Scholars & Saints
87 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 2 months ago - ★★★★★ - 14 ratingsScholars & Saints is the official podcast of the University of Virginia’s Mormon Studies program, housed in the Department of Religious Studies. Scholars & Saints is a venue of public scholarship that promotes respectful dialogue about Latter Day Saint traditions among laypersons and academics.
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Episodes
From History to Mormon Studies (feat. Matthew Bowman)
April 16, 2024 11:00 - 47 minutes - 33 MBWhat do an archeologist, historian, philosopher, and literary critic have in common? They're all members of the Department of Religion at Claremont Graduate University! Continuing our series on Mormon studies in the academy, Dr. Matthew Bowman, the Howard W. Hunter Chair of Mormon Studies at CGU joins host Nicholas Shrum to discuss his own journey to Mormon studies as a trained historian, how Mormon studies emerged as an interdisciplinary field, the history of its foundational authors and sc...
What Is Mormon Studies? (feat. Patrick Q. Mason)
March 12, 2024 23:00 - 44 minutes - 30.6 MBWhat is Mormon Studies? How does one do it? In what way does it fit into the broader field of Religious Studies? In this all-new season of Scholars & Saints, UVA Religious Studies Ph.D. student Nicholas Shrum goes back to the basics of the discipline with renowned LDS historian and Utah State University professor Patrick Q. Mason. The two discuss Dr. Mason's personal journey to Mormon Studies, his experience in making it educationally accessible and engaging, and his broader insights into th...
Joseph Smith's Gold Plates (feat. Richard Bushman)
August 17, 2023 15:00 - 26 minutes - 18 MBThe mysterious gold plates are the gravitational center of the Latter Day Saint tradition. Although twelve people other than Joseph Smith claimed to have seen or handled the plates, Smith said he returned them to an angel soon after completing the translation of the Book of Mormon. Even now, nearly 200 years later, the plates continue fascinate and confound interpreters in American culture. Today on my last episode as host of Scholars and Saints, I’m chatting with Richard Bushman, renowned b...
Toward a Latter-day Saint Liberation Theology (feat. Ryan Ward)
August 15, 2023 15:00 - 55 minutes - 38.5 MBRyan Ward is a professor of experimental psychology. But during his time serving as a Latter-day Saint bishop several years ago in New York, the needs and concerns of his congregation motivated him to study theology in his spare time. We're chatting today about his recent book, And There Was No Poor Among Them: Liberation, Salvation, and the Meaning of Restoration (Kofford, 2023). We talk about liberation theology, atonement, the nature of God, and Joseph Smith's vision of a covenant communi...
Latter-day Saint Biblical Studies (feat. Cory Crawford and Taylor Petrey)
August 12, 2023 17:00 - 41 minutes - 28.3 MBCory Crawford and Taylor Petrey join me to discuss The Bible and the Latter-day Saint Tradition (Utah, 2023) and the opportunities and challenges of Latter-day Saint biblical studies in the 21st century.
Technologies of Vision and the Making of Mormonism (feat. Mason Kamana Allred)
August 09, 2023 22:00 - 38 minutes - 26.8 MBToday on Scholars & Saints, I'm joined by Mason Kamana Allred to talk about his new book Seeing Things: Technologies of Vision and the Making of Mormonism (UNC 2023). We discuss German media theory, feminist new materialism, cybernetics, microphotography, and spiritual feedback loops.
Open Canon: Scriptures of the Latter Day Saint Tradition(s) (feat. Christine Blythe, Christopher Blythe, and Jay Burton)
June 06, 2023 19:00 - 58 minutes - 40.5 MBChristine Elyse Blythe, Christopher James Blythe, and Jay Burton join me to discuss the scriptures of the Latter Day Saint "diaspora." There are more than 400 branches of the Restoration movement begun by Joseph Smith, Jr., and the prophetic production of written scripture is central to many of them. In this episode we discuss the sealed portion(s) of the Book of Mormon, collaborative scripture writing, Book of Mormon expansion narratives, Sidney Rigdon's Nephite-Eskimo theory, lay revelatio...
