Libsyn Directory

Ep 170 — Death Penalty pt. 1

Release Date: 02/19/2025

Ep 184 — Are Mormons Christian | The Christ Who Heals pt. 1

Glass Box Podcast

Are Mormons Christian? According to most Christians, no. According to them, Jesus Christ is literally in the name of the church! We dig into the bedrock on this issue to see what does or does not qualify as “Christian”. After that, we dive into the final of the Givens trilogy, The Christ Who Heals. It’s more or less a 130-page missionary discussion with a few dribbles of ancient theologian writings. After that we talk about a statue being built to Robert Smalls in South Carolina. Show Notes: Jesus in Islam: Jewish views on Jesus: Buddhism and...

Ep 183 — Hatch & Jones, Victims of Mormon Violence w/ Belle Holsinger | The Godfather

Glass Box Podcast

You asked for it and you got it! We interviewed Belle Holsinger who we talked about last episode in our Sunstone recap. She gave us the absolutely riveting information from her presentation at Sunstone titled “Bearing witness: The castration and murder of Henry Jones and his mother, Hannah Jones Gailey Hatch.” Following our time with Belle, we watched The Godfather because what OTHER movie is as fitting? We then closed with some incredible new breakthroughs in cancer research. Enjoy! Show Notes: Belle’s Contact information: MOGP: The Godfather ...

Ep 182 — Sunstone 2025 Wrap-up

Glass Box Podcast

We went to Sunstone Symposium in SLC, like we try to do every year! It was fantastic and a great place to meet good folks, visit old friends, and learn new things along the way. We discuss some of our favorite sessions and experiences from this year’s Mormon conference. Check out Sunstone and consider attending next year! Other appearances: Chris Shelton interviewed us in the beginning of a series on Mormonism on his Speaking of Cults series. He has had MANY different fascinating people on so go take a look! Here is the whole playlist: Email: ...

Ep 181 — Word Vomit and Verbosity | The Crucible of Doubt pt. 3

Glass Box Podcast

Your two favorite long winded podcasters are talking about word vomit and verbosity today, which is particularly fitting since today’s Sword of Laman segment covers the last part of the 2nd Givens book, The Crucible of Doubt. We then cleanse your palette with some good news out of Illinois. Enjoy! Sword of Laman: Happy News: Illinois keeps 988 lifeline for LGBTQIA+ youth even after national extension hangs up: Other appearances: Chris Shelton interviewed us in the beginning of a series on Mormonism on his Speaking of Cults series. He has...

Ep 180 — John Taylor 1886 Permanent Polygamy Revelation | National Treasure

Glass Box Podcast

The Church History Library of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints just dropped a revelatory bomb on the Mormon history community and we’re gunna talk about it. John Taylor (prophet 1880-1887) wrote a revelation saying that the new and everlasting covenant is actually “everlasting” and cannot be revoked or abrogated. However, the prophet after Taylor, Wilford Woodruff, wrote the First Manifesto bringing the church into compliance with the law of the land. However, plural marriages continued to be performed. The Reed Smoot hearings turned the eyes of the nation to the kingdom...

Ep 179 — Great Leaders | Crucible of Doubt pt. 2

Glass Box Podcast

Let’s talk leaders. What qualities does a great leader have? What’s the difference between a good and great leader? And we talk about three leaders in history. In our Sword of Laman segment, we cover the next few chapters of the Givens’ book. And to clear your palette, we share a news article about a charitable move Bill Gates is making. Enjoy! Show Notes: What is Ethical Leadership and Why is it Important?: What Great Leaders do that Good Leaders Don’t: Elizabeth I: Queen Elizabeth I: The controversies and accomplishments:...

Ep 178 — Nov ‘15 Policy 10-yr Retrospective | Rafiki (2018)

Glass Box Podcast

Not only is it Pride month but it’s also been almost 10 years since the Mormon church issued their policy against the children of LGBTQIA+ parents. We take a look at the effects that policy had, the increasingly draconian measures the government is taking, and we read between the lines of Mormon church policies. We also look at the measures people are taking to improve the lives of LGBTQIA+. For Media of Great Price, we watched the lovely 2018 movie Rafiki about two lesbian women in Kenya. And we end with good news out of Paris about a new monument. Happy Pride Month! Show...

Ep 177 — Doubts | The Crucible of Doubt

Glass Box Podcast

We’re talking about the bane of the Q15’s existence! Doubts of the members. We discuss the terrible way they are dealt with which leads into the second installment of the Givens’ trilogy — The Crucible of Doubt — Reflections on the Quest for Faith. Following that we have some good news out of El Paso where the Consulate General of Mexico gave out free measles vaccines to children and adults in El Paso, Texas. Show Notes: Jana Riess: Who is leaving the LDS church? Eight key survey findings: When Doubts and Questions Arise by Adam...

Ep 176 — Mormon fasting vs other religions | South Park

Glass Box Podcast

Fasting! In all its forms and purposes. We take a wander through world religions to see how fasting plays a part in almost all of them. Mormon fasting is far less peculiar than we thought. Then a few episodes of South Park that provide wonderful commentary on fasting, the economy, and witch hunts. We round out with happy news about land being returned to Indigenous people and burn through listener mail that’s been piling up. Show notes: Fasting: Fasting: Religious Fasting: Fasting in Islam: Ramadan: Native Teachings are...

Ep 175 — The God Who Weeps Wrap-Up | The Meaning of Life

Glass Box Podcast

We’re finishing The God Who Weeps by Terryl Givens and Fiona Givens. This is the first book in a trilogy of Mormon theology and we want to leave room in the year to get through it all. What does today hold for us? We start with a long discussion on the pre-mortal existence, transitioning into existence, then ascending to perfection thanks to Mormon beliefs. We didn’t realize until pretty late in the project that the 5 chapters of the book are structured around the different stages of the Mormon Plan of Salvation (PoS), but it become clear pretty early on in our discussion. All told, the...

More Episodes

We begin our next series, this time on Capital Punishment. We start with the history of crimes throughout written history that justified the death penalty. Then we get into colonial history and how the death penalty was built into the foundations of racist America. Multiple Supreme Court rulings have shifted the landscape. We end with the recent EO attempting to expand the powers of the death penalty.

Death Penalty survey #1: https://forms.gle/S31MTYbM8JNsikpe9

Show Notes:

History of the death penalty: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/history-of-the-death-penalty/

https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/facts-and-research/background/history-of-the-death-penalty/early-history-of-the-death-penalty

Timeline of the history of the death penalty: https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/stories/history-of-the-death-penalty-timeline

History of the death penalty in USA: https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/facts-and-research/background/history-of-the-death-penalty

Death penalty in the U.S.: https://www.findlaw.com/criminal/criminal-procedure/the-u-s-and-the-death-penalty.html

Capital punishment in the United States: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital_punishment_in_the_United_States

On Crimes and Punishment by Cesare Bonesana di Beccaria, 1764: https://constitutioncenter.org/the-constitution/historic-document-library/detail/cesare-bonesana-di-beccariaon-crimes-and-punishments-1764 Overview of the death penalty and capital trials: History, current status, legal procedures, and cost: https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/overview-death-penalty-and-capital-trials-history-current-status

Crimes act of 1790: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crimes_Act_of_1790 List of women executed in the United States since 1976: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_women_executed_in_the_United_States_since_1976

Amnesty International resources
https://www.amnesty.org/en/what-we-do/death-penalty/

“The Movement to Abolish Capital Punishment in America, 1787-1861” by David Brion Davis: https://www.jstor.org/stable/1847110?read-now=1&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents