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
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.
“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
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!
The Burning of the Bosom vs. the Firing of the Neurons
In my previous post, we discussed how people with a strong desire to avoid ambiguity often engage in conspiracy thinking so that they can achieve “cognitive closure.” Then we showed how Mormon worship is structured to regularly provide cognitive closure, and, therefore, how it can exacerbate conspiracy thinking. Another aspect of conspiracy thinking that Mormonism …
E175: The World Beyond the Valley.
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 …
The Mormon Rush to Cognitive Closure
As I showed in my previous post, one factor that strongly correlates with conspiracy thinking is a stronger-than-average desire to avoid ambiguity. And for Mormons, the avoidance of ambiguity is baked into worship. For example, imagine you are attending a Fast and Testimony meeting in an LDS ward. The priests and deacons have just returned …
E174: One of These Gods is Not Like the Other.
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
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
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 …