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Study Faith with AI

Google NotebookLM & Brother Buzz

151 episodes

3 weeks ago

Send us a text! Smart notebooks and pithy podcasts - that's what I wished I had when I started my deep dive into the Church. Study Faith With AI invites you to think critically using diverse sources and your own judgment. Whether strengthening testimony, working through doubts, or helping others navigate faith, these tools meet you wherever you are. With so much at stake, I wish you the best on your journey with truth! Support the show Study with our Free AI Notebooks 1. Truth | 2. Beginning...

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Religion & Spirituality

All content for Study Faith with AI is the property of Google NotebookLM & Brother Buzz and is served directly from their servers with no modification, redirects, or rehosting. The podcast is not affiliated with or endorsed by Podjoint in any way.

Send us a text! Smart notebooks and pithy podcasts - that's what I wished I had when I started my deep dive into the Church. Study Faith With AI invites you to think critically using diverse sources and your own judgment. Whether strengthening testimony, working through doubts, or helping others navigate faith, these tools meet you wherever you are. With so much at stake, I wish you the best on your journey with truth! Support the show Study with our Free AI Notebooks 1. Truth | 2. Beginning...

Show more...

Religion & Spirituality

Episodes (20/151)

Study Faith with AI

Trailer | Church Deep Dives + AI Notebooks + My Story

Send us a text! Smart notebooks and pithy podcasts - that's what I wished I had when I started my deep dive into the Church. Study Faith With AI invites you to think critically using diverse sources and your own judgment. Whether strengthening testimony, working through doubts, or helping others navigate faith, these tools meet you wherever you are. With so much at stake, I wish you the best on your journey with truth! Support the show Study with our Free AI Notebooks 1. Truth | 2. Beginning...

4 months ago

1 minute

Study Faith with AI

S12 E1 Answers | Brother Buzz's Time Machine

Send us a text! In this finale of Study Faith With AI, Brother Buzz answers the three main questions his children will one-day ask: What did you know? When did you know it? What did you do about it? He then examines the challenges Churches and believers face when new information technology democratizes information and disrupts closely held beliefs. Explore the LDS faith crisis from a fresh perspective and join Brother Buzz to explore his own choices and how he'll answer the three key question...

4 months ago

56 minutes

Study Faith with AI

S11 E18 Examining LDS Church Membership Councils

Send us a text! Episode 18 of Apostates explores Church membership councils in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, examining their stated purposes, procedures, and recent terminology changes. We discuss when councils are mandatory versus discretionary, the four possible outcomes, and the appeals process. We also address significant critiques about fairness, confidentiality, and the gap between official intentions and member experiences. The episode covers the evolution from "disc...

5 months ago

27 minutes

Study Faith with AI

S11 E19 Does Excommunication Work?

Send us a text! Episode 19 of Apostates explores whether excommunication effectively serves the LDS Church's goals by examining Margaret Tuscano's insights from Gospel Tangents. We analyze how church discipline impacts movements like September Six, Ordain Women, and Mormons for ERA, questioning whether silencing prominent voices truly stops dissent or simply pushes conversations elsewhere. We discuss how excommunication might prioritize institutional control over doctrinal purity, creating fe...

5 months ago

7 minutes

Study Faith with AI

S11 E17 Deep Dive into the LDS Faith Crisis Among General Members

Send us a text! Episode 17 of Apostates explores the widespread phenomenon of LDS faith crises affecting dedicated church members across all demographics. We examine how easy internet access to uncorrelated church history creates intense spiritual distress when traditional narratives clash with historical facts. We discuss the emotional toll, relationship impacts, and stages people experience, while highlighting paths to healing and recommendations for more supportive community responses. Sou...

5 months ago

31 minutes

Study Faith with AI

S11 E20 Why Stay LDS?