A Brief Theological Introduction to the Book of Ether (feat. Rosalynde Welch)
May 23, 2023 15:00 - 55 minutes - 37.8 MBDr. Rosalynde Welch, senior research scholar and associate director of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship at BYU joins me to talk about the "literary turn" in Book of Mormon studies, postsecular critique, scriptural theology, and her recent book on the Book of Ether. Welch argues that the Book of Ether—a kind of microcosm of the Book of Mormon of which it is a part—presents a theology of scripture that focuses on the interaction between written text, reader, and the Holy...
The Secret Life of John Milton Bernhisel, Mormon Diplomat (feat. Bruce Worthen)
May 04, 2023 16:00 - 1 hour - 49.4 MBIn this episode, I chat with Dr. Bruce Worthen about his recent book Mormon Envoy: The Diplomatic Legacy of Dr. John Milton Bernhisel (U. of Illinois Press). Worthen unfolds the little known contributions of Bernhisel, who as historian Matt Grow aptly quipped, seems to "have his fingerprints all over Mormon history during this period." We chat about the 1857 Utah War, Bernhisel’s rags-to-riches education at the University of Pennsylvania and in New York City, his status as confidant to Jose...
Rethinking Grace as Justice (feat. Adam Miller)
May 01, 2023 04:00 - 38 minutes - 26.4 MBIn this episode, Professor Adam Miller (Collin College) chats with me about his recent book Original Grace: An Experiment in Restoration Thinking (BYU Maxwell Institute & Deseret Book, 2022). Miller argues that Latter-day Saint scripture's rejection of original sin offers an opportunity to rethink the implications of grace. For Miller, grace—not sin—is what's original. What this means, argues Miller, is that grace is not separate from divine justice. Grace is justice.
Baptism for the Dead & the Anthropology of Spirit Possession (feat. Jon Bialecki)
April 27, 2023 15:00 - 38 minutes - 26.6 MBDr. Jon Bialecki returns to the show to discuss a recent essay, "The Mormon Dead" that explores why Latter-day Saints do not seek or experience the phenomenon of spirit possession as a feature of proxy temple ordinances performed for their deceased ancestors. We talk about the anthropology of spirit possession, the Godbeite movement, Latter-day Saint kinship, and more.
The Unexpected Hugh Nibley (feat. Joseph Spencer)
April 22, 2023 15:00 - 47 minutes - 32.9 MBIn this episode I chat with Professor Joseph Spencer, a philosopher and theologian from Brigham Young University. We talk about Spencer's recent reassessment of Nibley's legacy not as a scholar of the ancient world or of Mormon apologetics, but as a theologian. Spencer unfolds a unique take on Nibley undergirded by extensive research in Nibley's personal papers and correspondence in the archives at BYU. We talk about Nibley's affinity with Christian "neo-orthodoxy," his political theology, h...
Latter-day Saint Ecotheology (feat. George Handley)
March 09, 2023 18:00 - 54 minutes - 37.3 MBDr. George Handley, Latter-day Saint ecocritic, activist, and professor of interdisciplinary humanities at Brigham Young University joins me to chat about what Latter-day Saint theology says about environmental stewardship. Handley says he hopes he is "planting a tree on the last day of the world."
Latter-day Saint Scriptural Theology (feat. James Faulconer)
February 18, 2023 17:00 - 44 minutes - 30.6 MBDr. James Faulconer, a Latter-day Saint philosopher and theologian now emeritus of Brigham Young University joins me to discuss "performative" or "scriptural" theology and how it helps illuminate Latter-day Saint scripture. In his recent book, Thinking Otherwise: Theological Explorations of Joseph Smith's Revelations, Faulconer argues that Joseph Smith's revelations addressed philosophical enigmas and dilemmas inherited from classical Christian theism, some of which dated back to the Presocr...
Latter-day Saint Bioethics (feat. Courtney Campbell)
February 09, 2023 20:00 - 49 minutes - 34.3 MBCourtney Campbell, Hundere Professor in Religion and Culture at Oregon State University joins me in this episode to discuss his recent book Moral Realities: Medicine, Bioethics, & Mormonism (2021, Oxford University Press). We discuss Professor Campbell's three-part normative framework for a Latter-day Saint bioethics which centers on a "restored, re-storied, and prophetic morality."
