Latter Day Bridge Builders

Mitch Crosgrove, Juliet Miller, Ashton Smith
  • 4.8 (9)
  • Religion
  • Updated Biweekly

Striving to build bridges between active Latter-day Saints (Mormons), those who have left the faith, and everyone in between. Join Mitch as he discusses different sides of church culture in a fair, unbiased and respectful way for all parties. This podcast is a place where anyone with ties to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is welcome. Non-members of the church are also invited.

  1. 2d ago

    #042 -- The Viral Video That Made Mormons Uncomfortable w/ Abi Finny

    Abi Finny (@abi.finny) joins Juliet, Ashton, and Mitch to talk about the viral "temple to Taco Bell" video that got her labeled too crass by some and celebrated by others; and why a married Latter-day Saint talking openly about sex still makes people uncomfortable. As a nurse, Abi breaks down why comprehensive sex ed and body literacy matter regardless of your relationship status, and gets into purity culture, the pressure to be pretty but not know it, self-love vs. conceit, and the "check-mark" version of faithfulness (mission, temple marriage, etc.) that can leave you feeling disconnected from God anyway. She also talks about her "car conversations" series interviewing people across the belief spectrum, and why she'd rather build mutual respect than "flirt to convert." Follow Abi on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abi.finny🌐 More episodes & links: https://linktr.ee/latterdaybridgebuilders📸 Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/latterdaybridgebuilders 🎥 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@latterdaybridgebuilders☕ Support the podcast: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/LDSBridgebuilders👕 Merch Store:https://ldbb-shop.fourthwall.com

  2. 3d ago

    #041 -- An Evangelical's Guide to the Restoration (ft. Steven Pynakker)

    What do Latter-day Saints and Evangelicals actually have in common and where do things go sideways? In this episode, Mitch and Ashton sit down with Steven Pynakker of Mormon Book Reviews, an evangelical who has spent five years deeply immersed in the world of the Latter-day Saint Restoration. Steven shares why he considers himself pro-atheist, what he thinks drives people from Mormonism straight to atheism, and why he believes an unchallenged faith is a weak one. Ashton shares a meaningful personal experience with evangelical students at Biola University that reframed how he sees interfaith connection. And the three of them dig into the surprisingly wide and messy world of Restoration sects, from the Bickertonites to the Fundamentalists, and what it means to build bridges not just between faiths, but within the Restoration itself. Steven's email: mormonbookreviews@gmail.com 🌐 More episodes & links: https://linktr.ee/latterdaybridgebuilders📸 Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/latterdaybridgebuilders 🎥 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@latterdaybridgebuilders☕ Support the podcast: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/LDSBridgebuilders 👕 Merch Store:https://ldbb-shop.fourthwall.com

  3. Jul 12

    #040 -- "You Don't Struggle With This": Women & P*rnography in LDS Culture (w/ Madi Davis)

    Madi Davis (Sisters on the Front Lines) joins Mitch, Juliet, and Ashton to talk about something the church rarely acknowledges: women and pornography use. Madi shares how she found pornography at 13 while sitting through Young Women's lessons insisting girls didn't struggle with it and how that silence shaped years of shame. The conversation moves through the "addiction" label and why Madi pushes back on it, the difference between guilt and shame, why abstinence-based accountability models often backfire, and the messaging both men and women got growing up about whose "problem" this even was. Ashton and Juliet share their own experiences with 12-step programs, purity culture, and the disconnect between how bodies are talked about at church versus in real life. Find Madi at sistersonthefrontlines.com or https://www.instagram.com/sistersonthefrontlines 🌐 More episodes & links: https://linktr.ee/latterdaybridgebuilders📸 Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/latterdaybridgebuilders 🎥 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@latterdaybridgebuilders☕ Support the podcast: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/LDSBridgebuilders👕 Merch Store:https://ldbb-shop.fourthwall.com

  4. Jul 5

    #039 -- History as a Bridge: A Mormon Historian's Honest Take (ft. Dr. Benjamin Park)

