Ever played the old PC game The Mormon Trail? Your ancestors played it in real life and this episode discusses what it was like for them. Shownotes: Donate to Sunstone and the History Podcast (leave us a note in the comment section to say hi!) Historic Resource Study: Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail by Stanley Kimball …

E105: Playing the Mormon Trail

What was life like if you were stuck in Winter Quarters? Bryan and Lindsay dig into some of the stories of the women who lived there and what their day-to-day life was like. Shownotes: Donate to Sunstone and the History Podcast (leave us a note in the comment section to say hi!) George Q. Cannon: Politician, …

E104: Daily Life in the WQ

Many people don’t realize just how many Mormons were part of the fated Donner/Reed tragedy. In this episode, Lindsay and Bryan discuss the horrible tale of travel gone awry. Shownotes: Donate to Sunstone and the History Podcast (leave us a note in the comment section to say hi!) Register for the Sunstone Summer Symposium The …

E103: The Donner Party and the Mormons

The story goes that anyone who leaves the Good Ship Zion comes back all wet and half drowned. But in this episode, Stephen Carter argues that this is short-sighted, and that a journey away from the ship may actually be the best way to save both yourself and the ship.

E152: Saving the Good Ship Zion by Leaving It.

Mormonism used to pride itself on how different it was from other Christian sects. But it has since become part and parcel of the Evangelical movement. How did this happen? In this episode, Stephen Carter looks at recent LDS history through Kristen Du Mez’s book “Jesus and John Wayne: How Evangelicalism Corrupted a Faith and …

E151: Jesus, John Wayne, and Captain Moroni: How Mormonism Became Evangelical.

Women were an integral part of the Mormon Battalion story and Lindsay and Bryan share their histories, including the story of a rogue group of women that braved the wild to avoid practicing polygamy. Shownotes: Donate to Sunstone and the History Podcast (leave us a note in the comment section to say hi!) Register for …

E102: Ladies of the Battalion

Walking into the forest means walking into the unknown. Reverend Patty Willis has done so many times in her life, and is about to do it again.

E150: A Pride Month Sermon.

In this episode, Lindsay and Bryan discuss the history of the only United States military regiment ever mustered specifically from a religious group: The Mormon Battalion. Shownotes: Donate to Sunstone and the History Podcast (leave us a note in the comment section to say hi!) Register for the Sunstone Summer Symposium Charisma Under Pressure: Joseph …

E101: Mormon Battalion Boys

When the Proclamation on the Family says “gender,” what does it mean? Ted Lee makes a case that using the academic, rather than colloquial, definition of gender opens the way to fitting transgender people into the Plan of Salvation.

E149: How the Proclamation on the Family Could Include Transgender People.

In these two hilarious and compelling dialogues by Theric Jepson, Mormon Socrates explores the theology behind transgender people and reproductive rights.

E148: What Would Socrates Think of LGBTQ Issues if He Were Mormon?

Faith Seeking Understanding: Over 40 years of Mormon scholarship, narratives, and thought from some of Mormonism's brightest minds.

The third in a three-part miniseries where Bryan and Lindsay discuss the development of race in Mormon theology through a historical lens. Shownotes: Donate to Sunstone and the History Podcast (leave us a note in the comment section to say hi!) Register for the Sunstone Summer Symposium Charisma Under Pressure: Joseph Smith, American Prophet, 1831–1839 (Dan Vogel).  …

E100: Mormonism and Race, part three

It’s hard to know how to respond when a favorite artist breaks one of you most cherished values. Starting with Erich Hatala Matthes’ book “Drawing the Line: What to Do with the Work of Immoral Artists from Museums to the Movies,” Stephen Carter explores some approaches to cancel culture and their surprising connections with Mormonism.

E147: Should Mormons Become a Part of Cancel Culture?

In this three-part miniseries, Bryan and Lindsay discuss the development of race in Mormon theology through a historical lens. Shownotes: Donate to Sunstone and the History Podcast (leave us a note in the comment section to say hi!) Register for the Sunstone Summer Symposium (Use coupon code HistoryPod for 30% off full or one day registration …

E99: Mormonism and Race, part two

James Madison

The line between polygamy and adultery in early Mormonism was blurry, and people were killed over the interpretation of that line. This article by Edward Hogan explores how often the killers got off scot free—or even with a pat on the back.

E146: The Curious Case of James Madison Monroe.

E98: Mormonism and Race, Part One

Ritual is the basic building block of civilization. But what makes a strong ritual? And does Mormonism have enough of it to survive? Stephen Carter explores the Mormon implications of Dimitris Xygalatas’s book “Ritual: How Seemingly Senseless Acts Make Life Worth Living.” Listen to its companion episode at https://sunstone.org/e118-the-lds-proselytizing-mission-as-hazing/

Ritual is the basic building block of civilization. But what makes a strong ritual? And does Mormonism have enough of it to survive? Stephen Carter explores the Mormon implications of Dimitris Xygalatas’s book “Ritual: How Seemingly Senseless Acts Make Life Worth Living.” Listen to its companion episode at <a href="https://sunstone.org/e118-the-lds-proselytizing-mission-as-hazing/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://sunstone.org/e118-the-lds-proselytizing-mission-as-hazing/</a>

E145: Are Mormon Rituals Weird Enough?

What was Mormon polygamy like on the trail? Not great. Come listen to the heartbreaking stories of polygamy in Winter Quarters. Shownotes: Donate to Sunstone and the History Podcast (leave us a note in the comment section to say hi!) Register for the Sunstone Summer Symposium (Use coupon code HistoryPod for 30% off full or …

E97: Cold Hearts and Polygamy in Winter Quarters

When you lose your religion, you lose your life story. You have to reconstruct what life means. Stephen Carter presents an approach to telling your life story after the pre- and post-mortal lives have been removed from your worldview.

E144: Telling Your Life Story After Religion.

Garden Grove is known as one of the way-stations for Latter-day Saints who were fleeing Nauvoo in 1846-47. But this Winter Quarters encampment was full of tawdry secrets, crime and even a… brothel? Join Lindsay and Bryan as they discuss the Garden Grove branch, bawdy houses, counterfeiting and more. Winter Quarters just got a whole …

E96: The Scandal at Garden Grove

Artificial Intelligence could possibly destroy humanity. How do we reduce that risk? R. W. Richey shows how Abraham 3 offers a practical solution.

E143: Could the Book of Abraham Save Us from AI?

Sunstone Magazine

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