Mormon Land

Mar 05 2025 100 ep. 35 mins 768

Mormon Land Podcast artwork

Mormon Land explores the contours and complexities of LDS news. It’s hosted by award-winning religion writer Peggy Fletcher Stack and Salt Lake Tribune managing editor David Noyce.

Religion & Spirituality

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The conservative LDS prophet who led fights over evolution, the age of the Earth and orthodoxy | Episode 381

Mar 05 2025 46 mins

Joseph Fielding Smith’s family tree alone makes him a significant player in the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. His father, Joseph F. Smith, was the faith’s sixth president. His grandfather was Hyrum Smith, who was slain with his great-uncle, church founder Joseph Smith. His son-in-law, in fact, was apostle Bruce R. McConkie, a theological kindred sp

Are LDS men falling prey to extremist masculinity? | Episode 380

Feb 25 2025 39 mins

Certainly not for the first time, the United States has become a hotbed of hot takes and even hotter debates over men’s roles in the home and society. Fueling this fiery crisis of masculinity is, of course, social media, podcasts and other online forums. Enter the “manosphere,” a conservative- and Christian-leaning media ecosystem aimed at male empowerment. On this week’s s

Why those anti-LDS chants at BYU games? | Episode 379

Feb 19 2025 35 mins

When Brigham Young University teams play on the road, they, like any visiting opponent, expect to encounter their share of jeers from the home crowd. But what happens when the razzing turns raunchy and the boos give way to bigotry? That occurs all too often at Cougar games. Obscene choruses, often emanating from opposing student sections, break out, mocking BYU’s sponsoring relig

Johnathan Rauch on the LDS Church's trailblazing compromises for the good of the country | Episode 378

Feb 12 2025 32 mins

Since America’s founding, Christianity has been a “load-bearing wall” of democracy, but in recent decades it has given up that role — and that, argues writer and scholar Jonathan Rauch, has led to the country’s current crisis. In his latest book, “Cross Purposes: Christianity’s Broken Bargain With Democracy,” the self-described gay, Jewish atheist critiques secular

How can the church sustain the law and support its undocumented members? | Episode 377

Feb 05 2025 40 mins

As a candidate, he promised “mass deportations” of undocumented immigrants. And now, as president, he is setting the wheels in motion in an effort to do just that. While President Donald Trump’s next move — and that of immigration enforcement agents — is uncertain, this much is sure: The country is on edge — so much so that the governing First Presidency of The Church o

From stake president and temple designer to excommunicated trans woman | Episode 376

Jan 29 2025 34 mins

In 2017, Laurie Lee Hall publicly shared her remarkable journey as a transgender Latter-day Saint. It took her through joining The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, serving a two-year mission, marrying and having children, being called as a bishop and stake president, and becoming head architect for the faith’s sacred temples. Transitioning to her “authentic self,”

Understanding the big courtroom showdown in the tithing lawsuit against the LDS Church | Episode 375

Jan 22 2025 25 mins

Tithing has long been seen by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as a test, a trial, if you will, of faith. Well, now the practice of donating a tenth of one’s income is essentially on trial — in the courts. Nine plaintiffs are suing the global church, accusing Latter-day Saint leaders of soliciting and amassing these donations by the billions to support

Separating fact from fiction in ‘American Primeval’ | Episode 374

Jan 15 2025 39 mins

Note to listeners • This episode contains spoilers for “American Primeval.” It’s bleak. It’s bloody. It’s barbaric. It’s also the No. 1 TV show on Netflix. But what millions of viewers may misunderstand about “American Primeval” is that it is fictional. While the six-part series is centered around real places, a few real events and some real people — ranging fro

What is happening at BYU and why it matters | Episode 373

Jan 08 2025 38 mins

Brigham Young University has a “unique and compelling faith-based mission to develop disciples of Jesus Christ,” says school spokesperson Carri Jenkins. To that end, the school has long required students and faculty to hold a “temple recommend,” which attests to belief and behavior standards set out by BYU’s owner, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Under th

New garments, social media stars, temple push (and pushback) and 2024′s other big LDS news | Episode 372

Dec 31 2024 50 mins

While Russell Nelson, the 100-year-old leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is, by his own admission, slowing a bit, the pace of news in the global faith he oversees is hardly letting up. The headlines from 2024 prove it. Temples top the list. The centenarian prophet-president dedicated the church’s 200th temple and has now announced more than half of its 36