Mormon Stories Podcast

McKay ‘Spartacus’ Johnson is our guest today for this fantastic two-part Mormon Stories interview. Carah Burrell takes the reins again as lead interviewer as we talk to McKay about battling a “Nephi complex” growing up, early exposure to pornography, and his mission to Brasil where he describes being groomed by his mission companion and sexually assaulted. It’s an intense and undercover topic and we thank McKay for coming on the podcast to share his experience being a male sexual assault survivor. In part two, McKay tells us about what it was like to heal from his mission and deconstruct the homophobic ideas he carried with him after his assault. Eventually getting married and divorced, we discuss with McKay what happened the night he confessed to his wife he had been occasionally viewing pornography and what can be done in Mormon culture to shift the unhelpful and counterproductive labeling of men like McKay. McKay is also a talented TikToker and musician, so we are happy he could find time to take a break from playing rock god to join us on Mormon Stories and we hope you’ll support him wherever his talents take him!  Content warning: This episode contains discussion of sexual assault. ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— Show notes:  @Spartacus_Unchained on TikTok Healthier approaches to porn and masturbation @ExMoLex on TikTok @ExMormonMindy on TikTok @NuanceHoe on TikTok SuitUpSoldier.com

McKay ‘Spartacus’ Johnson is our guest today for this fantastic two-part Mormon Stories interview. Carah Burrell takes the reins again as lead interviewer as we talk to McKay about battling a “Nephi complex” growing up, early exposure to pornography, and his mission to Brasil where he describes being groomed by his mission companion and sexually assaulted. It’s an intense and undercover topic and we thank McKay for coming on the podcast to share his experience being a male sexual assault survivor. In part two, McKay tells us about what it was like to heal from his mission and deconstruct the homophobic ideas he carried with him after his assault. Eventually getting married and divorced, we discuss with McKay what happened the night he confessed to his wife he had been occasionally viewing pornography and what can be done in Mormon culture to shift the unhelpful and counterproductive labeling of men like McKay. McKay is also a talented TikToker and musician, so we are happy he could find time to take a break from playing rock god to join us on Mormon Stories and we hope you’ll support him wherever his talents take him!  Content warning: This episode contains discussion of sexual assault. ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— Show notes:  @Spartacus_Unchained on TikTok Healthier approaches to porn and masturbation @ExMoLex on TikTok @ExMormonMindy on TikTok @NuanceHoe on TikTok SuitUpSoldier.com

Today we discuss Mormon Temples, the prosperity gospel, and the Mormon church's use of social media influencers to promote its temple work. Feel free to post your comments, experiences, and questions below! Show Notes: Graph showing temple growth under Russell M. Nelson Racially insensitive murals inside the Mesa, Arizona, temple Mormon Stories' interview with Laura Schnell Jenny Komenda's Instagram ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— MSP on Spotify MSP on Apple Podcasts MSP Blog Instagram Patreon TikTok Discord   Contact Us! *MormonStories@gmail.com *PO Box 171085 Salt Lake City, UT 84117

What questions are on your mind this week? Do you have something you've been wanting to ask? What queries have you, our dear Mormon Stories listeners? Tell us! Join John and Carah for a live stream as we chat, answer your questions, and hit the hot topics of the week in the Mormon/post-Mormon realm. Show notes: Register for upcoming Thrive events Mormon Stories' interview with Marc Oslund Mormon Stories' interview with Paul Toscano Mormon Stories' interview with Margaret Toscano Mormon Stories' interview with Steven Hassan Mormon Stories' interview with Luna Corbden New York Post article about "soaking" Allan Mount's TikTok Mormonism Live ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— MSP on Spotify MSP on Apple Podcasts MSP Blog Instagram Patreon TikTok Discord   Contact Us! *MormonStories@gmail.com *PO Box 171085 Salt Lake City, UT 84117