Send us a text! Episode 20 of Apostates explores why some Latter-day Saints choose to stay in the Church despite significant challenges to their traditional beliefs. We examine the complex reasons people remain connected—from identity and family bonds to community and spiritual nourishment—even when facing difficult church history, doctrinal concerns, or personal spiritual struggles. We discuss practical strategies for navigating a "middle way" of faith, including reframing beliefs, setting b...

5 months ago

23 minutes

Study Faith with AI

S11 E15 Excommunication of Activists: The Price of Public Protest

Send us a text! Episode 15 of Apostates explores three prominent LDS activists who challenged Church policies: Sonia Johnson (Equal Rights Amendment), Kate Kelly (women's ordination), and Sam Young (child protection). We examine their motivations, methods, and the institutional responses they faced, including excommunication. Through these stories, we analyze patterns of dissent, authority, and change within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, offering insights into the tension b...

5 months ago

20 minutes

Study Faith with AI

S11 E8 Oliver Cowdery: A Foundational Witness Gets Fed Up

Send us a text! Episode 8 of Apostates explores the dramatic rise and fall of Oliver Cowdery, one of the most foundational figures in early Latter-day Saint history. From serving as principal scribe for the Book of Mormon and receiving priesthood authority alongside Joseph Smith, Oliver became second-in-command of the Church. We examine how financial pressures from the Kirtland banking crisis, legal conflicts, and accusations of insinuating adultery led to his 1838 excommunication. We also di...

5 months ago

24 minutes

Study Faith with AI

S11 E13 Mormon Splinter Groups

Send us a text! Episode 13 of Apostates explores the complex world of groups that trace their origins to Joseph Smith but diverged from the mainstream LDS Church. From the liberal Community of Christ to fundamentalist polygamous sects like the FLDS, we examine how different interpretations of prophecy, scripture, and apostasy created hundreds of distinct religious movements. We analyze succession disputes after Smith's death and how competing claims to divine authority led to dramatically dif...

5 months ago

31 minutes

Study Faith with AI

S11 E6 Sarah Pratt Stands Strong

Send us a text! Episode 6 of Apostates explores Sarah M. Pratt's complex journey from devoted member to vocal critic of early Mormonism. We examine her alleged encounter with Joseph Smith's polygamous proposal, her steadfast refusal, and the subsequent campaign to discredit her. We trace how the introduction of plural marriage created impossible choices between institutional loyalty and personal conscience, ultimately leading to her excommunication and lifelong opposition to polygamy. Sources...

5 months ago

28 minutes

Study Faith with AI

S11 E14 Excommunication of Intellectuals: The September Six

Send us a text! Episode 14 of Apostates explores the September 1993 disciplinary actions against six prominent LDS intellectuals known as the "September Six." We examine the Church context of the early 1990s, including leadership dynamics and growing tensions between institutional authority and intellectual inquiry. We profile each individual—Lavina Fielding Anderson, Avraham Gileadi, Maxine Hanks, D. Michael Quinn, Paul Toscano, and Lynne Kanavel Whitesides—discussing their specific conflict...

5 months ago

25 minutes

Study Faith with AI

S11 E7 Why Did Emma Smith Stay in Nauvoo?

Send us a text! Episode 7 of Apostates explores the complex reasons why Emma Hale Smith chose to remain in Nauvoo, Illinois after Joseph Smith's death instead of traveling west with Brigham Young and the main body of Saints. We examine her incredible resilience through years of persecution and loss, her fundamental opposition to plural marriage, the financial crisis she faced as a widow, and her strained relationship with Church leadership. We discuss how her decision led directly to the form...

5 months ago

16 minutes

Study Faith with AI

S11 E9 Martin Harris: The Wavering Witness

Send us a text! Episode 9 of Apostates explores the complex life of Martin Harris, one of the three witnesses to the Book of Mormon plates. Despite his powerful spiritual experience seeing the plates and hearing God's voice, Harris eventually broke away from Joseph Smith's leadership due to financial pressures, personality conflicts, and disagreements over Church direction. We examine his wealthy farmer background, his role financing the Book of Mormon's publication, the devastating loss of 1...

