Podcast appearances and mentions of james mclachlan

In The Myth of Sisyphus, Albert Camus wrote that "there is only one truly serious philosophical problem and that is suicide." In this week's philosophical news recap, Nathan and Taylor discuss death, dying, and the rise of identity based persecution in the context of existential philosophy. Trigger warning that this episode covers issues related to genocide, suicide, and sexual abuse. If you'd like more information about Camus and/or existential philosophy, see my YouTube channel, BYTE-GEIST, where I have a variety of introductory videos on the topic. Or, check out my interviews with expert existentialist Dr. James McLachlan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tillich Today welcomes back James McLachlan to talk all things existential philosophy. We discuss existentialist perspective on Marxism, philosophical arguments regarding the use of violence, and the historic beef between Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus.

Curious about how Queensland, Australia's biotech sector can help you uncover new opportunities for international collaboration and growth? In this episode, James Zanewicz, JD, LLM, RTTP, speaks with Alita Singer, Investment Director at Trade and Investment Queensland in New York, and David Brown, Director of Research Partnerships and Corporate Innovation for North America. They discuss the unique role of Trade and Investment Queensland (TIQ) in driving innovation, facilitating partnerships, and supporting biotech companies across Australia and the world. In this episode, you'll learn: How TIQ helps Queensland biotech innovators access global markets and overcome international hurdles. Key similarities between Queensland and the Gulf South in areas like tropical medicine, infectious diseases, and regional health challenges. Why international collaborations are vital for advancing biotech, and how Queensland's cost-effective clinical trials are attracting global partners. Tune in to discover how TIQ is creating opportunities for innovation and collaboration in biotech on a global scale! Links: Connect with Alita Singer and David Brown, and learn more about Trade and Investment Queensland. Connect with James Zanewicz, JD, LLM, RTTP and learn about Tulane Medicine Business Development and the School of Medicine. Check out MTEC, The Bullpen, Sanofi, ResApp Health, Vaxxas, Gardasil, and The AAIH. Learn about the The University of Queensland's partnerships with Ochsner Health and Emory University. Learn more about Griffith University and Queensland University of Technology. Check out our episode on T-Vant with Lisa Morici, PhD, and James McLachlan, PhD. Check out BIO on the BAYOU and make plans to attend October 28 & 29, 2025. Learn more about BIO from the BAYOU - the podcast. Bio from the Bayou is a podcast that explores biotech innovation, business development, and healthcare outcomes in New Orleans & The Gulf South, connecting biotech companies, investors, and key opinion leaders to advance medicine, technology, and startup opportunities in the region.

Tillich Today has returned after a long hiatus! Our first episode features Dr. James McLachlan, a professor at Western Carolina University who specializes in theology and philosophy of religion. We talk about French existentialism, literature, and how well Robert Pattison puts on an Appalachian accent.

Delve into the groundbreaking world of novel vaccine adjuvants with guests Lisa Morici, PhD, Professor of Microbiology, and James McLachlan, PhD, Associate Professor of Immunology, who's labs collaborate at the Tulane University School of Medicine. This episode spotlights their innovative vaccine adjuvant, T-Vant, detailing its conception, evolution, and why it holds a transformative edge over existing adjuvants. (And yes, vaccine companies – it IS available to license and partner!) Discussion extends to the current vaccine landscape, exploring shifts, trends, and the critical role of advanced adjuvants like T-Vant. Guiding us through this informative journey is our frequent (and popular) host, Elaine Hamm, PhD.

Vaccine adjuvants are integral to for vaccines to generate an immune response. On this episode, Dr. Lisa Morici and Dr. James McLachlan discuss their new vaccine adjuvant, T-Vant, and its differences from other adjuvants. They also walk through the history and benefits of their adjuvant's outer membrane vesicle technology and the landscape of vaccines in the present day. Episode hosted by Dr. Elaine Hamm.

