Sunstone Magazine

Follow Sunstone Magazine
Share on
Copy link to clipboard

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

Sunstone Magazine


    • May 21, 2025 LATEST EPISODE
    • weekly NEW EPISODES
    • 58m AVG DURATION
    • 524 EPISODES


    Search for episodes from Sunstone Magazine with a specific topic:

    Latest episodes from Sunstone Magazine

    Episode 148: The Gathering

    Play Episode Listen Later May 21, 2025


    Mormonism has always dreamed big and in this episode, we dive into one of its boldest and most disastrous dreams: the great gathering of Zion. Lindsay and Bryan pull apart the myth and the machinery behind Brigham Young's plan to build a literal Kingdom of God in the American West, fueled by prophecies, poverty, and, …

    E199: How I Made It Through Life Without Missing a Single Guilt Trip.

    Play Episode Listen Later May 19, 2025


    Being a single, 25-year-old Mormon female is a tough life. But Dorothy Black makes it into a stand-up comedy routine in this episode of the Sunstone Podcast.  

    Episode 147: The Tragic Tale of Eleanor McLean

    Play Episode Listen Later May 1, 2025


    Before Mountain Meadows, there was blood in Arkansas. This is the wild, tragic, and shockingly true story of the Mormon apostle murdered over a love triangle, the woman caught in the crossfire, and the ripple effect that helped ignite one of the darkest moments in American frontier history. SHOWNOTES: Eleanor McLean and the Murder of …

    E198: Relief Society Baby.

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 28, 2025


    For Heather Sundahl, Relief Society was the “monster child that sucked up my mom.” What was it like to be the daughter of the most powerful woman in the stake—who couldn’t find time to read to her?

    E197: The Indomitable Raftsman of Mormonism.

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 17, 2025


    In 1954, California LDS bishop Devere Baker set out to prove that Lehi could have sailed from the Persian Gulf to Guatemala—by sailing his own raft, which he called the Lehi. Samuel Taylor tells about Baker’s 25-year endeavor—and how he went through six Lehis in the process.

    Episode 146: Runaway Judges with John Dinger

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 15, 2025


    In this episode, legal historian John Dinger joins us to uncover the little-known world of rogue probate judges in frontier Utah. These weren't your average courtroom clerks. Mormons wielded sweeping powers, defied federal authority, and turned probate courts into parallel governments under Brigham Young's theocracy. What happens when local law outruns the Constitution? Tune in …

    E196: You Can Go Home Again. But Do You Want To?

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 3, 2025


    How much can we heal from the wounds our religious community gave us? Stephen Carter explores the “hero cycle” story structure to find out.

    Episode 145: Runaway Officials

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 2, 2025


    In this episode, Lindsay and Bryan dive into one of the most violent and outrageous chapters of early Mormon history: the “Runaway Officials” scandal. When federal appointees tried to enforce U.S. law in Utah Territory, they faced threats, beatings, and sabotage from a theocratic regime that ran more like a mafia than a government. From …

    Episode 144: Mail Bag: Malissa Lott

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 20, 2025


    Once again, through no action or righteousness on their part, another great story landed in the lap of Lindsay and Bryan. That's right, it's mailbag time again! A friend of a listener was going through some papers of her mother's and found an affidavit from a woman claiming to be a plural wife of Joseph …

    E195: An Insider’s Look at the Baseball Baptisms in Britain.

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 18, 2025


    The Baseball Baptism era is a controversial one in LDS history. Richard Mavin gives a first-hand account of how it all happened in Britain and how his mission experience both thrilled and haunted him for the rest of his life.

    E194: The Baseball Baptism Era.

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 12, 2025


    Probably the most controversial period of Mormon missionary history was from about 1960–1962 when more than 100,000 boys were baptized into the LDS Church worldwide—sometimes without realizing it. They were on a baseball field one moment and being baptized the next. In this episode, D. Michael Quinn tells the story of the Baseball Baptism era …

    Episode 143: MAIL BAG

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 27, 2025


    We love our fan mail! Especially when they contain juicy historical details, which is why we’re introducing MAIL BAG EPISODES, where we sometimes share those tidbits on an episode. Lindsay and Bryan usually find enough rabbit holes on their own but sometimes they get pushed into them without warning (don't worry, it's less dangerous than …

    E193: Should We Toss Testimony Meeting?

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 18, 2025


    LDS testimony meetings are usually tedious affairs. Yet we have them every month. Why? Anthropologist David Knowlton compares testimony meeting with similar rituals worldwide to see if it’s doing its job—or if we should toss it.

    Episode 142: Wild Bill Hickman

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 12, 2025


    In this episode, we delve into the life of one of the most controversial and complex figures of the American West: William Adams “Wild Bill” Hickman, known as “Brigham's Destroying Angel.” Hickman's life was a paradox: he was a devoted father to 35 children, a trusted enforcer for Mormon leaders, and a self-proclaimed murderer of …

    E192: Annalee Skarin: Excommunicated then Translated—Yes, Like Enoch.

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 6, 2025


    In 1948, Annalee Skarin had just published a book she said was written by the power of God. She was very soon excommunicated from the LDS Church. But then a few days later, eyewitnesses said she was translated. She wrote eight more books after that, becoming nationally famous. In this episode, Samuel W. Taylor and …

    Episode 141: The Utah War, part two

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 29, 2025


    Join Lindsay and Bryan as they dive into the explosive history of the Utah War for part two of our Utah War series. We explore the complex interplay of guerrilla tactics, federal overreach, and theocratic resistance that defined this strange conflict. From Brigham Young's bold proclamations to Porter Rockwell's psychological warfare, the duo unpacks how …

    E191: How to Spot an Unorthodox BYU Professor.

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 22, 2025


    Clark Gilbert is tightening the orthodoxy clamps at BYU, just like Ernest Wilkinson did in the 1950s and 60s. Is this the best way to make BYU students into lifelong Latter-day Saints? Stephen Carter compares Wilkinson’s BYU with Gilbert’s and then talks about his own experience with two BYU professors who kept him engaged with …

    Episode 140: The Utah War, part one

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 17, 2025


    Dive into the chaotic and fascinating history of the Utah War with Lindsay and Bryan. They’ll unravel how political paranoia, religious zeal, and national stereotypes collided in the 1850s, leading to guerrilla warfare, fiery rhetoric from Brigham Young, and nearly one-third of the U.S. Army marching into Utah Territory. Was it truly a “bloodless war”? …

    E190: Camping at the Edge of Excommunication.

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 14, 2025


    Sterling M. McMurrin had only been a seminary teacher for two years before the president of the Church, Heber J. Grant, wanted to fire him. And he camped at the edge of excommunication for the rest of his life. McMurrin recalls these turbulent, and comic, years in this episode.

    E189: Three Kinds of Believers.

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 6, 2025


    Much is made in the LDS Church about how David Whitmer, one of the Three Witnesses of the Book of Mormon, never recanted his testimony, even though he left the Church. What they don't tell you is that it was precisely his testimony of the Book of Mormon that drove him out. In this episode, …

    Episode 139: The History of the Exponent II

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 1, 2025


    The Sunstone Mormon History Podcast recently took off their “regular chronology” hat for a minute and put on the “fantastic new book” hat (it's hot pink, thanks for asking). Lindsay and Bryan sat down with Katie Ludlow Rich and Heather Sundahl—authors of “50 Years of Exponent II” (published by Signature Books)—to talk about their book. …

    Episode 138: Mormon Castrations and Warren Snow

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 20, 2024


    In this gripping episode, Bryan and Lindsay delve into the controversial rumors of punitive castrations carried out by Mormon elders, focusing on figures like Bishop Warren Snow. They examine the source materials, weighing the evidence and context behind these shocking claims. Was this zealotry, justice, or something else entirely? Join the discussion as they bring …

    E188: “Heretic” and the War Within Mormonism.

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 9, 2024


    In the movie “Heretic,” Mr. Reed is the logical conclusion of many parts of Mormonism. And they threaten to destroy Mormonism’s best parts. Join Stephen Carter on a deep dive into Heretic’s multi-faceted story.

    Episode 137: Mormon Reformation, part three

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 5, 2024


    In Part Three of our series on the Mormon Reformation, we dive into the most harrowing chapter yet. This episode uncovers the brutal measures Mormons took against apostates and outsiders during this period of fiery zeal, exploring the violent and gory tactics used to enforce loyalty and obedience. We also delve into the dark side …

    E187: Four Looks at My Father.

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 27, 2024


    What happens when you grow apart politically from a parent? In this episode, Bryan Waterman looks back over the years he spent with his father—both at home and at school—and how they learned to live together.

    E186: The Folklore of Mormon Missionaries.

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 14, 2024


    William A. Wilson and John B. Harris spent years gathering missionary folklore—everything from greenie initiation stories to encounters with the Devil. Whether the stories are true or not, Wilson shows in this episode what they reveal about the inner lives of missionaries.