Mormon Visual Culture & The American West
December 14, 2022 18:00 - 49 minutes - 33.9 MBProfessor Nathan Rees (University of West Georgia) joins me to discuss his book Mormon Visual Culture and the American West. We chat about the role that visual art played in creating, mediating, and interpreting the experiences of nineteenth-century Latter-day Saints on the American frontier. Rees reveals that visual culture is more than just art: its about understanding and negotiating what is real. Join us to hear more about C.C.A. Christensen, The Mormon Panorama, settler colonialism, rac...
Mormon Visual Culture & The American West (feat. Nathan Rees)
December 14, 2022 18:00 - 49 minutes - 33.9 MBProfessor Nathan Rees (University of West Georgia) joins me to discuss his book Mormon Visual Culture and the American West. We chat about the role that visual art played in creating, mediating, and interpreting the experiences of nineteenth-century Latter-day Saints on the American frontier. Rees reveals that visual culture is more than just art: its about understanding and negotiating what is real. Join us to hear more about C.C.A. Christensen, The Mormon Panorama, settler colonialism, rac...
The Last Mormon Liberal (feat. Kristine Haglund)
December 10, 2022 20:00 - 32 minutes - 22.5 MBKristine Haglund joins me to discuss her recent book, Eugene England: A Mormon Liberal, the inaugural volume in the University of Illinois Press's new Introductions to Mormon Thought Series. We talk about England's influences, methods, epistemology, and theology from an intellectual historical rather than a biographical point of view.
Vardis Fisher and the Literature of Mormon Unbelief (feat. Michael Austin)
December 05, 2022 16:00 - 38 minutes - 26.8 MBDr. Michael Austin joins me to discuss his recent book Vardis Fisher: A Mormon Novelist. Fisher was the first of the "Lost Generation" or "Golden Age" of Mormon novelists in the early twentieth century. While self-identified as an atheist, his work is suffused with the hues and textures of his Mormon upbringing in rural Idaho. Fisher's work challenges easy categorization of insider vs. outsider. Was Vardis Fisher a Mormon novelist? Join us to find out.
2021 Joseph Smith Lecture on Religious Liberty - Going Forward With Religious Freedom & Nondiscrimination (feat. Dallin H. Oaks)
November 07, 2022 21:00 - 43 minutes - 29.6 MBPresident Dallin H. Oaks, First Counselor in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, delivered the seventh annual Joseph Smith Lecture on Religious Liberty on November 5, 2021. His lecture was entitled "Going Forward with Religious Freedom & Nondiscrimination."
The Original Manuscript of the Book of Mormon (feat. Robin Jensen)
November 05, 2022 18:00 - 40 minutes - 27.6 MBDr. Robin Jensen (Joseph Smith Papers) talks with me about the recently published facsimile edition of the Original Manuscript of the Book of Mormon, part of the Joseph Smith Papers's Revelations & Translations series. We talk about early Latter-day Saint record-keeping, the relationship between prophetic authority and scriptural texts, and much more.
The Uncanny Mormon Smile (feat. Kathryn Lofton)
November 03, 2022 17:00 - 36 minutes - 25.3 MBProfessor Kathryn Lofton, Lex Hixon Professor of Religious Studies and American studies, Professor of History and Divinity, and Dean of Humanities at Yale University, joins me to discuss her Smith-Pettit Lecture delivered at the Mormon History Association Conference in June 2022, entitled "A Brief History of the Mormon Smile." We discuss Erving Goffman, affective performativity, American consumer capitalism, and the "missionary grin."
2022 Joseph Smith Lecture on Religious Liberty - LGBTQ+ Equality & Religious Liberty (feat. William Eskridge)
November 02, 2022 19:00 - 35 minutes - 24.4 MBProfessor William N. Eskridge of Yale Law School, a renowned expert on the judicial interpretation of statutory law, delivered the eighth annual Joseph Smith Lecture on Religious Liberty at the University of Virginia on September 22, 2022. His lecture, "LGBTQ+ Equality & Religious Liberty: Statutory Principles & The Golden Rule" responded to President Dallin H. Oaks's 2021 Joseph Smith Lecture, "Going Forward With Religious Freedom and Nondiscrimination." Eskridge praised the 2015 "Utah Comp...
