We went to Sunstone Symposium in SLC, like we try to do every year! It was fantastic and a great place to meet good folks, visit old friends, and learn new things along the way. We discuss some of our favorite sessions and experiences from this year’s Mormon conference. Check out Sunstone and consider attending next year! https://sunstone.org/ Other appearances: Chris Shelton interviewed us in the beginning of a series on Mormonism on his Speaking of Cults series. He has had MANY different fasci...
Aug 06, 2025•2 hr 19 min
Your two favorite long winded podcasters are talking about word vomit and verbosity today, which is particularly fitting since today’s Sword of Laman segment covers the last part of the 2nd Givens book, The Crucible of Doubt. We then cleanse your palette with some good news out of Illinois. Enjoy! Sword of Laman: https://freshairarchive.org/segments/richard-dawkins-argument-atheism Happy News: Illinois keeps 988 lifeline for LGBTQIA+ youth even after national extension hangs up: https://khqa.com...
Jul 23, 2025•2 hr 33 min
The Church History Library of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints just dropped a revelatory bomb on the Mormon history community and we’re gunna talk about it. John Taylor (prophet 1880-1887) wrote a revelation saying that the new and everlasting covenant is actually “everlasting” and cannot be revoked or abrogated. However, the prophet after Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, wrote the First Manifesto bringing the church into compliance with the law of the land. However, plural marriages con...
Jul 09, 2025•2 hr 54 min
Let’s talk leaders. What qualities does a great leader have? What’s the difference between a good and great leader? And we talk about three leaders in history. In our Sword of Laman segment, we cover the next few chapters of the Givens’ book. And to clear your palette, we share a news article about a charitable move Bill Gates is making. Enjoy! Show Notes: What is Ethical Leadership and Why is it Important?: https://professional.dce.harvard.edu/blog/what-is-ethical-leadership-and-why-is-it-impor...
Jun 25, 2025•3 hr 52 min
Not only is it Pride month but it’s also been almost 10 years since the Mormon church issued their policy against the children of LGBTQIA+ parents. We take a look at the effects that policy had, the increasingly draconian measures the government is taking, and we read between the lines of Mormon church policies. We also look at the measures people are taking to improve the lives of LGBTQIA+. For Media of Great Price, we watched the lovely 2018 movie Rafiki about two lesbian women in Kenya. And w...
Jun 11, 2025•3 hr 35 min
We’re talking about the bane of the Q15’s existence! Doubts of the members. We discuss the terrible way they are dealt with which leads into the second installment of the Givens’ trilogy — The Crucible of Doubt — Reflections on the Quest for Faith. Following that we have some good news out of El Paso where the Consulate General of Mexico gave out free measles vaccines to children and adults in El Paso, Texas. Show Notes: Jana Riess: Who is leaving the LDS church? Eight key survey findings: https...
May 28, 2025•3 hr 24 min
Fasting! In all its forms and purposes. We take a wander through world religions to see how fasting plays a part in almost all of them. Mormon fasting is far less peculiar than we thought. Then a few episodes of South Park that provide wonderful commentary on fasting, the economy, and witch hunts. We round out with happy news about land being returned to Indigenous people and burn through listener mail that’s been piling up. Show notes: Fasting: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fasting Fasting: htt...
May 14, 2025•2 hr 31 min
We’re finishing The God Who Weeps by Terryl Givens and Fiona Givens. This is the first book in a trilogy of Mormon theology and we want to leave room in the year to get through it all. What does today hold for us? We start with a long discussion on the pre-mortal existence, transitioning into existence, then ascending to perfection thanks to Mormon beliefs. We didn’t realize until pretty late in the project that the 5 chapters of the book are structured around the different stages of the Mormon ...
Apr 30, 2025•2 hr 28 min
April 2025 General Conference Sunday Afternoon session. Patrons of the show get the appendix of Saturday Evening session at the end of the record. Ulisses Soares – Reverence; Moses and the burning bush; you-damn-kids talk; pray for guidance from the Holy Ghost for AI, don’t weaken your connection to God with AI!!! Michael Strong Q70 – Killed a kid on a bike during his mission, was really sad that he had to spend the night in jail until a ‘compassionate’ fellow missionary stayed with him Scott Wh...
Apr 16, 2025•1 hr 21 min
April 2025 General Conference Sunday Morning session. David A Bednar – Joseph Smith totally restored the one true church; and other sundry sacrament meeting talking points Steven Shumway Q70 – Do your callings, no matter how demanding they may be Tamara Runia FC YW GP – Cry for repentance; Jesus is excited every time he sees us on our knees Gerald Causse PB – Dude who controls the church’s wealth is moved by seeing people suffering in poverty Gerrit Gong – Jesus Wept; Easter, Palm Sunday, holy w...