    Episode 136: Mormon Reformation, part two

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 13, 2024


    In part two of our deep dive into the Mormon Reformation, Lindsay and Bryan explore how the movement intensified under the leadership of Jedediah Morgan Grant, Brigham Young, and Heber C. Kimball. As the push for purity reached its peak, controversial doctrines like blood atonement and plural marriage took center stage, along with the surprising …

    Episode 135: Mormon Reformation, part one

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 30, 2024


      In this episode, Lindsay and Bryan wrap up the story of Jedediah Morgan Grant, the “Sledgehammer of Mormonism,” as they dive into the final chapter of his life. From his rise to prominence in Salt Lake City as mayor and Brigham Young's right-hand man, to his fiery leadership in the intense spiritual revival known …

    E185: Can You Avoid Organizational Abuse in the Church?

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 30, 2024


    People need organizations to help us fulfill our potential. However, organizations are never entirely safe. In this episode, J. Bonner Ritchie explores how the LDS Church functions and how members can transcend its inherent organizational dangers.

    E184: The Afterlife: A Celestial Six-pack or a Ten-mile Gut?

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 22, 2024


    Stephen Carter takes you on a tour of various afterlife theologies—from Ancient Greek to LDS to New Age—to see if he can believe in one.

    Episode 134: Before They Were Famous: Jedediah Grant

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 15, 2024


    Join hosts Lindsay and Bryan as they smash into the life and legacy of one of Mormonism's most fiery and controversial figures: Jedediah Morgan Grant, also known as “Brigham's Sledgehammer.” Buckle up; it's about to get heavy… SHOWNOTES: Mormon Thunder: A Documentary History of Jedediah Morgan Grant

    E183: Could Feminism Have Saved the Nephites?

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 3, 2024


    What should we make of the astonishing lack of females in the Book of Mormon? Carol Lynn Pearson says that it points to a lesson the Nephites never learned—one that likely contributed to their destruction.

    Episode 133: The Black Hawk War

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 3, 2024


    Join Lindsay as she sits down with Phillip B. Gottfredson to delve into one of the most significant yet often overlooked chapters in Utah’s history—the Black Hawk War of 1865. In this gripping conversation, they explore the complex and brutal conflict that erupted between Mormon settlers and Native American tribes, led by the Ute war …

    Episode 132: Fountain Green and the Mormons

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 18, 2024


    Welcome to our Scandinavian Summer Smorgesbord, where we serve up hot takes on cold historical facts! In this episode, we finally let Lindsay dig into her family roots—think less Ancestry.com and more “My Grandparents Were the Cigarette-Dispensing Rebels of Fountain Green.” Bryan tries (and fails) to dodge another round of Scandinavian sagas, but Lindsay's not …

    E182: The Search for God in Intentional Community.

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 17, 2024


    In 1972, Marylee Mitcham started a quasi-monastic Catholic community, where she lived for ten years. Later, when she joined the LDS Church, she learned that one of her ancestors had started a branch of the United Order in early Utah. Mitcham narrates her fascinating religious history in this episode.

    E181: Hugh Nibley: The Man and the Legend.

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 13, 2024


    LDS scholar Hugh Nibley became a legend in his own time. But how many of the legends were real and how many were fantasies? In this episode, Boyd Petersen digs into the facts behind the stories.

    Episode 131: The Scandinavian Mission

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 4, 2024


    Dive into the fascinating blend of history and personal stories in the latest episode of the SMHP podcast! Lindsay and Bryan take a deep, heartfelt dive into the rich tapestry of Mormonism’s Scandinavian past, exploring Lindsay’s connection to her ancestors and the unique impact of Danish Mormon migration to Utah as well as the Scandinavian …

    E180: Is Conversion a Type of Trauma?

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 27, 2024


    Religious conversion and trauma have very similar structures, but with one important difference. In this episode, Stephen Carter draws on Adam Phillips, Julie Hanks, and Prentis Hemphill to explore what happens when people enter a religion, and what happens when they leave.  

    Episode 130: Before They Were Famous: Charles C. Rich

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 22, 2024


    Join Bryan and Lindsay for another episode of Before They Were Famous! This time, starring tall-guy and early Latter-day Saint leader, Charles Coulson Rich. SHOWNOTES: Become a Sunstone History Podcast recurring donor Charles C. Rich: Mormon General and Western Frontiersman by Leonard Arrington

    rich leonard arrington
    Episode 129: Dr. Matt Harris, Second Class Saints

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 9, 2024


      The SMHP recently sat down with Dr. Matt Harris to discuss his hotly-awaited new book “Second-Class Saints: Black Mormons and the Struggle for Racial Equality” (Oxford University Press). Harris’s book is full of fascinating new sources and fresh insights into the rise and fall of the temple and priesthood ban. Check out the conversation! …

    E179: Why Korihor Needed a Good Physical Therapist.