On September 12 Franklin Richards, a member of the 12 and his travel companions caught up with the Willie handcart company. They held a conference in which they insulted and ridiculed the company for their lack of faith. The GAs then said they wanted fresh meat. They made the company slaughter their "fattest calf" which they did and the GAs took the meat with them. A member of the 12 literally took provisions from the Willie handcart company. In the podcast we will give the basic background of the handcart trek, how the Lord's anointed were absolutely trash, and then discuss how the worst failure of Mormon History is celebrated widely every year. ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— Show notes: "Devil's Gate: Brigham Young and the Great Mormon Handcart Tragedy" by David Roberts John Larsen's Reddit Thread

As Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow face indictments and/or allegations for multiple murders (e.g., Chad's wife Tammy, Lori's husband Charles, Lori's brother Alex, Lori's children JJ and Tylee) - many believing LDS church members (i.e. "Mormons") have taken issue with the suggestion that Mormon beliefs played any role in these murders.   Today we conclude our 2-part series exploring the Mormon influences on Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow.  Our guests for today are Lauren and John Matthias - co-hosts of the Hidden True Crime podcast.  I am also super happy to be joined today by my dear, brilliant friend Mindy Caldwell, who has followed the Daybell/Vallow case very closely over the past few years.   Please join us with your questions and comments. Hidden: A True Crime Podcast explores the hidden motives behind unimaginable crimes, while examining our deepest fears along the way. Join us on a journey into the darkest recesses of the human mind and the unconscious motivations that drive human behaviors, both good and bad, in order to understand the world and ourselves. Pull up a chair at our dinner table as the husband and wife team of Dr. John Matthias, a forensic psychologist, and Lauren Matthias, a journalist, delve into the psychological facets of unthinkable crimes. What are you hiding? What are you hiding from? What remains hidden? Hidden True Crime YouTube channel  Hidden True Crime's Patreon Tips, clues, or other contact Show Notes: The Second Comforter: Conversing with the Lord Through the Veil by Denver Snuffer  A Greater Tomorrow: My Journey Beyond the Veil by Julie Rowe  Lauren's full interview with "Girl on Fire"  Visions of Glory: One Man's Astonishing Account of the Last Days by John Pontius Mormon Stories' interview with Matt Harris about the rise of the Mormon right-wing Early Mormonism and the Magic World View by D. Michael Quinn ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— MSP on Spotify MSP on Apple Podcasts MSP Blog Instagram Patreon TikTok Discord   Contact Us! *MormonStories@gmail.com *PO Box 171085 Salt Lake City, UT 84117

As Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow face indictments and/or allegations for multiple murders (e.g., Chad's wife Tammy, Lori's husband Charles, Lori's brother Alex, Lori's children JJ and Tylee) - many believing LDS church members (i.e. "Mormons") have taken issue with the suggestion that Mormon beliefs played any role in these murders. Today we begin Part 1 in a series exploring the Mormon influences on Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow.  Our guests for today are Lauren and John Matthias - co-hosts of the Hidden True Crime podcast.  I am also super happy to be joined today by my dear, brilliant friend Mindy Caldwell, who has followed the Daybell/Vallow case very closely over the past few years. Please join us with your questions and comments. Hidden: A True Crime Podcast explores the hidden motives behind unimaginable crimes, while examining our deepest fears along the way. Join us on a journey into the darkest recesses of the human mind and the unconscious motivations that drive human behaviors, both good and bad, in order to understand the world and ourselves. Pull up a chair at our dinner table as the husband and wife team of Dr. John Matthias, a forensic psychologist, and Lauren Matthias, a journalist, delve into the psychological facets of unthinkable crimes. What are you hiding? What are you hiding from? What remains hidden? Hidden True Crime YouTube channel  Hidden True Crime's Patreon Tips, clues, or other contact Show Notes: The Second Comforter: Conversing with the Lord Through the Veil by Denver Snuffer  A Greater Tomorrow: My Journey Beyond the Veil by Julie Rowe  Lauren's full interview with "Girl on Fire"  Visions of Glory: One Man's Astonishing Account of the Last Days by John Pontius Mormon Stories' interview with Matt Harris about the rise of the Mormon right-wing Early Mormonism and the Magic World View by D. Michael Quinn ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— MSP on Spotify MSP on Apple Podcasts MSP Blog Instagram Patreon TikTok Discord   Contact Us! *MormonStories@gmail.com *PO Box 171085 Salt Lake City, UT 84117

