Mormon History Podcast – Gospel Tangents – Mormon History Podcast
RLDS & Bickertonite Views About Temples
What happened to the Latter Day Saint movement after it fractured? We discuss the fascination history on RLDS & Bickertonite views about temples. While Brigham Young led his followers West to build physical temples in Utah, multiple restoration branches took a completely different path—formally rejecting Nauvoo theology, secret endowments, and polygamy
Don’t miss our other conversations on temples: https://gospeltangents.com/mormon_history/lds-temples/
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We dive into the fascinating, competitive, and highly diverse world of non-LDS temples. Discover how the Reorganized Church of Jesus...Embracing Nauvoo: Wild World of non-LDS Temples (Rick B 1 of 4)
Many people think there aren’t non-LDS temples, but that’s not true. When Joseph Smith was assassinated in 1844, the restoration did not just fracture geographically—it shattered the unified theology of the temple. While the LDS Church went on to build a massive global network of private temples, several other branches of the restoration developed highly unique, surprising, and divergent temple traditions of their own.
Don’t miss our other conversations on temples: https://gospeltangents.com/mormon_history/lds-temples/
In this presentation to the Book of Mormon Perspectives Forum, Gospel Tangents host Rick Bennett explores the fasc...First Lady of Fundamentalism (Anne Wilde 2017 interview)
Back in 2017, I sat down with Anne Wilde, one of the foremost experts on modern-day polygamy. While I like to call her the First Lady of Fundamentalism, she has lived an incredibly unique life as an Independent Fundamentalist. For 33 years, Anne lived as the secret second wife of Ogden Kraut, a prolific fundamentalist author whose 65 books she personally helped write and edit. From the secret history of Mormon schisms to her own spiritual journey, you won’t want to miss this fascinating conversation!
Don’t miss our other conversations Shannon: https://gospeltangents.com/people/shann...Shannon Flynn Describes Working with Forger/Bomber Mark Hofmann
Shannon Flynn was a former close associate of the notorious Mormon forger and bomber, Mark Hofmann. Recorded before Flynn’s 2021 passing, this conversation provides a chilling, up-close look at Hofmann’s methods, his personality, and the desperate unraveling that led to two murders. We’ll get up close and personal and discuss this crazy chapter of Mormon History. https://youtu.be/9QcITtuSxLo Don’t miss our other conversations Shannon: https://gospeltangents.com/people/shannon-flynn
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Check out a transcript of the interview on Amazon.
Mark Hofmann’s Beginning...
How Wes Walters’ Revival Research Forced Mormon Historians to Confront the 1820 Story (Sandra Tanner 5 of 5)
A key figure who accelerated the historical crisis for both the Tanners (who left the group in 1962) and Pauline’s church was Wes Walters, a Presbyterian minister from Marissa, Illinois.
Walters was asked to write an article on Mormons for Christianity Today. His detailed research focused on testing Joseph Smith’s claims against tangible historical records, particularly those surrounding the First Vision. Walters reasoned that while you couldn’t prove whether Smith spoke to God, you could prove whether he was standing in a given place on a given day.
Don’t miss our other conversa...
Was Hugh Nibley Wrong about Zion? (Nathan Oman 5 of 5)
Was Hugh Nibley wrong? Is global capitalism compatible with a Zion society? And when is a Latter-day Saint actually justified in defying a corrupt, oppressive government?
Don’t miss our other conversations Nathan: https://gospeltangents.com/people/nathan-omanCopyright © 2026
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Hugh Nibley was wrong?
First, Professor Oman challenges the popular anti-capitalist teachings of the legendary LDS scholar Hugh Nibley. While Nibley viewed commerce as being driven primarily by greed and pride, Oman argues for the 18th-century ideal of doux commerce (“sweet commerce”). He explains...
How Old RLDS Polygamy Arguments Became New Again (Rick B)
Have you wondered what’s behind the energy in the polygamy revisionist movement? Are these the same as RLDS polygamy arguments? Back in 2010, Newell Bringhurst wrote a chapter in “Persistence of Polygamy” on the evolution of RLDS thinking on Joseph Smith’s polygamy, how it got forgotten, and recycled among a new generation of LDS members who weren’t aware of the previous history.
Are the modern arguments that Joseph Smith was a strict monogamist actually new? In this deep dive, we explore the “layered archive” of historical claims surrounding Joseph Smith’s polygamy, revealing that many of today’s “poly...
When Personal Conscience Clashes with LDS Church Doctrine (Nathan Oman 4 of 5)
What do you do when your personal conscience clashes with official LDS Church positions? Why did the LDS Church transition from the fiery, anti-communist speeches of Ezra Taft Benson in the 1960s to the strict political neutrality we see today?
Oman is the author of 2 volumes of Law and the Restoration Volume 1 and Volume 2, from Greg Kofford Books.
Don’t miss our other conversations Nathan: https://gospeltangents.com/people/nathan-omanCopyright © 2026
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In this episode of Gospel Tangents, I sat down with Nathan Oman, law pro...
1879 Court Case That Forced the LDS Church to End Polygamy (Nathan Oman 3 of 5)
What case helped end polygamy in the LDS Church? What do a 19th-century Mormon polygamist, reality TV star Kody Brown, and the Native American religious use of peyote all have in common?
Don’t miss our other conversations Nathan: https://gospeltangents.com/people/nathan-omanCopyright © 2026
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How Did LDS Church end polygamy?
In this fascinating episode of Gospel Tangents, host Rick Bennett sits down with Nathan Oman, law professor and author of Law and the Restoration, to unpack one of the most consequential Supreme Court case...