Researchers are discovering that COVID-19 antibodies can vanish in as little as two months after infection. What does that mean for those who’ve recovered and efforts to find a vaccine? A discussion with virologist Bob Garry and immunologist James McLachlan about what we’ve learned about antibodies and why the innate immune system may be more important in fighting off the virus than first realized. 

Show description: Part 4 of our lecture series with Charles R. Harrell, author of This is My Doctrine: The Development of Mormon Theology. In this final installment, we discuss the developing theology of premortal existence within Mormonism examining early Christian and Second Great Awakening thought and Joseph Smith's teachings of spirit creation and spirit birth.Part 1 - What is Doctrine?Part 2 - Joseph Smith and RestorationPart 3 - The GodheadPart 4 - Premortal Existence Charles R. Harrell is a retired associate professor in Brigham Young University’s School of Technology. He is also the founder and director of ProModel Corporation, which is a leading provider of simulation software. In addition to his professional activities, Charles is an ardent theological hobbyist and has published articles on Mormon theology in BYU Studies, The Encyclopedia of Mormonism, and Studies in the Scriptures. He also taught seminary and institute for many years. Charles and his wife, Yvonne, are the parents of five children and live in Orem, Utah   This is My Doctrine: The Development of Mormon TheologyBy Charles R. Harrell “Succeeds in providing a non-apologetic yet sympathetic interpretation of Mormon doctrine, warts and all.” —James McLachlan, Professor of Philosophy and Religion at Western Carolina University Learn More Download Subscribe in Pocket Casts       Now available through Spotify!    

Show description: Part 3 of our lecture series with Charles R. Harrell, author of This is My Doctrine: The Development of Mormon Theology. In this installment, we discuss the developing theology of Godhead within Mormonism examining shifts through Joseph Smith's scriptural output as well as later developments in Utah under Brigham Young.Part 1 - What is Doctrine?Part 2 - Joseph Smith and RestorationPart 3 - The GodheadPart 4 - Premortal Existence Charles R. Harrell is a retired associate professor in Brigham Young University’s School of Technology. He is also the founder and director of ProModel Corporation, which is a leading provider of simulation software. In addition to his professional activities, Charles is an ardent theological hobbyist and has published articles on Mormon theology in BYU Studies, The Encyclopedia of Mormonism, and Studies in the Scriptures. He also taught seminary and institute for many years. Charles and his wife, Yvonne, are the parents of five children and live in Orem, Utah   This is My Doctrine: The Development of Mormon TheologyBy Charles R. Harrell “Succeeds in providing a non-apologetic yet sympathetic interpretation of Mormon doctrine, warts and all.” —James McLachlan, Professor of Philosophy and Religion at Western Carolina University Learn More Download Subscribe in Pocket Casts       Now available through Spotify!    

Show description: Part 2 of our lecture series with Charles R. Harrell, author of This is My Doctrine: The Development of Mormon Theology. In this installment, we discuss Joseph Smith's theology of restoration, examine the use of restoration in the Old and New Testaments, and compare how restoration was understood among evangelical, Universalist, and Christian Primitivist movements during the Second Great Awakening.Part 1 - What is Doctrine?Part 2 - Joseph Smith and RestorationPart 3 - The GodheadPart 4 - Premortal Existence Charles R. Harrell is a retired associate professor in Brigham Young University’s School of Technology. He is also the founder and director of ProModel Corporation, which is a leading provider of simulation software. In addition to his professional activities, Charles is an ardent theological hobbyist and has published articles on Mormon theology in BYU Studies, The Encyclopedia of Mormonism, and Studies in the Scriptures. He also taught seminary and institute for many years. Charles and his wife, Yvonne, are the parents of five children and live in Orem, Utah   This is My Doctrine: The Development of Mormon TheologyBy Charles R. Harrell “Succeeds in providing a non-apologetic yet sympathetic interpretation of Mormon doctrine, warts and all.” —James McLachlan, Professor of Philosophy and Religion at Western Carolina University Learn More Download Subscribe in Pocket Casts       Now available through Spotify!    

