Sunstone Podcast Sunstone

A Mormon can’t get a temple recommend if they drink coffee or black tea, but they can get one if they consume energy drinks that have five times as much caffeine as either. Launching from Michael Pollan’s book “Caffeine: How Caffeine Created the Modern World,” Stephen Carter explores the strange limbo caffeine has occupied in in the LDS Church—from general condemnation to apostolic approval.

"When virtues run wild, catastrophe reigns." In this episode, John Durham Peters reveals the dangers of Mormon perfectionism and suggests a new approach.

Esther Peterson was one of the most beloved and effective activists of the 20th century, working with John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Jimmy Carter to improve women's rights in the United States. And she grew up Mormon in Provo, Utah. In this episode, Esther talks about how her Mormon upbringing affected her activism—both for good and ill.

If the Christian God and the Mormon God got into a fight, who would win? In this episode, S. Richard Bellrock shows just just how unfair the fight would be.

History is a dangerous profession in the LDS Church, sometimes leading to excommunication. Stephen Carter explores why history is such a charged topic—and what Ethiopian leopards have to do with it.

One fine July Sunday in Relief Society, Deja Earley was asked to share a story about her Mormon ancestors. Her story did not go down well. In this episode, Deja tries to come to terms with her polygamous forebears.