A Thoughtful Faith - Mormon / LDS

The Book of Mormon has been claimed by the LDS Church to be a history of Native Americans.  While this proposition has been scaled back over the years it's still somewhat present in a literalist view of the text.  But why is it that Native Americans are only rarely and then selectively consulted in the conversation as to the book's origins?  Surely the church and Mormon scholars, if they take seriously this claim, should be beating a determined path to the door of Native Americans to receive their wisdom and input.  But they aren't.  

Thomas Murphy (Mohawk) and I discuss this dynamic;  why it might be? And, what is the potential for the faith in allowing for the very voices that are central to the Book of Mormon narrative. 

Direct download: Thomas_Murphy.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:43pm NZDT

Chris Smith is not LDS but has been fascinated with the tradition since he dated the local Mormon bishop's daughter in high school.  His research as a religious historian has lead him to the conclusion that Joseph Smith sought to resolve 19th Century America's political conundrums allegorically through the Book of Mormon.  He argues that Joseph's hope was that one day the church he established would redeem the USA and become the Kingdom of God on Earth.  

The Book of Mormon is not, he argues, a literal history of an extinct Native American civilization unless the civilization was experiencing exactly the same political, social, economic, racial and cultural issues that characterized antebellum USA.

Direct download: Chris__Smith.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:29pm NZDT

David Conley Nelson has written an extensive account of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Nazi Germany in his book "Moroni and the Swastika'.  Desperate to keep the church alive during World War II  the Mormons exploited congruences between the faith and the Nazi Party with shocking results.  

Direct download: David_Nelson_Level.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:40pm NZDT

I catch up with Sam Brown for a very quick chat about this cultural moment that sees us grappling with the question of the Book of Mormon as a 'translation'.

Direct download: Sam_Brown.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:07am NZDT

Philip Barlow, Leonard J. Arrington Chair of Mormon History and Culture, and the 2017 fellow at the Maxwell Institute at BYU joins me to discuss the state of Mormon Studies.  We discuss the need for new conversations regarding the Book of Mormon and the place of Joseph Smith in the tradition.

Direct download: Philip_Barlow.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:03pm NZDT

Professor Richard Bushman's contribution to contemporary Mormon Studies cannot be overstated.  In this interview we discuss the need for a refreshed understanding of the idea of the 'translation' of the Book of Mormon; the imperative for a more supple Mormon conversation, and  the urgency for us to speak up with candor at church.  We also talk about the upcoming Mormon Art Center Festival at Riverside Church in New York City.

Direct download: Richard_Bushman.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:10pm NZDT

Carolina Allen, founder of Big Ocean Women, discusses the motivation behind her desire to find a space for women away from some of the more aggressive politics that progressive feminism is known for.  Rather than seeing a more gentle and inclusive feminism as weak, she sees a peaceful, non-combative posture as more powerful, inviting and intuitive.

Direct download: Big_Ocean_Women.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:13pm NZDT

Natasha Helfer Parker, Mindy Gledhill, Jana Spangler, Andrea Radke-Moss and Rachel Hunt Steenblik discuss their experiences at the Women's March in Washington DC and New York City.  Contrary to Sister Elaine Dalton's observation each of these women found the event to be sacred, peaceful and transformative.

Direct download: Womens_March_Podcast.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:28pm NZDT

How did The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints become an over-bloated corporate bureaucracy?  What are the implications for the way in which the church practices religion, and for the way it inspires faith? Ron and Josh Madson address these questions and share some reflections about how all of this squares up with the God's passion for justice and Jesus' call for the relief of the poor.

Direct download: Ron_and_Josh_Mason.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:37pm NZDT

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