Mormon Stories Podcast

What happens when a devoted Mormon father and his daughter –who no longer believes –sit down for an honest, loving conversation?

In this powerful "bridgebuilding" episode, Matt and Katie Todd share their story of faith, doubt, and family. Matt is a lifelong Latter-day Saint. Katie began questioning the Church while attending American Heritage School in Utah County –right across from the Timpanogos Temple –and eventually lost her faith as a teenager.

They talk about growing up in Utah County as a Mormon, reading church history and the CES Letter (during class!), controversial topics –such as polygamy, the priesthood and temple ban, and the Book of Abraham. They also talk about what it’s like to lose your testimony as a teenager, the fear that parents feel when their kids leave the church, and how unconditional love can survive even in the face of deep disagreement.

This episode isn’t about winning arguments. It’s about trust, conscience, empathy, and learning how families can stay connected even when beliefs change.

Whether you’re a believer, a former believer, or somewhere in between, this conversation offers a rare and hopeful model for how to disagree without rejecting each other.
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YouTube

At Mormon Stories we explore, celebrate, and challenge Mormon culture through in-depth stories told by members and former members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well as scholars, authors, LDS apologists, and other professionals.  

Our overall mission is to: 
1. Facilitate informed consent amongst LDS Church members, investigators, and non-members regarding Mormon history, doctrine, and theology
2. Support Mormons (and members of other high-demand religions) who are experiencing a religious faith crisis
3. Promote healing, growth and community for those who choose to leave the LDS Church or other high demand religions

🤝Help us continue to deliver quality content by becoming a donor today
One-time or recurring donations: https://donorbox.org/mormon-stories?default_interval=m 
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mormonstories 
Venmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/mormonstories 
Paypal: https://paypal.me/mormonstories 

Join this channel to get access to perks:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCx6OgmoqJbOVRq-Lv1P7SzA/join

Our Platforms:
🌐Mormon Stories Blog: https://www.mormonstories.org/episodes 
🎙️Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mormonstories 
✳️Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4sDzk7dRjODTSEqzZKZJzk?si=148b0efc1ccc4404&nd=1 
🍎Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mormon-stories-lds/id312094772 
🖼️Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mormstories 
📱TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mormonstoriespodcast 
🎮Discord: https://discord.com/invite/kuX5p6yyjF 

Contact us:
📧 [email protected]
📬PO Box 171085, Salt Lake City, UT 84117

Welcome to Part 32 of our series with Dr. John G Turner, based on his new book Joseph Smith: The Rise and Fall of an American Prophet.

In this episode, Dr. Turner response directly to modern claims denying Joseph Smith’s plural marriage to Sarah Ann Whitney. We revisit Chapter 26 of his book, carefully examining the historical record surrounding the 1842 letter often associated with Sarah Ann Whitney, the language of sealing and “fulness of blessings,” the land deed, and the broader documentary context of Nauvoo-era plural marriage.

We also engage with alternative interpretations, including arguments that question whether the letter refers to polygamy at all. Drawing on Turner’s scholarship as well as Karen Hyatt’s analysis, this discussion models how historians weight evidence, examine primary sources, and wrestle with ambiguity. What constitutes strong documentation? How do historians interpret silence, denials, and later public statements? And how should we think about the broader context of Joseph Smith’s practice of plural marriage in Nauvoo?

Along the way, we explore the legal crisis surrounding the alleged assassination attempt on Lilburn Boggs, the Nauvoo writ of habeas corpus, the Sarah Ann Whitney Letter, Public denials and private sealings, sham marriages and the case of Joseph Kingsbury, documentation involving the Partridge sisters and why serious historical inquiry requires both skepticism and careful contextualization.

We invite you to read Chapter 26 alongside this discussion and let us know your thoughts in the comments. To read Karen Hyatt’s interpretation download her free book here: https://josephtoldthetruth.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Woe-Unto-You-Scribes.pdf

To watch Karen Hyatt’s video, “The Worst Love Letter… EVER!” click here.

Let us know in the comments how you interpret the evidence.

Please purchase the book ⁠here⁠.

To support this series please donate ⁠here⁠. One half of all donations will go to Dr. Turner for as long as he is participating in the series.
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YouTube
Show Notes

At Mormon Stories we explore, celebrate, and challenge Mormon culture through in-depth stories told by members and former members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well as scholars, authors, LDS apologists, and other professionals.  

