Latter Day Bridge Builders

It's no secret that LGTBQ+ individuals have a hard time being members of the LDS church. Statements, talks, policies and doctrines have made many LGTBQ+ people feel isolated and alienated as well as deeply hurt by the church that claims to be in direct communication with Jesus Christ through modern prophets, seers and revelators. It can be difficult for a queer or transgender person to know where they belong. Jonathan Alder is a gay, ex-member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who has authored several books including his fictional series The Hawthorn Saga and a personal memoir; Closeted: My Life as a Gay BYU Student. In today's episode, Jonny and Mitch discuss how we can all become better allies and be more LGTBQ+ affirming. Check out Jonny's books, including Closeted here: http://jonathan-alder.com/books.php You can also find the audiobook version of Closeted on most major audiobook apps, including Spotify and Audible. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/latter-day-bridge-builders/donations

Whether you were/are a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or not, you probably know about Mormon missionaries. They're the young adults with black name tags and are usually dressed in a white shirt and tie, or a dress/skirt. In this episode of LDBB, Garrett and Mitch talk about some of the LDS culture regarding missions. The goal of this episode is to build bridges with people who feel like they don't fit the traditional narrative regarding this "right of passage" in Mormonism. Whether it's from not serving a mission at the culturally accepted age, coming home early from a mission, not serving a mission at all, or not having a good mission experience; many members of the church feel like outsiders around this topic. Send us an email to LDSBridgeBuilders@gmail.com Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/latter-day-bridge-builders/donations

In part 2 of our interview with Christian Hägglund, we discuss ways in which Ex-Mormons may be able to see Latter-day Saints in a different light. While this episode may be more intentionally spoken towards Ex-Mormons, we feel many people from different backgrounds and walks of life. Send us an email with questions, feedback, or comments to: LDSBridgeBuilders@gmail.com Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/latter-day-bridge-builders/donations

Christian Hägglund is a Swedish author, lawyer and Ex-member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In part 1 of this interview, he shares his experience growing up in the church in Sweden and how religious shame was a motivating factor in his life and mission. He also shares how he came across the teachings of Denver Snuffer and Max Skousen and how those teachings influenced him as a member of his local bishopric. Be sure to listen to Part 2 where we get into how some of these teachings can help people have more positive views on those who believe differently than them. Thanks for listening! Send us an email with comments, feedback and questions to: LDSBridgeBuilders@gmail.com Buy Christian's book What Lack I Yet? on Amazon Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/latter-day-bridge-builders/donations

Join us in listening to Stevie Johnson share her conversion to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Stevie grew up in Utah and was raised in a non-denominational church by her adoptive mother (an ex-Mormon). Listen to her story as she shares how she gained a testimony of the church and how that story relates a little to Garrett and Mitch's stories of stepping away from the church. Thank you for your support this year! We will return with new episodes in the beginning of 2023. Happy Holidays! Follow Stevie on Instagram: @coachsteviej Send us an email: LDSBridgeBuilders@gmail.com Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/latter-day-bridge-builders/donations

We absolutely LOVE this interview we did with Paul Callister. Paul is a mental health counselor who practices in Bountiful, UT. See more about his practice here: Bountiful Counseling Paul received his Ph.D. from Oregon State University. The title of his dissertation is The Book of Mormon Topic Structure, Keyness Distinctions, and Collocates of Deity: Implications for Mental Health Professionals In the interview, we discuss some of Paul's dissertation findings and how it relates to the wider discussion of mental health and worldviews that Latter-day Saints have. We also talk about what ways members and ex-members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints can better understand each other. If you would like to donate to support the podcast, you can submit donations to Mitch's Venmo, or by clicking the link at the bottom of the show notes. Thank you! Show Notes: https://www.dialoguejournal.com/ Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/latter-day-bridge-builders/donations

Join us for a special interview with Jacqueline Schneiber-Pettit who is an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In this interview, we ask Jacqueline about how her journey in the church has been and how different views on things may be reconciled while still believing in the church/gospel of Jesus Christ. We are thankful to our listeners who have generously given donations so we can get some more audio equipment and keep interviews like this one a regular thing on Latter Day Bridge Builders Podcast. If you would like to make a donation you can send it to https://www.venmo.com/u/Mitchell-Crosgrove Be sure to send us an email with feedback, content requests, or other comments to LatterDayBridgeBuilders@gmail.com Be sure to share this or any other episode with someone you think could benefit from the conversation. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/latter-day-bridge-builders/donations