Show description: Coming to you via Facebook Live! We are pleased to bring you a lecture series with Charles R. Harrell, author of This is My Doctrine: The Development of Mormon Theology. In this four-part live series, we'll be discussing the nature of doctrine as well as Joseph Smith's theology of restoration, the Godhead, and premortal existence.Part 1 - What is Doctrine?Part 2 - Joseph Smith and RestorationPart 3 - The GodheadPart 4 - Premortal Existence Charles R. Harrell is a retired associate professor in Brigham Young University’s School of Technology. He is also the founder and director of ProModel Corporation, which is a leading provider of simulation software. In addition to his professional activities, Charles is an ardent theological hobbyist and has published articles on Mormon theology in BYU Studies, The Encyclopedia of Mormonism, and Studies in the Scriptures. He also taught seminary and institute for many years. Charles and his wife, Yvonne, are the parents of five children and live in Orem, Utah   This is My Doctrine: The Development of Mormon TheologyBy Charles R. Harrell “Succeeds in providing a non-apologetic yet sympathetic interpretation of Mormon doctrine, warts and all.” —James McLachlan, Professor of Philosophy and Religion at Western Carolina University Learn More Download Subscribe in Pocket Casts       Now available through Spotify!    

On this episode, we chat with James McLachlan, co-editor of Element: The Journal for the Society of Mormon Philosophy and Theology (SMPT). We discuss James's background, give a basic primer on a few schools of thought within philosophy and their relationship to Mormonism. We also discuss the origins of SMPT, the most recent issue of Element, and the upcoming 2019 SMPT Annual Meeting taking place March 14-17 at the University of Utah. Click here for details about the 2019 SMPT Annual Meeting. Subscribe through your podcast app by searching for the Greg Kofford Books Authorcast or watch the full interview at YouTube. Be sure to subscribe to our channel.   Element: The Journal for the Society of Mormon Philosophy and TheologyVolume 8, Issue 1$9.95 paperback       Download Subscribe in Pocket Casts           

John B. Cobb is one of the world's most renowned theologians and philosophers, noted especially for his Christological pluralism and work across many disciplines, and lately in major ways in ecological sustainability circles. His writing and thinking are marvelously clear and powerful, continuing even today at age 92. We are thrilled that just last week he agreed to sit down with Mormon Matters host Dan Wotherspoon and great friend of the show and frequent panelist James McLachlan for a brief discussion of his life and the development of his thought, and then a much more extensive focus on his latest book, Jesus' Abba: The God Who Has Not Failed.  Jesus consistently referred to God the Father by the Aramaic term, "Abba," which is very intimate, indicating an unconditionally loving stance from the father to the child. Shortly after Jesus' death, Christianity began to employ monarchial titles to God--Lord, King, King of Kings, etc.--emphasizing God's sovereignty and power. This shift, coupled with all the wrong turns brought on by modernity (individualism, industrialization, professionalization, rationalization, pervasive technologies), have all but eliminated the use and feel of "Abba" in today's world. For Cobb, Jesus's "Abba" understanding led him to begin to look at others in the world through God's eyes. Abba is a God who loves ALL of us, not just those on "our" side. As such, we must meet the world with radical love; we must love even our enemies. God loves even sinners. Living out of this consciousness, Jesus rejected the compromises involved in accommodation of Roman rule in Palestine, but he likewise rejected the path of revolt, rightly predicting what eventually happened in Jerusalem when that strategy was tried. Instead, Jesus lived out a "third" option. And he lived it right on through to the cross. It was so powerful, many people were moved then, and throughout history (think of someone like St. Francis of Assisi), and even more recently (Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr., along with many, many Christians who have an Abba understanding of God). They live powerfully even as they live counter-culturally. In them, and should society shift its values away from money, power, and all the other distractions and selfishness of this world, Abba God has not failed. Tune in to hear from this most powerful thinker who has been and is changing the world person by person, book by book and whose work and influence is growing in places as far away as China and is inspiring great movements in ecological activism. It's a wonderful treat to have him engaging us in Mormonism.