Latter-day Saints & Mormon Studies in West Africa
August 22, 2022 04:00 - 25 minutes - 17.8 MBAmaechi Okafor, PhD Candidate in History at Concordia University, joins me to discuss his ethnographic fieldwork among Latter-day Saints in Nigeria. We discuss the high social costs of being a Latter-day Saint in Nigeria, cultural tensions between Indigenous African cultures and the US-based church, the positive effects of the church's BYU-Pathway program, and the possibilities for an emergent West African Mormon Studies by and for Indigenes.
Latter-day Saints & Mormon Studies in West Africa (feat. Amaechi Okafor)
August 22, 2022 04:00 - 25 minutes - 17.8 MBAmaechi Okafor, PhD Candidate in History at Concordia University, joins me to discuss his ethnographic fieldwork among Latter-day Saints in Nigeria. We discuss the high social costs of being a Latter-day Saint in Nigeria, cultural tensions between Indigenous African cultures and the US-based church, the positive effects of the church's BYU-Pathway program, and the possibilities for an emergent West African Mormon Studies by and for Indigenes.
Joseph Smith's Theology of Media
August 08, 2022 18:00 - 41 minutes - 28.5 MBProfessor John Durham Peters of Yale University joins me to discuss his 2016 essay in Critical Inquiry, "Recording Beyond the Grave: Joseph Smith's Celestial Bookkeeping"
Joseph Smith's Theology of Media (feat. John Durham Peters)
August 08, 2022 18:00 - 41 minutes - 28.5 MBProfessor John Durham Peters of Yale University joins me to discuss his 2016 essay in Critical Inquiry, "Recording Beyond the Grave: Joseph Smith's Celestial Bookkeeping"
The Tragic Universe of Mormon Theologian Eugene England
August 01, 2022 04:00 - 53 minutes - 37 MBProfessor Terryl Givens of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship at Brigham Young University joins me to talk about the life of Latter-day Saint theologian Eugene England.
The Tragic Universe of Mormon Theologian Eugene England (feat. Terryl Givens)
August 01, 2022 04:00 - 53 minutes - 37 MBProfessor Terryl Givens of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship at Brigham Young University joins me to talk about the life of Latter-day Saint theologian Eugene England.
The LDS Church Corporation (feat. Nathan Oman & Kathleen Flake)
July 08, 2022 20:00 - 50 minutes - 34.8 MBProfessor Nathan Oman of The College of William & Mary Law School joins me and Professor Kathleen Flake to discuss the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' incorporation and the role of church corporations in navigating American legal disestablishment
The LDS Church Corporation
July 08, 2022 20:00 - 50 minutes - 34.8 MBProfessor Nathan Oman of The College of William & Mary Law School joins me and Professor Kathleen Flake to discuss the history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints' incorporation and the role of church corporations in navigating American legal disestablishment
Gender, Sexuality, and Mediated Mormonism(s)
July 02, 2022 15:00 - 43 minutes - 29.7 MBProfessor Brenda Weber of Indiana University-Bloomington joins me and Professor Kathleen Flake to discuss how representations of Latter-day Saints have been used in American media for a variety of purposes.
Gender, Sexuality, and Mediated Mormonism(s) (feat. Brenda Weber & Kathleen Flake)
July 02, 2022 15:00 - 43 minutes - 29.7 MBProfessor Brenda Weber of Indiana University-Bloomington joins me and Professor Kathleen Flake to discuss how representations of Latter-day Saints have been used in American media for a variety of purposes.
The Lost Tribes of Israel & The Book of Mormon
June 30, 2022 19:00 - 31 minutes - 21.8 MBProfessor Elizabeth Fenton of the University of Vermont joins me and guest co-host Professor Kathleen Flake to discuss the "Hebraic Indian Theory" and The Book of Mormon. Where did the Lost Tribes of Israel go after the Assyrian captivity in the Bible? The center of the Earth? Another planet? The North Pole? You decide.
The Lost Tribes of Israel & The Book of Mormon (feat. Elizabeth Fenton & Kathleen Flake)
June 30, 2022 19:00 - 31 minutes - 21.8 MBProfessor Elizabeth Fenton of the University of Vermont joins me and guest co-host Professor Kathleen Flake to discuss the "Hebraic Indian Theory" and The Book of Mormon. Where did the Lost Tribes of Israel go after the Assyrian captivity in the Bible? The center of the Earth? Another planet? The North Pole? You decide.
