Faith Transitions

Welcome to another great edition of the Faith Transitions podcast. Today we are joined by Brittany Mangelson. Brittany grew up an active member of the LDS tradition, but after experiencing a painful few years that challenged her “worldview” she decided to leave the faith tradition of her childhood and early adult life. Brittany shares how issues around things like gender roles, certainty, polygamy, and et cetera lead to her painful separation and ultimate joyful reunion with faith within the Community of Christ. You can find and connect with Brittany at Project Zion.

We are excited to bring you a new episode of the Faith Transitions podcast! This edition represents one of the primary goals we have for this project. To briefly explain, our guest today was inspired to share her story as she listened to other people share. After listening, she felt that her story might bring other people a sense of comfort and a sense of solidarity. In honor of a previous episode that she found particularly inspiring (Ep 10), she has asked that we call her by the name Beth. Based on some of her social relationships and circumstances, our guest for this episode felt it was best to use a pseudonym. We hope this will encourage some of you who also feel that your situation might prevent you from sharing what we consider here to be the most important part of the journey: your story! Beth shares with us her conversion story in a “mixed home,” as well as attending a Mormon university, marriage to a true blue believing member, and their disaffection with their faith and the struggles the transition has brought to their social relationships with friends and family.

Today on Faith Transitions we are joined by Bill Reel. Bill talks to us about his conversion to Mormonism during high school in Ohio, dealing with transitions related to church history, and serving as a Mormon bishop while going through a major change in belief. Bill also talks about his time working with the Mormon apologetic group Fair Mormon, and much more! You can find and connect with Bill at his podcast webpage, called Mormon Discussion.

Join us for this episode of the Faith Transitions podcast as we discuss with Richard and Sarah the overlapping nature of their transition stories. Richard was born and raised in the Mormon church, served a mission in West Africa, and graduated from BYU. Sarah was raised in a devout Catholic family and was baptized into the Mormon church while in college. They discuss with us early faith and family, conversion, disillusion, challenges with guilt, shame, pornography, and historical Mormon doctrines and practices. You can also find and connect with Sarah & Richard online at, Another Mormon Podcast. Wishing all of the FT.com listeners a continued happy new year; here’s to an amazing 2016!

Today we welcome Beth Simmons to the Faith Transitions podcast. Beth’s transition story takes her through some interesting twists and turns, including a calling to the ministry and a wrestle with finding a place of comfort as a feminist and a “boundary pusher” within that calling. Beth is a self described theologian, ecofeminist, artist, quilter, mistress of divinity, mother, auntie, pastor, writer, singer, and radical lover of humanity. In the spirit of a season of giving, we will also be posting more than our committed two (2) per month, releasing three, possibly even four new transition stories in December of 2015. Stay tuned, more to come very soon!

Today we post an off schedule interview with Thomas Wirthlin McConkie. We are bumping this episode to this week because we spent time talking about the recent policy changes to the Mormon Church’s Handbook of Instructions regarding same-gender couples and their children (from LDS.org, from Mormon Newsroom, and follow up clarification from LDS.org). Given the impact of this update, we are posting Thomas’s story off schedule to provide some words and thoughts as people navigate these difficult changes. Thomas Wirthlin McConkie comes back to Mormonism through, in his words, the “backdoor of Zen Buddhism.” Thomas has written a book called Navigating Mormon Faith Crisis: A Simple Developmental Map. The book was written for people who find themselves navigating a transition in their faith. The book also serves as a resource for people who may have a friend or family member going through a faith transition; someone in need of guidance about how to gain an understanding of often crisis making challenges to faith. Next month we begin posting our first series of non-Mormon transition stories. More on that on December 1, 2015.

Join us in this episode of Faith Transitions as we discuss with author Jessica Finnigan some very compelling stories about the ups and downs of her struggle with faith and doubt (including run-ins with her priesthood leadership). Jessica is a contributor to a range of religious studies topics, including Mormon studies, and is an occasional blogger at Rational Faiths. Jessica holds graduate degrees from both the University of Cambridge and King’s College London, emphasizing Religious Studies. Her story begins in the Lutheran tradition, finds its way to the Methodist church, and then to Mormonism. Jessica and her family have now transitioned out of the Mormon faith. This episode represents the close of our opening “series” of transition stories within Mormonism. The series does not represent our conclusion with the Mormon faith. In fact, in November we will be presenting two more Mormon transition stories. Our decision to present two additional Mormon transition stories together relates to the topic of race within Mormonism. We felt it timely to contribute these two stories now given the new callings into church leadership, a “change” that is challenging people’s assumptions about what it means to be a Mormon, and what it means to be represented by one’s ecclesiastical leaders (example from recent New York Times article). Watch for that on Nov. 1.

In this episode of the FT podcast, we discuss with author and editor Jana Riess, how her faith journey has shaped her life. Before beginning, during our pre-cast chat, Jana asked us a question about the purpose of our project. We felt like the answers we gave might be useful to folks just joining us here at FT, especially if you haven’t had the opportunity to listen to the “who we are” introduction. Next week we post our discussion with Lindsay Hansen-Park about her FT journey and complete a bit of a series we have going this month.More on that next Monday, 19 October 2015.

Restructuring faith is a difficult individual struggle; that struggle is often compounded by relationships with the people in our lives–people who have often come to know us in tandem with our faith traditions. In this episode of FT, we interview a couple who have transitioned at different points in their married lives. We ask them how their transitions have impacted their marriage, as well as, extended family relationships . Episode 3 will be posted on Monday 12, October 2015. Join us as we interview Jana Riess about her faith transitions.

In this episode, Nancy and Rob welcome Dan Wotherspoon as the first FT.com guest. Among many other projects, Dan is the voice and host of the Mormon Matters Podcast. Join us as we listen to Dan’s transition story. Next Monday, 5 October 2015, we will be posting our interview with a couple (Mandy and Jake) as they have transitioned in their faith. The episode offers a unique perspective on how a couple has wrestled with faith and doubt and how this has impacted their relationships and family.  

Ep. 000 is now live. In this “episode” Rob & Nancy ask each other a series of questions to introduce you to the people/voices behind the Faith Transitions podcast project. Ep. 001 – Dan Wotherspoon will be posted on Oct. 1st