Mormons are a peculiar people. Look no further than the stories we tell. Every episode, we gather around one strange corner of Mormon history, folklore, conspiracy theory, or literature. One of us comes prepared to tell a story. The rest of us are typically hearing it for the first time. We listen, ask questions, make comments, and maybe crack a few jokes. We'll dig for Nephite treasure in a mine that has yet to pay out. We'll search for lost Israelites at the center of the Earth. Or maybe we'll wander through old pioneer homes where the previous residents still haven't quite left.
We're here for three things: 1) to have fun, 2) to learn something new, and 3) to use the weirdness to ask bigger questions. Why do people believe what they believe? How do we make meaning out of mystery? And what do our strangest stories say about who we are?
Episodes for this podcast are released every other week. This podcast is heavily researched. For information on sources, and for additional reading for each episode's topic, click here.
Listen to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or stream episodes right here on Sunstone.org.
A Teaser Mighty & Strange
What is this!? A new podcast? Patterned after the old podcast to which you used to listen?
About Our Hosts
Scott Barrett is a behavioral neuropharmacologist by day, the Director of Strategic Growth and Advocacy at Sunstone by evening, and a connoisseur of “high peculiarity” by night. Scott is fascinated by the stories we tell to create meaning, purpose, and identity in a confusing and often discomforting world. He is also interested in the ways we are all a little weird and what that weirdness tells us about what it means to be human. When he isn't reading conspiracy literature, he enjoys long walks in the Nebraska summer corn sweat, brisket smoked gradually over 14 hours, and playing nerdy games with friends.
Amanda Hendrix-Komoto received her PhD from the University of Michigan. She is currently a professor at Montana State University, where her research focuses on the intersections of religion, sexuality, and race in the American West. Her first book, Imperial Zions, focused on Mormon missionary work in the Pacific and the American West. She is currently working on a biography of Ina Coolbrith, California's first poet laureate and the niece of Joseph Smith.
Linda Hamilton is an independent historian with a masters from Sam Houston State University. She’s also the bestselling author of Gothic, folk magic-inspired fiction books, The Fourth Wife and The Glass Looker.
Grace Pool lives in Salt Lake City and works as the Director of Operations for Sunstone. She is a multimedia artist who enjoys embroidery, stained glass work, and telling a good joke on the internet.