For many who find themselves in the middle of a faith crisis, casting about for new footing and ways of orienting to life and others, one of largest stumbling blocks is often their view of God. All of a sudden, as they find themselves far more aware of the confusion that marks life on earth, of the horrendous suffering experienced by so many, or the multitude of paths and choices we all must face, the idea of an omnipotent God who is also loving begins to crack. A frequent refrain we’ll hear is for the need to dismiss the idea of a God who regularly helps people with small things such as finding their lost keys yet who does not stop the terrible evils all around, such a that of people being sold into sexual slavery. Interestingly, for Mormons who encounter this disconnect between a God of power and God of love, already built into its theology—however, one that is too often overlooked—is a radically different view of God that mitigates some of this sting. This episode is designed to serve as a reminder of the fundamentally different view of God, God’s power, God’s life, God’s relationship with persons and other existents in this world that Mormonism holds.  And it is these views that, though they don’t make suffering go away, for many Latter-day Saints still allow them to have a deep and abiding faith in a God. For them, it is a wonderful God, even in this God's vulnerability. Fiona Givens, James McLachlan, and Mormon Matters host Dan Wotherspoon are three such Latter-day Saints who find the LDS framing of God to be rich, deep, and empowering. They find themselves drawn toward this God who is “in the fray” with the rest of creation rather than being outside it, a God who cannot, even if God wanted to, control what unfolds in life, yet who will always return love for hate, largeness whenever faced with smallness, and who suffers “with” us as we meet life’s vicissitudes. In this two-part discussion, they describe this God and why they are attracted to this Being. They also discuss God’s power and its limits, and how this affects their views of scripture (which often depicts an angry God who destroys cities and persons), and God’s ways of intervening in things like healing. In the final section, they argue as well for the superiority of time over eternity and why a God who exists in time alongside other free agents is the only one they could ever truly love.

For many who find themselves in the middle of a faith crisis, casting about for new footing and ways of orienting to life and others, one of largest stumbling blocks is often their view of God. All of a sudden, as they find themselves far more aware of the confusion that marks life on earth, of the horrendous suffering experienced by so many, or the multitude of paths and choices we all must face, the idea of an omnipotent God who is also loving begins to crack. A frequent refrain we’ll hear is for the need to dismiss the idea of a God who regularly helps people with small things such as finding their lost keys yet who does not stop the terrible evils all around, such a that of people being sold into sexual slavery. Interestingly, for Mormons who encounter this disconnect between a God of power and God of love, already built into its theology—however, one that is too often overlooked—is a radically different view of God that mitigates some of this sting. This episode is designed to serve as a reminder of the fundamentally different view of God, God’s power, God’s life, God’s relationship with persons and other existents in this world that Mormonism holds.  And it is these views that, though they don’t make suffering go away, for many Latter-day Saints still allow them to have a deep and abiding faith in a God. For them, it is a wonderful God, even in this God's vulnerability. Fiona Givens, James McLachlan, and Mormon Matters host Dan Wotherspoon are three such Latter-day Saints who find the LDS framing of God to be rich, deep, and empowering. They find themselves drawn toward this God who is “in the fray” with the rest of creation rather than being outside it, a God who cannot, even if God wanted to, control what unfolds in life, yet who will always return love for hate, largeness whenever faced with smallness, and who suffers “with” us as we meet life’s vicissitudes. In this two-part discussion, they describe this God and why they are attracted to this Being. They also discuss God’s power and its limits, and how this affects their views of scripture (which often depicts an angry God who destroys cities and persons), and God’s ways of intervening in things like healing. In the final section, they argue as well for the superiority of time over eternity and why a God who exists in time alongside other free agents is the only one they could ever truly love.

Charles Shiro Inouye has just written a fantastic book, _The End of the World, Plan B: A Guide for the Future_ (Greg Kofford Books, 2016). In it, he demonstrates how the most popular ways of framing Apocalyptic narratives--as a violent and cataclysmic event that makes clear the triumph of justice in which the wicked are punished and the righteous rewarded--does not actually match the fullest view on this subject as taught by the great world religions. Justice as the supreme virtue reigning over the end of all things has never been the main point, nor is it the best understanding of that virtue. Certainly it is important, but justice is intended to ultimately lead us toward compassion and a viewing of the world and its inhabitants, human as well as other forms of life, as God does, or as Dharma or the Tao attempt to call us toward. Apocalyptic teachings--with the word "apocalypse" referring to the great "revelation"--whether applied to the final end of the world and human inhabitants, or to our own end of the world that comes with our death, are instead designed to lead us into self-examinations of the world’s conditions, what justice would demand, including its implications for our lives, our own complicity in suffering or unfairness that comes from our communal lives, as well as the sobering realizations that agency will always make it impossible for us to ensure that our children will choose our same values as theirs. The teachings are not to make us feel smug that we’ll the "saved" remnant when the final bell might toll for the earth. Instead, what justice is designed to do, ultimately, is to lead us through sorrow to a state of coming to recognize as our own state of being what it is that God sees, and to then turn in compassion toward those not yet understanding the true nature of reality and the highest forms of fulfillment. It is to call us to be "saviors on Mount Zion," to the path of the Bodhisattva who postpones her or his own entrance into Nirvana in order to be with and teach and model compassion to all forms of life, to the "hero’s journey" described by Joseph Campbell and others that is and embodied in so many stories the world over and in every generation of the one who passes through trials and sorrows, learning from each challenge how she or he has falsely identified with various aspects of life that have prevented their true nature from fully shining forth, only to then come to grasp the life of the Gods and then return to her or his community as a teacher/savior. "Plan B" encompasses learning and turning of these sorts. It is a powerful way of understanding so much that is compelling at the heart of the great world religions, so much that is on the path of a genuine spiritual adventurer. In this two-part episode, author Charles Shiro Inouye, joins Charles Randall Paul, James McLachlan, and Mormon Matters host Dan Wotherspoon for a discussion of these elements present in the great traditions, and which serve--whether distant or immediate--as a call to us all, as something we recognize in our deepest core as the common denominator of our spiritual heroes. Toward the end, the panelists also speak of connections and differences between eastern ideas about "non-attachment" and "nothingness" and LDS (and other western) notions of "eternal" families/relationships. Are there also connections between these concepts and the call of Zion for its members to be of "one heart and mind"?

Charles Shiro Inouye has just written a fantastic book, _The End of the World, Plan B: A Guide for the Future_ (Greg Kofford Books, 2016). In it, he demonstrates how the most popular ways of framing Apocalyptic narratives--as a violent and cataclysmic event that makes clear the triumph of justice in which the wicked are punished and the righteous rewarded--does not actually match the fullest view on this subject as taught by the great world religions. Justice as the supreme virtue reigning over the end of all things has never been the main point, nor is it the best understanding of that virtue. Certainly it is important, but justice is intended to ultimately lead us toward compassion and a viewing of the world and its inhabitants, human as well as other forms of life, as God does, or as Dharma or the Tao attempt to call us toward. Apocalyptic teachings--with the word "apocalypse" referring to the great "revelation"--whether applied to the final end of the world and human inhabitants, or to our own end of the world that comes with our death, are instead designed to lead us into self-examinations of the world’s conditions, what justice would demand, including its implications for our lives, our own complicity in suffering or unfairness that comes from our communal lives, as well as the sobering realizations that agency will always make it impossible for us to ensure that our children will choose our same values as theirs. The teachings are not to make us feel smug that we’ll the "saved" remnant when the final bell might toll for the earth. Instead, what justice is designed to do, ultimately, is to lead us through sorrow to a state of coming to recognize as our own state of being what it is that God sees, and to then turn in compassion toward those not yet understanding the true nature of reality and the highest forms of fulfillment. It is to call us to be "saviors on Mount Zion," to the path of the Bodhisattva who postpones her or his own entrance into Nirvana in order to be with and teach and model compassion to all forms of life, to the "hero’s journey" described by Joseph Campbell and others that is and embodied in so many stories the world over and in every generation of the one who passes through trials and sorrows, learning from each challenge how she or he has falsely identified with various aspects of life that have prevented their true nature from fully shining forth, only to then come to grasp the life of the Gods and then return to her or his community as a teacher/savior. "Plan B" encompasses learning and turning of these sorts. It is a powerful way of understanding so much that is compelling at the heart of the great world religions, so much that is on the path of a genuine spiritual adventurer. In this two-part episode, author Charles Shiro Inouye, joins Charles Randall Paul, James McLachlan, and Mormon Matters host Dan Wotherspoon for a discussion of these elements present in the great traditions, and which serve--whether distant or immediate--as a call to us all, as something we recognize in our deepest core as the common denominator of our spiritual heroes. Toward the end, the panelists also speak of connections and differences between eastern ideas about "non-attachment" and "nothingness" and LDS (and other western) notions of "eternal" families/relationships. Are there also connections between these concepts and the call of Zion for its members to be of "one heart and mind"?

Tolerance is a tricky virtue. In a list of ways one might interact with others, it’s certainly better than active persecution but falls far short as a ideal way to engage people or ideas we don’t fully understand or (yet) trust. How do we draw the line between the need to protect ourselves from potentially harmful influence while still being open to the possible richness that might be added to our lives, and to theirs as they interact with us, should we come to truly engage them? In two recent addresses, Elder Dallin H. Oaks and President Boyd K. Packer, take on the question of tolerance. Each affirms that we are indeed called to be tolerant and loving toward others, but each warns in a different way about being "too" tolerant, with President Packer even calling an excess of tolerance a potential "trap." Both leaders's attempts demonstrate just how difficult it is to suggest proper boundaries for interacting with others while still striving to live gospel ideals. In this episode, panelists Charles Randall Paul, James McLachlan, and Michael Fife join Mormon Matters host Dan Wotherspoon for a focused look at these two talks and their approaches to the virtue of tolerance while also moving into wider explorations that draw on many different disciplines. What do we find in LDS or wider Christian scripture, history, or teachings that can serve as good guides for how to engage others while still protecting ourselves? What are the most effective ways for teaching or modeling tolerance (or its opposite, such as when Christ overturned the tables of the money changers in the temple)? How should we approach the difficult competing ideals of loving all people, including those we consider sinners, even as we are taught from the scriptures that God "cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance" (Alma 45:16; D&C 1:31)? Are there better terms than "tolerance" that suggest the best ways to interact with others with who we are not in full agreement? If the panelists were to take the general conference pulpit, how might they approach teaching the proper balance between being watchpersons on the tower and at the same time embracing the sisterhood and brotherhood of all persons and welcoming their influence on us?

Tolerance is a tricky virtue. In a list of ways one might interact with others, it’s certainly better than active persecution but falls far short as a ideal way to engage people or ideas we don’t fully understand or (yet) trust. How do we draw the line between the need to protect ourselves from potentially harmful influence while still being open to the possible richness that might be added to our lives, and to theirs as they interact with us, should we come to truly engage them? In two recent addresses, Elder Dallin H. Oaks and President Boyd K. Packer, take on the question of tolerance. Each affirms that we are indeed called to be tolerant and loving toward others, but each warns in a different way about being "too" tolerant, with President Packer even calling an excess of tolerance a potential "trap." Both leaders's attempts demonstrate just how difficult it is to suggest proper boundaries for interacting with others while still striving to live gospel ideals. In this episode, panelists Charles Randall Paul, James McLachlan, and Michael Fife join Mormon Matters host Dan Wotherspoon for a focused look at these two talks and their approaches to the virtue of tolerance while also moving into wider explorations that draw on many different disciplines. What do we find in LDS or wider Christian scripture, history, or teachings that can serve as good guides for how to engage others while still protecting ourselves? What are the most effective ways for teaching or modeling tolerance (or its opposite, such as when Christ overturned the tables of the money changers in the temple)? How should we approach the difficult competing ideals of loving all people, including those we consider sinners, even as we are taught from the scriptures that God "cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance" (Alma 45:16; D&C 1:31)? Are there better terms than "tolerance" that suggest the best ways to interact with others with who we are not in full agreement? If the panelists were to take the general conference pulpit, how might they approach teaching the proper balance between being watchpersons on the tower and at the same time embracing the sisterhood and brotherhood of all persons and welcoming their influence on us?