**ANNOUNCEMENT** We at Latter Day Bridge Builders feel the need and want to expand our hosting backgrounds. In an effort to better build bridges, we are looking for a third host. We are looking for someone who is an active/believing member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Preferably we would like to get a woman's voice on the show to have more diversity of thought and experience. If you or someone you know would be interested, please reach out via email to LatterDayBridgeBuilders@gmail.com This hosting opportunity would ideally be a permanent position on the Latter Day Bridge Builders Podcast. We record in Bountiful Utah and would expect a time commitment of about 2 hours every other week. We generally will be recording on Saturday mornings. In addition to this added position, we are asking our viewers if they would be able to donate some funds for some extra recording equipment, we want to make the transition for a new host as easy as possible. We appreciate the support of our listeners whether it be financial or just listening in. If you have the means and would like to donate you can send a payment to Mitch's Venmo or by clicking the link at the very bottom of the show notes. Our goal with this fundraising is $150 for a microphone, stand and headphones for our new host and/or future guest interviewees. All funds raised will stay within the podcast and are not put directly into LDBB host pockets. If everyone who listens to this episode donated $5 we would exceed our goal. Thank you so much, bridge builders! In this episode, Mitch and Garrett discuss the cliche often used by members that the church is imperfect, but the gospel is perfect. We talk about what the gospel can be defined as and what good the church does in the world. As well as some of the questions that ex-members have on this subject, because things like doctrine, the gospel, teachings, priciples and policy are sometimes not well defined in the church. If you have some answers to our questions or have other feedback please send an email to LatterDayBridgeBuilders@gmail.com Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/latter-day-bridge-builders/donations

Listen, if you're a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, you probably have heard someone refer to the church as a cult. Maybe as an ex-member, you have called the church a cult. In this episode of LDBB, Garrett and Mitch do a deep dive into this controversial call sign. What are the definitions of the word "cult?" What are the connotations? Does the church maybe fit some areas that can be considered culty? Is there perhaps a better term (like "high demand religion") to better facilitate conversations about this subject? Listen to the discussion and share your bridge-building thoughts in an email to LDSBridgeBuilders@gmail.com if you would like us to read your comments on a future episode. Show notes: Steven Hassan's BITE Model of Authoritarian Control Take the Is it Culty Quiz and share a screenshot of your results to our email so we can see how our listeners feel Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/latter-day-bridge-builders/donations

This is our first episode in a limited series called "Tackling Clichés" where we discuss several quips often used in discussions about Mormonism. Usually, these clichés are used as "gotcha" statements and end conversations instead of opening discussions. In this series, we will discuss what is true about the statement and where we may take things too far. The phrase, "you can leave the church, but you can't leave it alone" is often used by members of the church in reference to ex-members. Ex-Mormons have a complicated relationship with the church and often have some serious issues that they want to discuss. When we try to diminish or downplay these experiences, ex-members may feel like they are not being heard. Though there are times when ex-members really do be overly critical of the church. If you have insights on this cliché or want to send us other feedback please send an email to LDSBridgeBuilders@gmail.com Salt Lake Tribune article: Commentary: Why can’t ex-Mormons just leave the LDS Church alone? Turns out, most do. Another good article by a nuanced/progressive member Nate Bagley Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/latter-day-bridge-builders/donations

Boundaries. What are they? Why are they important? Mitch and Garrett express some of their views on boundaries and some ways that both members and ex-members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints may be crossing a boundary they don't know is there. Please leave us a review, or send us an email with feedback: LDSBridgeBuilders@gmail.com Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/latter-day-bridge-builders/donations

DISCLAIMER: No specific information about "Anti-Mormon" material is presented in this episode. Our podcast does not want to create or share doubt/disbelief in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints or its doctrine. In today's discussion, Garrett and Mitch talk about why they think people leave or become less active/believing in Mormonism. And if those are valid reasons or not. SPOILER ALERT: They are! We would love it if you could leave us a review/rating and share this episode with your friends/family if you think it could help! Send us an email to LDSBridgeBuilders@gmail.com with any feedback, questions, or concerns. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/latter-day-bridge-builders/donations

In today's episode, Garrett and Mitch discuss why they think people join or stay in the LDS church. And if those are valid reasons or not. SPOILER ALERT: They are! We would love it if you could leave us a review/rating and share this episode with your friends/family if you think it could help! Send us an email to LDSBridgeBuilders@gmail.com with any feedback, questions, or concerns. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/latter-day-bridge-builders/donations

In this episode, we explain what we want to accomplish with this podcast, as well as some rules that we have for ourselves and any potential guests we may have in the future. Our first two episodes will drop next week on Aug 14, 2022. Here are their titles: Episode #1 - Why do people stay in the LDS church? Are they valid in their decision to stay? Episode #2 - Why do people leave Mormonism? Are they valid in that choice? Send us an email to LDSBridgeBuilders@gmail.com with any feedback, questions or concerns. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/latter-day-bridge-builders/donations