Apr 16, 2025•58 min
April 2025 General Conference Saturday Afternoon session. Niel Anderson – Heinous abortion is evil diatribe, the church is extreme Conservative Steven Lund YM GP – Priesthood is awesome, men run everything in the church S Mark Palmer Q70 – Willow tree, cut up the fallen ones Sandino Roman Q70 – Drowning story Dale Renlund – A dumb 6-year-old thought the second coming was real Hans T Boom Q70 – Poor people donated their washing machine money to build a temple; Armies of Helaman Dieter Uchtdorf – ...
Apr 16, 2025•1 hr 30 min
April 2025 General Conference Saturday Morning session. Jeffrey R. Holland – Little boy bites a little girl, better teach her to forgive! Camille Johnson RS GP – Waiting to be healed filling spiritual holes Ronald Rasband – Church is DOING GREAT! Don’t check our numbers… Quentin L. Cook – Handcart companies and tragedy Ricardo Gemenez Q70 – Checklist Mormonism Henry Eyring – Zombie Jesus Other appearances: Chris Shelton interviewed us in the beginning of a series on Mormonism. Here’s the most re...
Apr 16, 2025•2 hr 10 min
It’s time to examine Joseph-Smith-polygamy skepticism. After the recent Journal of Mormon Polygamy conference, we decided to seriously consider the evidences used by this cohort of Mormon studies, leading us to understand that polygamy was a creation of Brigham Young and the Utah Mormon movement. After that we discuss O Brother, Where Art Thou? An Oddessy movie interweaving many storytelling archetypes and tropes. Then some good news about automotive subsidies coming in the form of tariffs. Show...
Apr 01, 2025•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 173
We have a guest for our main segment this time. Chris Shelton is a cult expert content creator who eats, breathes, and sleeps high-demand, coercive groups. We discuss everything from what makes a group a cult, how to identify them, is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints a cult, and proper ways to approach conversations about high-demand groups. Be sure to check out our series collaborating on Chris’s YouTube channel linked below. After that we discuss Don’t Look Up, a 2021 movie abou...
Mar 19, 2025•3 hr 46 min•Ep. 172
It’s time for part 2 of our Death Penalty series! Since this is a Mormon podcast, we first look into the history of Mormons and the death penalty. Joseph Smith and Brigham Young both ordered assassinations and fostered environments where random acts of violence became inevitable. The State of Deseret, Utah, has a comparatively bloody, theocratic history. Then we take a broader view of religion and capital punishment. After that, we look into the ethics/morals of capital punishment and give you a...
Mar 10, 2025•5 hr 29 min•Ep. 171
We begin our next series, this time on Capital Punishment. We start with the history of crimes throughout written history that justified the death penalty. Then we get into colonial history and how the death penalty was built into the foundations of racist America. Multiple Supreme Court rulings have shifted the landscape. We end with the recent EO attempting to expand the powers of the death penalty. Death Penalty survey #1: https://forms.gle/S31MTYbM8JNsikpe9 Show Notes: History of the death p...
Feb 19, 2025•2 hr 11 min
3 lawsuits against the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We discuss the class action suit, Judson et al v. LDS, the recently tossed case of Huntsman v. LDS, and the civil RICO suit Gaddy v. LDS. Where do they stand? How likely are they to prevail? What are the next steps? We go over them and discuss the implications and steps forward. Then we chat about the 2015 movie Spotlight about the Boston Globe journalists who reported on Cathlolic sex abuse in the early 2000s. We wrap with some...
Feb 05, 2025•2 hr 18 min•Ep. 169
It’s time to start a new year and new book for our long-form deep dive reviews of terrible Mormon books. And this one is… not terrible? The Givens present a form of Mormon theology which tries to “make sense of life” and we’re here for any Mormon theology that doesn’t include discrimination, sexism, and anything holding it over from its past. We dive into the introduction and first chapter of the book. But, what would a book review be without some due diligence about the authors? We spend the fi...
Jan 22, 2025•2 hr 43 min•Ep. 168
BYU and SLC anti-vice. We discuss the history of Charles A. Callis, his career in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and politics, and his final assignment before death, creating a sexual purity surveillance and counseling/therapy program for Mormons in the 40s. After his death, Spencer W. Kimball took the reins and vastly expanded the reach and purposes of the program, resulting in The Miracle of Forgiveness. Cleon Skousen was running raids on gay clubs and anybody else seen as com...
Jan 08, 2025•3 hr 24 min
You know the time of year! Next Live Show: Monday 12/30/24 https://www.youtube.com/@bryceblankenagel7707 Show Notes: Starship Troopers: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120201/?ref_=tttrv Movie: Book: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starship_Troopers# Robert A Heinlein: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_A._Heinlein#Politics District 9: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/District_9 The Island: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0399201/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_2_tt_7_nm_1_in_0_q_The%2520Island Viral by Robin Cook: Ro...