5 months ago

24 minutes

Study Faith with AI

S11 E10 David Whitmer: Faithful Witness and Outspoken Critic

Send us a text! Episode 10 of Apostates explores David Whitmer's journey from foundational witness to Church critic. Despite never wavering on his Book of Mormon testimony, Whitmer left the Church in 1838, arguing it departed from the "written word" standard established in scripture. We examine his specific objections: Joseph Smith's prophetic role, new priesthood offices, the name change from "Church of Christ," canonizing the Doctrine and Covenants, polygamy, and the Missouri Zion attempt. ...

5 months ago

19 minutes

Study Faith with AI

S11 E12 The Mormon Succession Crisis & Schism

Send us a text! Episode 12 of Apostates explores the chaotic succession crisis following Joseph Smith's 1844 martyrdom. We examine how multiple claimants—Sidney Rigdon, Brigham Young's Twelve Apostles, James Strang, and the Smith family—competed for leadership. We trace the dramatic August 1844 Nauvoo meetings, including Young's transfiguration experience, and follow the resulting fragmentation into dozens of churches. We analyze how different groups preserved various aspects of Smith's legac...

5 months ago

23 minutes

Study Faith with AI

S11 E16 Excommunication of Influencers: Disciplining Digital Dissenters

Send us a text! Episode 16 of Apostates examines the disciplinary actions taken by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints against prominent online voices including John Dehlin, Jeremy Runnells, Bill Reel, and Nemo the Mormon. We explore how the internet age has created new challenges for institutional control, analyzing the tension between truth-seeking and institutional loyalty. We discuss common patterns in these excommunication cases and what they reveal about apostasy in the digi...

5 months ago

26 minutes

Study Faith with AI

S11 E11 Sidney Rigdon: Doctrinal Leader to Defector

Send us a text! Episode 11 of Apostates explores the remarkable story of Sidney Rigdon, Joseph Smith's first counselor and early partner in leading the Latter-day Saint movement. From his beginnings as a Baptist preacher to his crucial role in establishing early Mormon doctrine and organization, we examine how Rigdon's influence shaped the Church's foundation. We also investigate the eventual rift between him and Joseph Smith, particularly over polygamy, and follow his post-excommunication at...

5 months ago

19 minutes

Study Faith with AI

S11 E3 The Great Kirtland Apostasy

Send us a text! Episode 3 of Apostates explores the Kirtland Crisis of 1837, the largest mass departure in early Church history when 10-15% of members left. We examine how Joseph Smith's expanding role from spiritual leader to business leader created tension, leading to failed ventures like the Kirtland Safety Society bank. We analyze why prominent members including Book of Mormon witnesses left, citing concerns about prophetic authority in temporal matters and personal financial losses from ...

5 months ago

19 minutes

Study Faith with AI

S11 E2 Who Are Apostates Really?

Send us a text! Episode 2 of Apostates discusses Alan D. Roberts' groundbreaking analysis of apostasy in Mormonism, challenging traditional stereotypes of those labeled "apostate." We examine how 61% of Joseph Smith's closest associates faced severe discipline, analyze definitions of apostasy from Brigham Young to modern handbooks, and review case studies including Jesus, Martin Luther, and William Law. We discover that most apostates weren't evil but were often deeply faithful individuals re...

5 months ago

25 minutes

Study Faith with AI

S11 E5 Apostates Among the Original LDS Twelve Apostles

Send us a text! Episode 5 of Apostates explores the original Quorum of the Twelve Apostles called in 1835, examining how only three remained faithful throughout their lives while eight faced Church discipline (one died in a battle). Through detailed stories of Thomas B. Marsh, John F. Boynton, and Orson Pratt, we uncover the human struggles behind early church leadership—pride, financial crises, personal conflicts, and theological disagreements. We discover how some found their way back throu...

5 months ago

24 minutes