James McLachlan is a professor of philosophy and religion at Western Carolina University, and is actively involved in academic discussions of Mormonism as a co-chair of the American Academy of Religion’s Mormon Studies Group and a board member and past president of the Society for Mormon Philosophy and Theology. But to overplay his academic bona fides is possibly a mistake, because, as this interview with longtime friend and Mormon Stories contributor Dan Wotherspoon reveals, Jim is the opposite of the stuffy scholar stereotype. In this two-part interview, his incredibly quick and inquisitive mind is on full display, but it’s his good humor and ability to use observations from everyday life, great literature, and important films to elucidate powerful philosophical and religious questions that will surely captivate listeners. Among other discussions, through Jim's lenses Mormonism’s fully engaged God—as Sterling McMurrin described: a God with his"own problems"—comes alive and becomes a highly compelling alternative to traditional Christian views that borrow so heavily from Greek ideas about the nature of perfection. Hear, too, Jim's wonderful take on why those of us who experience many of Mormonism’s theological ideas differently from many in the mainstream might still feel confident in answering temple recommend questions affirmatively.

James McLachlan is a professor of philosophy and religion at Western Carolina University, and is actively involved in academic discussions of Mormonism as a co-chair of the American Academy of Religion’s Mormon Studies Group and a board member and past president of the Society for Mormon Philosophy and Theology. But to overplay his academic bona fides is possibly a mistake, because, as this interview with longtime friend and Mormon Stories contributor Dan Wotherspoon reveals, Jim is the opposite of the stuffy scholar stereotype. In this two-part interview, his incredibly quick and inquisitive mind is on full display, but it’s his good humor and ability to use observations from everyday life, great literature, and important films to elucidate powerful philosophical and religious questions that will surely captivate listeners. Among other discussions, through Jim's lenses Mormonism’s fully engaged God—as Sterling McMurrin described: a God with his"own problems"—comes alive and becomes a highly compelling alternative to traditional Christian views that borrow so heavily from Greek ideas about the nature of perfection. Hear, too, Jim's wonderful take on why those of us who experience many of Mormonism’s theological ideas differently from many in the mainstream might still feel confident in answering temple recommend questions affirmatively.

This year marks the one hundredth anniversary of the controversies over the study and teaching of evolution at Brigham Young University that resulted in the resignations or firing of three of Brigham Young University’s prominent faculty members and a significant blow to the university career of another. This Mormon Matters episode tells key elements in the story of those 1911 events, but primarily uses them as a launching pad for a tour or the history of LDS views and approaches to evolution from then to now, as well as more specific reflections on the various tensions between Mormon scriptural and doctrinal commitments and the main thrusts of evolutionary theory. Joining Mormon Matters host Dan Wotherspoon for this episode are philosophy and intellectual history professor James McLachlan, and BYU emeritus and current science professors Duane Jeffery and Steven Peck, all of whom argue that these tensions between Mormonism and evolution are quite minimal, and that Mormonism actually contains many teachings and theological thrusts, including a rich history of viewing scriptural accounts of creation as primarily figurative, that are extremely accommodating to evolution--far more so than those of many other traditions that begin with God creating everything ex nihilo (out of nothing) and being in full control of everything.