Mormon Transhumanism
June 17, 2022 19:00 - 48 minutes - 33 MBProfessor Jon Bialecki of the University of California-San Diego joins me to discuss what Mormon Transhumanism reveals about speculative thought.
Mormon Transhumanism (feat. Jon Bialecki)
June 17, 2022 19:00 - 48 minutes - 33 MBProfessor Jon Bialecki of the University of California-San Diego joins me to discuss what Mormon Transhumanism reveals about speculative thought.
Mormonism & Comparative Theology (feat. Joseph Spencer)
June 17, 2022 19:00 - 56 minutes - 39 MBProf. Joseph Spencer (Brigham Young University) joins me to discuss Postponing Heaven, a short book by Lebanese Catholic philosopher and theologian that meditates comparatively on human messianicity in Latter-day Saint scripture, Mahayana Buddhism, and Twelver Shiism.
Mormonism & Comparative Theology
June 17, 2022 19:00 - 56 minutes - 39 MBJoseph Spencer joins me to discuss Postponing Heaven, a short book by Lebanese Catholic philosopher and theologian that meditates comparatively on human messianicity in Latter-day Saint scripture, Mahayana Buddhism, and Twelver Shiism.
Mormons & Mennonites in Mexico
June 17, 2022 19:00 - 51 minutes - 35.3 MBRebecca Janzen joins me to talk about the commonalities and differences among Latter-day Saints, Mormon fundamentalists, and Mennonites in Mexico.
Mormons and Musical Theater
June 17, 2022 19:00 - 45 minutes - 31.4 MBJake Johnson joins me to discuss the history of American Latter-day Saints' affinity for musical theater as a mode of religious expression and cultural belonging.
Mormons and Musical Theater (feat. Jake Johnson)
June 17, 2022 19:00 - 45 minutes - 31.4 MBProfessor Jake Johnson joins me to discuss the history of American Latter-day Saints' affinity for musical theater as a mode of religious expression and cultural belonging.
Mormons & Mennonites in Mexico (feat. Rebecca Janzen)
June 17, 2022 19:00 - 51 minutes - 35.3 MBProfessor Rebecca Janzen (University of South Carolina) joins me to talk about the commonalities and differences among Latter-day Saints, Mormon fundamentalists, and Mennonites in Mexico.
Mormonism: The Most American Religion (feat. McKay Coppins & Kathleen Flake)
June 17, 2022 18:00 - 39 minutes - 27.2 MBMcKay Coppins (The Atlantic) joins me and Kathleen Flake to discuss his December 2020 longform essay "The Most American Religion" which pauses on the cusp of Mormonism's third century to meditate on questions of American religious belonging.
Mormon Radical Orthodoxy? (pt.1 of 2)
June 17, 2022 18:00 - 45 minutes - 31.2 MBChristina Rosetti joins me to discuss the Latter-day Saint Radical Orthodoxy manifesto. Part 1 of 2.
Mormon Radical Orthodoxy? (pt.1 of 2) (feat. Christina Rosetti)
June 17, 2022 18:00 - 45 minutes - 31.2 MBChristina Rosetti joins me to discuss the Latter-day Saint Radical Orthodoxy manifesto. Part 1 of 2.
Mormon Radical Orthodoxy? (pt. 2 of 2)
June 17, 2022 18:00 - 50 minutes - 35 MBDan Ellsworth joins me to discuss the Latter-day Saint Radical Orthodoxy manifesto. Part 2 of 2.
Mormon Radical Orthodoxy? (pt. 2 of 2) (feat. Dan Ellsworth)
June 17, 2022 18:00 - 50 minutes - 35 MBDan Ellsworth joins me to discuss the Latter-day Saint Radical Orthodoxy manifesto. Part 2 of 2.
Mormons & American Politics
June 17, 2022 18:00 - 58 minutes - 40.3 MBDavid Campbell and Kathleen Flake join me to discuss the history of Mormons and American politics.
Mormons & American Politics (feat. David Campbell & Kathleen Flake)
June 17, 2022 18:00 - 58 minutes - 40.3 MBProfessor David Campbell (Notre Dame) and Professor Kathleen Flake join me to discuss the history of Mormons and American politics.