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First Vision ​ ​​Podcast Title: Joseph Smith’s First Vision, and how the Church and its Apologists Mislead Podcast Host: Mormon Stories Notes: This podcast was in response to an article published by the Deseret News about the First Vision, written by apologist Daniel Peterson to explain why the article is being misleading and downright dishonest. It features Sandra Tanner, an early critic of the church who was an integral part of the 1832 First Vision being leaked to the public (which Peterson claims was never suppressed). Why I Picked It: This is an absolutely fantastic podcast about the First Vision - it covers a ton of ground and really clearly explains why the changes in the First Vision are a problem for Joseph Smith's truth claims along with exposing the tricks that Daniel Peterson constantly uses in his writings. Our Related Write-Up: Official LDS Gospel Topics Essay on the First Vision (Annotated) Audience: This interview is very accessible to anyone who wishes to listen to it. ​ Podcast Title: Gospel Topic Essay: First Vision Accounts Podcast Host: Mormon Discussions Notes: This is a rather long podcast that reviews the official LDS essay on the First Vision. It is hosted by Bill Reel, Allan Mount, and Anthony Miller and spends a lot of time discussing which parts of the essay hold up, and which parts simply can not be reconciled with what we now know. Why I Picked It: This is a good, calm discussion about the First Vision essay and really goes into great detail as to why the changes to the First Vision were made, and what they mean. Our Related Write-Up: Official LDS Gospel Topics Essay on the First Vision (Annotated) Audience:This interview is very accessible to anyone who wishes to listen to it

DNA and the Book of Mormon ​ ​​Podcast Title: Three Geneticists Respond to the LDS Essay on DNA and the Book of Mormon, and to Apologist Michael Ash Podcast Host: Mormon Stories Notes: This podcast was in response to the official LDS essay on the DNA and the Book of Mormon. It features three geneticists who pick the essay apart to let listeners know just where the church is being misleading or dishonest. Why I Picked It: This is a must listen - it features believing members along with critics, and really hammers why the church can not get around the DNA problem as the entire Book of Mormon is premised on Native Americans being from Israel. Our Related Write-Up: Official LDS Gospel Topics Essay on DNA and the Book of Mormon (Annotated) Audience: This interview is very accessible to anyone who wishes to listen to it.

Priesthood Restoration ​ ​​Podcast Title: Restoring What Was Lost: Priesthood Restoration Narratives Podcast Host: Sunstone History Podcasts Notes: This podcast is recent (2019) and is hosted by Bryan Buchanan and Lindsay Hansen Park along with Mormon historians Dan Vogel and Christopher C. Smith to discuss how the priesthood restoration story evolved, and pinpoints exactly why it continued to evolve under Joseph Smith. Why I Picked It: This is a must listen - it goes over the timeline of events that forced Joseph Smith to continue changing the priesthood restoration story in order to shore up his own authority, and covers a lot of the apologetic responses in the process. Our Related Write-Up: Priesthood Restoration Timeline - Church Narrative vs Historical Evidence Audience: This interview is very accessible to anyone who wishes to listen to it. ​ Podcast Title: Priesthood Power and the Magic Worldview Podcast Host: Infants on Thrones Notes: This is another long but amazing podcast from the Infants on Thrones crew featuring "John Hamer teaches Glenn, Randy, and Jake a thing or two about the LDS priesthood." It goes into great depth as to the history behind the priesthood restoration narrative along with showing why it does not hold up to history. Why I Picked It: This is another must listen to podcast on the priesthood restoration - it is funny, entertaining, and incredibly informative. If you want to learn about the true story of the priesthood restorations, you will do so while being entertained for a few hours. Our Related Write-Up: Priesthood Restoration Timeline - Response to Apologists Audience: This podcast contains a lot of humor and some bad language - if you are still early in the faith journey, this one might make you a little uncomfortable.