Join us for this extra special Mormon Stories Podcast interview with Thomas & Cici Stokes (@big.crick.music on TikTok) as we hear the story of their faith journey, and listen to some of Thomas' original music that helped them heal throughout their faith transition. Show notes: Thomas and Sierra's TikTok Thomas' songs on his Bandcamp page Thomas' Instagram Thomas' Spotify: Thomas' Apple Music Sierra's Instagram Cody Merrell, Utah County therapist who works with faith crises You Are Not So Smart documentary series ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— MSP on Spotify MSP on Apple Podcasts MSP Blog Instagram Patreon TikTok Discord   Contact Us! *MormonStories@gmail.com *PO Box 171085 Salt Lake City, UT 84117

Join us for this extra special Mormon Stories Podcast interview with Thomas & Cici Stokes (@big.crick.music on TikTok) as we hear the story of their faith journey, and listen to some of Thomas' original music that helped them heal throughout their faith transition. Show notes: Thomas and Sierra's TikTok Thomas' songs on his Bandcamp page Thomas' Instagram Thomas' Spotify: Thomas' Apple Music Sierra's Instagram Cody Merrell, Utah County therapist who works with faith crises You Are Not So Smart documentary series ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— MSP on Spotify MSP on Apple Podcasts MSP Blog Instagram Patreon TikTok Discord   Contact Us! *MormonStories@gmail.com *PO Box 171085 Salt Lake City, UT 84117

Parallel to the LDS Church’s shifting position regarding homosexuality, there have been new crops of faithful gay public figures who are held up by the church as role models on how to be a faithful gay member of the church. As the LDS Church has softened its stances and opened the window for “righteous celibacy,” gay public figures in mixed-orientation marriages have lost popularity and a more nuanced breed of celibate role models has emerged E.g. Charlie Bird and Ben Schilatty. In this episode we discuss how these public figures enable the perpetuation of harmful church rhetoric and spiritual trauma towards the LGBTQ community, and explore some possible solutions that could help ignite positive change in the church. Show notes: Mormon Stories' interview with Gerardo Sumano Mormon Stories' interview with Kyle Ashworth Tyler's review of “Without the Mask” “Without the Mask: Coming Out and into God’s Light” by Charlie Bird "Coming Out Mormon: An Examination of Religious Orientation, Spiritual Trauma, and PTSD Among Mormon and Ex-Mormon LGBTQQA Adults" by Brian William Simmons "Navigating Sexual and Religious Identity Conflict: A Mormon Perspective" by John Dehlin “Believer” - HBO documentary "Psychosocial Correlates of Religious Approaches to Same-Sex Attraction: A Mormon Perspective" by John Dehlin "Sexual Orientation Change Efforts, Identity Conflict, and Psychosocial Health Amongst Same-Sex Attracted Mormons" By John Dehlin “Tabernacles of Clay: Sexuality and Gender in Modern Mormonism” by Taylor G. Petrey “Gay Rights and the Mormon Church: Intended Actions, Unintended Consequences” by Gregory Prince "The Aftermath of Prop 22" by Alan Hansen and Nadine R. Hansen (Sunstone Magazine; January 2001) Netflix documentary “Pray Away” Voices of Hope Court testimony about nude cuddling and abusive practices during conversion therapy “A Walk in My Shoes: Questions I'm Often Asked as a Gay Latter-day Saint” by Ben Schilaty Questions From the Closet podcast, hosted by Charlie Bird and Ben Schilaty "A Chronology of LGBTQ+ Messaging" Latter Gay Stories podcast, hosted by Kyle Ashworth Mormon Stories' interview with Matt Easton "Sexual Orientation Change Efforts Among Current or Former LDS Church Members" by John Dehlin ————— We are 100% donor funded! Please click HERE to donate and keep this content coming! Click here to donate monthly: $10 $25 $50 ————— MSP on Spotify MSP on Apple Podcasts MSP Blog Instagram Patreon TikTok Discord   Contact Us! *MormonStories@gmail.com *PO Box 171085 Salt Lake City, UT 84117