Our overall mission is to: 
1. Facilitate informed consent amongst LDS Church members, investigators, and non-members regarding Mormon history, doctrine, and theology
2. Support Mormons (and members of other high-demand religions) who are experiencing a religious faith crisis
3. Promote healing, growth and community for those who choose to leave the LDS Church or other high demand religions

🤝Help us continue to deliver quality content by becoming a donor today
One-time or recurring donations: https://donorbox.org/mormon-stories?default_interval=m 
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mormonstories 
Venmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/mormonstories 
Paypal: https://paypal.me/mormonstories 

Join this channel to get access to perks:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCx6OgmoqJbOVRq-Lv1P7SzA/join

Our Platforms:
🌐Mormon Stories Blog: https://www.mormonstories.org/episodes 
🎙️Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mormonstories 
✳️Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4sDzk7dRjODTSEqzZKZJzk?si=148b0efc1ccc4404&nd=1 
🍎Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mormon-stories-lds/id312094772 
🖼️Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mormstories 
📱TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mormonstoriespodcast 
🎮Discord: https://discord.com/invite/kuX5p6yyjF 

Contact us:
📧 [email protected]
📬PO Box 171085, Salt Lake City, UT 84117

In this powerful and deeply personal episode, we sit down with David Archuleta to discuss his new memoir, Devout: Losing My Faith to Find Myself. David opens up about his life inside of Mormonism, his rise to fame on American Idol, his mission, his relationship with Church leaders, and the long, painful journey toward self-acceptance as a gay man.

This conversation goes far beyond headlines. David walks us through the internalized shame, religious scrupulosity, and obsessive righteousness that shaped his childhood and young adulthood. He reflects on the messages he received about masculinity, sexuality, and obedience –and how those teachings distorted his understanding of intimacy, trust, and self-worth.

We explore David’s experiences with Mormon apostles, including M. Russell Ballard, the November 2015 Policy, and the unsettling realization that Church leaders often spoke with certainty despite privately admitting they had no answers. David shares what it was like to be counseled to marry a woman, to suppress his identity, and to believe his faith could “heal” him –while quietly spiraling toward despair.

This episode also addresses growing up in a Mormon bubble, religious OCD, messages about LGBTQ people, chastity and sin, fame and unpaid church services, leaving the church and reclaiming agency and what happiness and God look like for him now.

David speaks with extraordinary honest, vulnerability, and compassion –not just for himself, but for the countless LGBTQ people still navigating high-demand religions.

Order his book here.
___________________

YouTube

At Mormon Stories we explore, celebrate, and challenge Mormon culture through in-depth stories told by members and former members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well as scholars, authors, LDS apologists, and other professionals.  

Our overall mission is to: 
1. Facilitate informed consent amongst LDS Church members, investigators, and non-members regarding Mormon history, doctrine, and theology
2. Support Mormons (and members of other high-demand religions) who are experiencing a religious faith crisis
3. Promote healing, growth and community for those who choose to leave the LDS Church or other high demand religions

🤝Help us continue to deliver quality content by becoming a donor today
One-time or recurring donations: https://donorbox.org/mormon-stories?default_interval=m 
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mormonstories 
Venmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/mormonstories 
Paypal: https://paypal.me/mormonstories 

Join this channel to get access to perks:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCx6OgmoqJbOVRq-Lv1P7SzA/join

Our Platforms:
🌐Mormon Stories Blog: https://www.mormonstories.org/episodes 
🎙️Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mormonstories 
✳️Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4sDzk7dRjODTSEqzZKZJzk?si=148b0efc1ccc4404&nd=1 
🍎Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mormon-stories-lds/id312094772 
🖼️Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mormstories 
📱TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mormonstoriespodcast 
🎮Discord: https://discord.com/invite/kuX5p6yyjF 

Contact us:
📧 [email protected]
📬PO Box 171085, Salt Lake City, UT 84117

In this special Valentine’s episode, we are joined by Kolby Reddish (a rando on the internet), Nemo the Mormon, Carah Burrell (from Nuancehoe), Julia Sanders from Analyzing Mormonism and John Dehlin for a conversation that might surprise you.

Yes - We are critics of Mormonism.
Yes - We’ve experienced pain, disillusionment, and deep deconstruction.
And yet… we can hold two different truths at once.

In this episode, we model something that feels almost taboo in exMormon spaces: expressing gratitude for the things Mormonism gave us –while still being honest about its harm. 

In this episode we discuss:
- Rituals that shaped our identities
- Community and why it’s hard to leave
- Awe, wonder, and valuing the body
- Agency and free will as an act of faith
- Why compassion and justice often lead people OUT of the church
- Whether we wish to destroy the church or make it better

There are so many good people inside the Mormon church. The people are often beautiful while the system is complicated. As Richard Rohr once said: “Nobody does first half of life better than Mormons” –and we all share deep gratitude for that first half. 