Other Misc. Topics in Mormonism ​ ​​Podcast Title: How to build a transoceanic vessel Podcast Host: Mormon Expression Notes: This podcast tackles what would be needed in order to build vessels that could make the journey from Israel to the Americas, and why these is simply no way that the story in the Book of Mormon is plausible in anyway. Why I Picked It: This is a must listen to podcast when it comes to looking at how the stories in the Book of Mormon compared to the realities of the time. It is entertaining (you can skip to about 20 minutes in since the early part is the news of the day) and it really illustrates just how out of his depth Joseph Smith was in a lot of these stories in the Book of Mormon. Audience: This interview is very accessible to anyone who wishes to listen to it, but there is some language in there that might be unsettling for some. ​ Podcast Title: Tom Phillips, the Second Anointing, and LDS Apostle Jeffrey R. Holland Podcast Host: Mormon Stories Notes: This is a long but important interview with Tom Phillips, who received the "Second Anointing" in the temple but learned it was nothing like what leaders had taught it was. This led to his crisis of faith and ultimately led him out of the church. It is a very sad podcast due to the fallout with family, but it is a must listen to in order to learn about the Second Anointing along with how the church has handled these kinds of questions. Why I Picked It: This is a popular podcast, but if you have not listened to it I recommend parts two and four particularly - links below. Audience:This interview is very accessible to anyone who wishes to listen to it Bonus Links: Part Two (Second Anointing) and Part Four (Correspondence with Jeffrey Holland) ​ Podcast Title: The Nauvoo Expositor For Dummies Part 1 Podcast Host: Mormon Expression Notes: This podcast looks at the actual content of the Nauvoo Expositor and how it stacks up to how the church discusses it today along with how Joseph Smith described it at the time. The panel includes a believing member who ultimately agrees that the Nauvoo Expositor was almost entirely truthful in its accusations against Joseph Smith. Why I Picked It: We so often hear from the church that the Nauvoo Expositor was inciting a riot and full of slander, yet when you actually read the accusations the Expositor ends up being on the right side of history. This is very important to know. Audience: This interview is very accessible to anyone who wishes to listen to it, but there is some language in there that might be unsettling for some. Bonus Link: Part Two ​ Podcast Title: Jim Bennett and Bill Reel and the Issues of the CES Letter Part 7 Podcast Host: Mormon Discussion Notes: This is the seventh and final podcast of a series of discussions between Bill Reel and Jim Bennett about the church's truth claims and how the CES Letter gets some things right and some things wrong. I chose this final one because this is the episode where the disagreements are more pronounced, and I think it is an important discussion to see how the apologetic responses fall back to feelings and emotion once the evidence shows that the apologetic answers do not hold up. Why I Picked It: I listened to all seven parts and I felt the first six are worth listening to (they are all linked on the same page), but this one is the only one where the politeness gets stripped away momentarily and it becomes easier to see where the arguments stand once there is more pushback on the issues. Audience: This interview is very accessible to anyone who wishes to listen to it although it can be confrontational (not horribly, but a bit) at times. ​ Podcast Title: The Christmas Story: An Historical Smackdown of sorts Podcast Host: Infants on Thrones Notes: The Infants look at the Christmas story as told by the four gospels of the New Testament to see how it stacks up against not just each other, but the historical info we have of the time. This podcast features John, Heather, Randy, and Glenn as they take a deep dive into the different Christmas story narratives. Why I Picked It: It really gets to the heart of Mormonism - how you can see the changes in the narratives over the years whether it's the First Vision, Priesthood Restoration, or the Transfiguration of Brigham Young, and to see how those changes might benefit the church but do not hold up historically. Audience: This interview is very accessible to anyone who wishes to listen to it although there is some language. ​ Podcast Title: Radio Free Mormon: Wrong Roads Podcast Host: Radio Free Mormon Notes: Radio Free Mormon looks at a talk about "Wrong Roads and Revelation" by Matthew Holland about him and his father, and how the lesson of the story doesn't actually mean what the church wants you to believe. Why I Picked It: This podcast illustrates so clearly how the church can make anything faith promoting even when the direct message of the story means something completely different. To quote the podcast page: "Today RFM explores what it means to walk the logic all the way out on situations when God gives a revelation dictating the wrong answer as the right answer so that you as the receiver of a wrong answer in revelation will eventually learn the right answer by realizing God had given you the wrong answer in order to give you the right answer." Audience: This interview is very accessible to anyone.