Sumsion, a young single adult who is working on a master’s degree in marriage and family therapy at Northwestern University, and Richard Ostler, who has served as a bishop over a YSA ward, or congregation.…
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For many Latter-day Saints, church is a place of solace, service and spirituality. Some folks, though, find their participation in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to be painful, a source of inner conflict. These days some members, especially younger ones, feel betrayed to discover that the faith’s history is not as pure as the simplistic narrative they were taught as children. Or they wonder about men called to be prophetic who have said hurtful things about people of color or LGBTQ believers. They challenge the church’s vast wealth and what they see as its ethical failings. They have a hard time seeing any value in organized religion, which leads some to question the existence of God, who seems absent rather than consistently present in their lives. Tyler Johnson, an oncologist at Stanford who has served as a bishop in a young single adult congregation, has heard and wrestled with all of these issues. On this week’s show, Johnson, author of “When Church Is Hard,” offers a road map to developing a more nuanced, understanding, empathetic approach to the questions of today.…
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Claudia Bushman was 40 years old, a mother of six and working on an advanced history degree when she, essentially, was volunteered to become the first editor-in-chief of Exponent II, an independent feminist magazine for Latter-day Saint women. That was 1974. Rachel Rueckert, a 30-something novelist, career woman and the magazine’s current top editor, wasn’t even born then. Despite the age difference, the two share an important passion: giving voice to women in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. As the magazine celebrates its 50th anniversary, Bushman and Rueckert discuss their feelings about the magazine, the personal stories it has shared, how it has changed over the decades, what it has accomplished, and why they believe it remains relevant — and crucial — today and will stay that way well the future.…
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Few groups exist in the world like missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They may be assigned to different countries or speak different languages, but for 18 months to two years, tens of thousands of these mostly young proselytizers share the same strict schedule, routine, identity and purpose: namely, to share the good news of — and seek converts to — their religion. More than a million have served in the church’s history, so missionary stories are practically as ubiquitous in the 194-year-old global faith as are soaring steeples, crying babies and tiny sacrament cups. Some stories are inspiring. Some are scary (with odes to devilish humans and even Satan himself). Some are funny. And some are, well, tall on tale and short on truth. Talking about these narratives, some of which are cataloged at church-owned Brigham Young University, on this week’s show are folklorist Christine Blythe, executive director of the Mormon History Association, and her husband and fellow folklorist, Christopher Blythe, author of “Terrible Revolution: Latter-day Saints and the American Apocalypse.” Together, they host the Latter-day Saint podcast “Angels and Seerstones.”…
In 2014, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints published an official essay detailing Joseph Smith’s marriages to multiple women. After decades of insisting otherwise, the Community of Christ, formerly the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, has since conceded that the faith founder did participate in polygamy. Highly regarded scholarly works have documented Smith had at least 33 wives, and most historians widely accept that the church leader preached — albeit privately — and practiced plural marriage. So why is this issue gaining increased attention in various Mormon circles and why are so-called polygamy deniers arguing that Smith had but one wife, Emma, while pinning the practice instead on perhaps the Western world’s most famous polygamist, Brigham Young, and his associates? What does the evidence really show? Why is this debate springing up now? And what do the competing factions stand to win or lose? Answering those questions and more on this week’s show are Brooke LeFevre, a doctoral candidate at Baylor University who has written about the experiences of 19th-century Latter-day Saint women in plural marriages, and Matthew Bowman, chair of Mormon studies at Claremont Graduate University who penned a recent Salt Lake Tribune column on the topic.…
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