This episode does not erase the negative things about the church. It doesn’t minimize harm. But it DOES ask whether we can be mature enough to acknowledge the good without surrendering our integrity.

Please purchase the book ⁠here⁠.

To support this series please donate ⁠here⁠. One half of all donations will go to Dr. Turner for as long as he is participating in the series.
___________________

YouTube
Show Notes

At Mormon Stories we explore, celebrate, and challenge Mormon culture through in-depth stories told by members and former members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well as scholars, authors, LDS apologists, and other professionals.  

Our overall mission is to: 
1. Facilitate informed consent amongst LDS Church members, investigators, and non-members regarding Mormon history, doctrine, and theology
2. Support Mormons (and members of other high-demand religions) who are experiencing a religious faith crisis
3. Promote healing, growth and community for those who choose to leave the LDS Church or other high demand religions

🤝Help us continue to deliver quality content by becoming a donor today
One-time or recurring donations: https://donorbox.org/mormon-stories?default_interval=m 
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mormonstories 
Venmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/mormonstories 
Paypal: https://paypal.me/mormonstories 

Join this channel to get access to perks:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCx6OgmoqJbOVRq-Lv1P7SzA/join

Our Platforms:
🌐Mormon Stories Blog: https://www.mormonstories.org/episodes 
🎙️Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mormonstories 
✳️Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4sDzk7dRjODTSEqzZKZJzk?si=148b0efc1ccc4404&nd=1 
🍎Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mormon-stories-lds/id312094772 
🖼️Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mormstories 
📱TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mormonstoriespodcast 
🎮Discord: https://discord.com/invite/kuX5p6yyjF 

Contact us:
📧 [email protected]
📬PO Box 171085, Salt Lake City, UT 84117

Welcome to Part 31 in our ongoing series with Dr. John Turner, based on his new book Joseph Smith: The Rise and Fall of an American Prophet.

Today we are diving into Chapter 31, “World on Fire,” and the explosive years 1842-1843 in Nauvoo –a period marked by scandal, secrecy, political pressure, and deep internal crisis.

In this episode we cover the rise and fall of John C. Bennett and the “Spiritual Wifery” scandal. We also discuss the attempted assassination of Lilburn Boggs and the role of Porter Rockwell. We also cover aspects of polygamy, namely the Nancy Rigdon controversy and Joseph Smith’s failed proposal, the stories of Sarah Pratt and Sarah Ann Whitney (including the letter sent to the Whitneys in Joseph Smith’s own handwriting with specific instructions to burn the letter), and Emma Smith and the growing concerns in the Relief Society as well as Nauvoo at large.

We also examine how Nauvoo struggled to manage these crises, how accusations and denials shaped public perception, and why John Turner calls this moment a true “world on fire.”

If you’d like to help keep this project going, please consider donating to support this series. Your support makes long-form, in-depth historical discussion like this possible!

Please purchase the book ⁠here⁠.

To support this series please donate ⁠here⁠. One half of all donations will go to Dr. Turner for as long as he is participating in the series.
___________________

YouTube

At Mormon Stories we explore, celebrate, and challenge Mormon culture through in-depth stories told by members and former members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well as scholars, authors, LDS apologists, and other professionals.  

Our overall mission is to: 
1. Facilitate informed consent amongst LDS Church members, investigators, and non-members regarding Mormon history, doctrine, and theology
2. Support Mormons (and members of other high-demand religions) who are experiencing a religious faith crisis
3. Promote healing, growth and community for those who choose to leave the LDS Church or other high demand religions

🤝Help us continue to deliver quality content by becoming a donor today
One-time or recurring donations: https://donorbox.org/mormon-stories?default_interval=m 
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mormonstories 
Venmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/mormonstories 
Paypal: https://paypal.me/mormonstories 

Join this channel to get access to perks:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCx6OgmoqJbOVRq-Lv1P7SzA/join

Our Platforms:
🌐Mormon Stories Blog: https://www.mormonstories.org/episodes 
🎙️Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mormonstories 
✳️Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4sDzk7dRjODTSEqzZKZJzk?si=148b0efc1ccc4404&nd=1 
🍎Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mormon-stories-lds/id312094772 
🖼️Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mormstories 
📱TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mormonstoriespodcast 
🎮Discord: https://discord.com/invite/kuX5p6yyjF 

Contact us:
📧 [email protected]
📬PO Box 171085, Salt Lake City, UT 84117