Dec 25, 2024•3 hr 34 min•Ep. 166
We are finally finishing up the Huge Niblet! We cover the last two chapters of Approaching Zion by Hugh Nibley followed by our own conclusions about Nibley and what he accomplished. We then finish with some happy news about an environmental lawsuit in North Carolina. Show notes Approaching Zion, by Hugh Nibley The Closing of the American Mind: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Closing_of_the_American_Mind Haldeman-Julius and their Little Blue Books: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Blue_Book...
Dec 11, 2024•2 hr 43 min
Here in the USA, it’s right before Thanksgiving and right after a bad election so it’s time to talk about Gaslighting. We discuss what it is, how to spot it, and how to fight it. For Media of Great Price, we talk about the 1944 movie Gaslight, which is where the term originates. We close out with happy news about a new way to reduce CO2 in the atmosphere. Enjoy! Show Notes: Gaslighting: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaslighting — https://health.clevelandclinic.org/gaslighting — https://themendpr...
Nov 27, 2024•2 hr 49 min
Welcome to another Huge Niblet episode. And yes, it’s a bit huge. (You saw the time stamp!) In the A segment, we discuss Hugh Nibley’s 1969 diatribe titled Science Fiction and the Gospel as well as the article that likely triggered his rage induced lecture. Then we move into our penultimate Approaching Zion discussion. Following that, we have some excellent news about Gen Z women leaving religion. Enjoy! Show Notes: https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/hugh-nibley/science-fiction-gospel/ Sword of Lama...
Nov 13, 2024•2 hr 40 min
It’s October and so you finally get a Halloween themed media episode to round out the month. First we talk about Robert Louis Stevenson and his book Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. We discuss some of the major themes as well as some of the many, many, MANY movie depictions that have been done of it. Then we talk about the incredibly amazing metal album by A Wake in Providence titled I Write to You, My Darling Decay. And we end with happy news about the increase in early voting. Enjoy and ...
Oct 30, 2024•3 hr 12 min
It’s that time of year again! We go through the entirety of General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Brad Wilcox was an idiot, Oaks was legalistic, and Bednar fawned over Ezra Taft Benson. But there were so many other talks that slipped through the cracks; that’s why we’re here. Yes it’s long, and yes it’s thorough. And now we don’t have to think about it for another 6 months! Are you registered to vote?! https://www.vote.org/ Links: Exponent II article by Jen Morri...
Oct 16, 2024•4 hr 8 min•Ep. 161
Fear! What is it? How does it work? How can it be used to control us? That’s our main segment, fear and mind control. Then we dive into the next installment of Huge Niblet and Approaching Zion for 2 essays/talks about fear and Nibley’s envisioned perfect society. We wrap with happy news about coal power taking another hit. Do you want to help set up and run our discord server?! Reach out to us on social media or email links below! Are you registered to vote?! https://www.vote.org/ Show Notes: ht...
Oct 02, 2024•3 hr 17 min•Ep. 160
Shannon talks about books again! We are back on the subject of dystopian literature today and we deliberate over the 1992 book Children of Men, written by PD James. We also watched the movie based on the book and we talk about the differences and similarities to each. After that we share some happy news about nuclear power. Enjoy! Show Notes: The Children of Men, by PD James: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Children_of_Men PD James: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P._D._James MOGP: Children of M...
Sep 18, 2024•3 hr 9 min
The weirdest chapter in Approaching Zion makes for a kinda’ weird A segment about intelligence and genius. We talk about the history of ranking intelligence and its influence on eugenics before discussing more modern conceptions of intelligence and genius from a nature AND nurture perspective. Then we get into Hugh Nibley’s eulogy of Donald Decker. It’s a standalone chapter, very different from every other chapter in Approaching Zion, and provides a wealth of interesting discussion, including wh...
Sep 04, 2024•2 hr 8 min
Yes, it’s time to dissect this horrific document telegraphing the downfall of American democracy. We examine bits and pieces to see what the cabal of Christian nationalists want to turn the nation into over the next conservative presidency. Then we chat about the Mike Judge movie Idiocracy and it’s prophetic warnings. We wrap with happy news about the Harris-Walz campaign polling quite well among voters. Show notes: Are you registered to vote?! https://www.vote.org/ Project 2025 links https://ww...
Aug 21, 2024•2 hr 52 min
Just that! We talk Sunstone because it’s the best Mormon Con around and we want to spread the good word! We discuss a few of our favorite sessions, some fascinating things we learned, and how Sunstone recharges our batteries in the Mormon studies space. Then we talk about Lego helping PTSD sufferers. We wrap with a brief chat about some changes we’re making to the Patreon page; long story short, now is a great time to sign up to financially support the podcast! Happy News: https://www.thecanary....
Aug 07, 2024•1 hr 20 min