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 27, 2024


    Is the story of Korihor the story of a missed opportunity? In the Book of Mormon, an anti-Christ named Korhior is struck dumb by Alma using the power of God. Could there have been a neurological contributor to Korihor’s sudden loss of speech? But even more importantly, could Korihor have been rehabilitated, physically and spiritually, …

    Episode 128: Before They Were Famous: Amasa Lyman

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 19, 2024


    Ever wondered what Amasa Lyman was up to before he became the 13th apostle of the LDS Church? What’s that? You’ve never heard of a 13th apostle before? Join Bryan and Lindsay as we rewind the clock to uncover the surprising and untold early life of Amasa Lyman. Before he was the (13th) apostle of …

    Episode 127: The Walker War, part two

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 2, 2024


      Join Lindsay and Bryan as they interview historian Ryan Wimmer about the Walker War that involved the Mormons, Utes, and other native bands in the 1850s. SHOWNOTES: Register for the Sunstone Summer Symposium Become a Sunstone History Podcast recurring donor The Walker War Reconsidered Ryan Elwood Wimmer Brigham Young University – Provo Brigham Young …

    E177: How Caffeine Survived the Word of Wisdom.

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 19, 2024


    A Mormon can't get a temple recommend if they drink coffee or black tea, but they can get one if they consume energy drinks that have five times as much caffeine as either. Launching from Michael Pollan's book “Caffeine: How Caffeine Created the Modern World,” Stephen Carter explores the strange limbo caffeine has occupied in …

    Episode 126: The Walker War, part one

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 13, 2024


    Join Bryan and Lindsay as they discuss the history of the war the Mormons declared on the Ute tribe (and all other tribal bands in Utah) during the 1850’s. These conflicts have been dubbed, “The Walker War,” after Ute Chief Walkara (or Walker). What really happened and why? Tune in to find out. SHOWNOTES: Register …

    E176: The Badness of Goodness.

    Play Episode Listen Later May 31, 2024


    “When virtues run wild, catastrophe reigns.” In this episode, John Durham Peters reveals the dangers of Mormon perfectionism and suggests a new approach.

    Episode 125: Our Favorite Time Periods in History; a chat

    Play Episode Listen Later May 30, 2024


    Join Lindsay and Bryan for an audio version of their Youtube Chat where they discuss their favorite time periods in Mormon history. SHOWNOTES: Become a recurring donor and support this podcast!

    E175: The World Beyond the Valley.

    Play Episode Listen Later May 21, 2024


    Esther Peterson was one of the most beloved and effective activists of the 20th century, working with John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Jimmy Carter to improve women’s rights in the United States. And she grew up Mormon in Provo, Utah. In this episode, Esther talks about how her Mormon upbringing affected her activism—both …

    E174: One of These Gods is Not Like the Other.

    Play Episode Listen Later May 15, 2024


    If the Christian God and the Mormon God got into a fight, who would win? In this episode, S. Richard Bellrock shows just just how unfair the fight would be.

    Episode 124: The Indian Slave Trade

    Play Episode Listen Later May 14, 2024


      Join Lindsay and Bryan as they discuss the 19th century economies of indigenous trafficking in the American west, human enslavement and abuse and how Mormons contributed and impacted it. SHOWNOTES: “Redeeming” the Indian: The Enslavement of Indian Children in New Mexico and Utah by Sondra Jones Bancroft's History of Utah Utah Indians and the …

    Episode 123: The Gold Mission

    Play Episode Listen Later May 2, 2024


    Did you know that Brigham Young called people on official church missions to pan for filthy lucre? Come learn about the Gold Mission with Lindsay and Bryan. SHOWNOTES: The Mormon Gold-Mining Mission of 1849 by Eugene Campbell Bancroft's history of Utah Kenneth Owens, Gold Rush Saints: California Mormons and the Great Rush for Riches Kenneth …

    Claim Sunstone Magazine

    In order to claim this podcast we'll send an email to with a verification link. Simply click the link and you will be able to edit tags, request a refresh, and other features to take control of your podcast page!

    Claim Cancel