    What happens when you study Mormon history without an agenda? Dr. Benjamin Park — historian, author of American Zion and Kingdom of Nauvoo, and former Mormon History Association president — joins Mitch, Juliet, and Ashton to talk about what it means to approach faith history honestly.We get into why history is rarely the reason people leave the church (but often the permission), whether the church intentionally hid its past, what "hermeneutics of generosity" actually means, and how figures like Thomas Jefferson and Brigham Young force us to wrestle with judging historical figures on their own terms, or not.Whether you're in, out, or somewhere in between, this one's for anyone who's ever felt like the history didn't quite match the story they were told.🔗 Find Ben's work at BenjaminEPark.com YouTube: @BenjaminParkHistorian🌐 More episodes & links: https://linktr.ee/latterdaybridgebuilders📸 Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/latterdaybridgebuilders 🎥 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@latterdaybridgebuilders☕ Support the podcast: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/LDSBridgebuilders👕 Merch Store:https://ldbb-shop.fourthwall.com

  5. Jun 28

    #038 -- Doubt Your Doubts (Tackling Cliches Series)

    "Doubt Your Doubts." Is It Actually Good Advice? In this episode of Latter Day Bridge Builders, Mitch, Juliet, and Ashton dig into one of the most well-known phrases in LDS faith crisis conversations: "Doubt your doubts before you doubt your faith." A line from Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf's October 2013 General Conference talk, Come, Join With Us. Is the advice itself bad? Or is it the way it gets deployed that's the problem? The three co-hosts explore the difference between a phrase that invites reflection and one that shuts conversation down entirely, as well as share personal stories about how this cliché landed (or didn't) in their own lives. Topics covered: - The full context of Uchtdorf's original quote and what he actually meant - How "doubt your doubts" can function as a thought-stopping technique - Juliet's experience teaching seminary under the instruction to "never plant doubt" - Ashton's take on how doubting his faith actually strengthened it over time - Why "doubt your concerns" and "doubt your legitimate questions" don't hit the same - Mitch's wish for more spaces (inside and outside the church) where people can genuinely wrestle with hard questions Referenced in this episode: Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Come, Join With Us (October 2013 General Conference): https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2013/10/come-join-with-us?lang=eng Kelsey Sorensen, "Doubt Your Doubts: Is It Actually Good Advice for LDS Members?" — Exponent II: https://exponentii.org/blog/doubt-your-doubts-is-it-actually-good-advice-for-lds-members/ 🌐 More episodes & links: https://linktr.ee/latterdaybridgebuilders📸 Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/latterdaybridgebuilders 🎥 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@latterdaybridgebuilders☕ Support the podcast: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/LDSBridgebuilders Merch: https://ldbb-shop.fourthwall.com/collections/all

  6. Jun 21

    #037 -- Attending Church as a Non-Believer w/ Colton Scott

    What does it look like to stop believing in the Church but still show up every Sunday? In this episode, we sit down with Colton Scott. A born-and-raised Utah Mormon, returned missionary (Scotland & Ireland), and BYU grad who describes himself as a product of "the Utah factory." Colton shares the story of how his sister's faith transition in 2023 sent him down a rabbit hole of investigation that ultimately broke his shelf, and how he's navigated life as a PIMO (Physically In, Mentally Out) ever since. In this episode, we discuss: - Colton's background: mission, LDS Business College, BYU, and growing up in a deeply devout family - How his sister's faith transition triggered his own investigation (CES Letter, LDS Discussions, and more) - The things that had been on his shelf for years: the Book of Mormon, the SEC's $5M penalty against the Church, Brigham Young, and LGBTQ issues - What it was like to tell his bishopric (in two different wards) that he no longer believes, and why both experiences went better than expected - The tension of being PIMO: staying for community, family, and the 80% he still agrees with - Baptizing his son while no longer believing, and the harder questions ahead (temple recommends, weddings, priesthood circles) - Whether attending church as a non-believer means "feeding the beast" and how each person has to find their own tolerance level - The Church's culture of "all in or all out," and whether that's changing- How Colton's moral compass and standards have stayed intact through his deconstruction - The autonomic nervous system response to leaving behind lifelong religious habits - Brian McLaren's four stages of faith: simplicity, complexity, perplexity, and harmony - A discussion of Jeff Strong's book Torn and Elder Holland's circle moment If this episode resonated with you, please subscribe, leave a review, and consider supporting the podcast financially — links are below. You're not alone out there. 🌉 🌐 More episodes & links: https://linktr.ee/latterdaybridgebuilders📸 Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/latterdaybridgebuilders 🎥 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@latterdaybridgebuilders☕ Support the podcast: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/LDSBridgebuilders 👕 Merch Store:https://ldbb-shop.fourthwall.com

  7. Jun 14

    #036 -- Love, Hate and PRIDE: The LDS/LGBTQ+ Conundrum

    It's Pride Month, and we're getting personal about our own histories with LGBTQ+ issues and the LDS Church. Juliet opens up about a chapter in her early Mormon years; actively campaigning for California's Prop 8 in 2008. Knocking on doors and holding signs, despite personally believing gay marriage wasn't wrong. She reflects on outsourcing her moral compass to God, the cognitive dissonance that came with it, and the quiet relief she felt when Prop 8 was later overturned. Mitch shares his own slow evolution from casually using slurs in a church environment where that went uncorrected, to becoming a more genuine ally. Ashton, coming from a place of honest self-described unawareness, and brings in scriptural perspective in order to question whether religious institutions should define a single path for sexuality and morality. Together, we explore why labeling religious opposition to LGBT rights as simply "hateful" often misses the mark, the incongruity of the church's involvement in Prop 8 versus its usual political neutrality, and the irony of a church with a polygamy history campaigning for "one man, one woman" marriage. Show Notes: On the Record: A Chronology of LGBTQ Messaging Within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — a 109-page PDF from the podcast Latter Gay Stories — https://lattergaystories.org/record/ 🌐 More episodes & links: https://linktr.ee/latterdaybridgebuilders📸 Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/latterdaybridgebuilders 🎥 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@latterdaybridgebuilders☕ Support the podcast: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/LDSBridgebuilders

  8. May 17

    #035 -- Ex-LDS and Lesbian: Crystal Nye and the Tipping Points That Led Her Out of Mormonism

    Ashton and Juliet welcome Crystal, a gay woman raised in the LDS Church in Iowa, to share her journey of secrecy, shame, and eventually stepping away from church activity. Crystal describes growing up with strong church expectations (her dad served in leadership), not feeling safe discussing emotions at home, and living a double life after a secret high school relationship with a girl. She recounts intense sexual shame, suicidal ideation, and a pivotal “worthiness” dynamic when her dad questioned her in the stake president’s office. Therapy helped her name her experience, begin coming out, and navigate family reactions. Crystal contrasts supportive friends and a compassionate bishop with systemic church power dynamics, explains panic attacks and depression tied to church participation, and shares how love, nature, and community helped her leave and build a healthier life.We go deep in this episode and hope you are willing to go deep with us.🌐 More episodes & links: https://linktr.ee/latterdaybridgebuil...📸 Follow us on Instagram:   / latterdaybridgebuilders   🎥 TikTok:   / latterdaybridgebuilders  ☕ Support the podcast: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/LDSBridg...

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4.8
out of 5
9 Ratings

About

Striving to build bridges between active Latter-day Saints (Mormons), those who have left the faith, and everyone in between. Join Mitch as he discusses different sides of church culture in a fair, unbiased and respectful way for all parties. This podcast is a place where anyone with ties to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is welcome. Non-members of the church are also invited.

Information

  • Creator
    Mitch Crosgrove, Juliet Miller, Ashton Smith
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2026
  • Episodes
    43
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Mitch Crosgrove, Juliet Miller, Ashton Smith
  • Show Website
    Latter Day Bridge Builders

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