Podcasts and Articles
Introduction
According to the LDS Church website, the original Gospel Topics Essays that were produced between 2013-2105 are official, authoritative, and ought to be considered seriously. One page on the church’s website reads:
These essays complete a series of 13 that the Church began publishing in 2013 to provide an accurate resource for its members to gain insight and understanding into some of its teachings, practices and history. The 13 essays published to date were prepared through extensive research by men and women Church scholars and carefully reviewed by members of the First Presidency, the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and other General Authorities and women leaders to provide an official, authoritative and transparent source of information. Source
Although there are now only 11 official essays (the three on polygamy were taken off the official status and replaced with one that compiles the benign information from the three essays), these essays continue to remain on the church’s official website. If the LDS Church leaders take these to be serious accountings of their church history and doctrines. If they take them to be serious studies, so do we.
Podcasts
- Viewpoint on Mormonism Podcast The Gospel Topics Essays and Transparency, originally airing on October 7, 2014.
- Fired for using Gospel Topics essay Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 June 1-3, 2015
13 Gospel Topics Essays Published on lds.org, along with MRM’s responses (both written and podcast)
MRM reviewed the book The LDS Gospel Topics Series: A Scholarly Engagement (edited by Matthew L. Harris and Newell G. Bringhurst) (Salt Lake City, UT: Signature Books, 2020). Here are the episodes for each of the 13 chapters.
MRM’s Short Introduction to the Gospel Topics (edited April 6, 2021)
- Gospel Topics Review (Intro) Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 April 5-9, 2021
- Gospel Topics Chapter 1 Blomberg Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 April 12-16, 2021 Article
- Gospel Topics Chapter 2 Sherlock Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 April 19-22, 2021
- Gospel Topics Chapter 3 Murphy Chapter 3 April 23, 2021
- Gospel Topics Chapter 4 Duffy Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 April 26-30, 2021
- Gospel Topics Chapter 5 Howlett Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 May 3-7, 2021
- Gospel Topics Chapter 6 Turner Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 May 10-13, 2021
- Gospel Topics Chapter 7 Bergera Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 May 14-21, 2021
- Gospel Topics Chapter 8 Smith Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 May 24-28, 2021
- Gospel Topics Chapter 9 Bringhurst Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 May 31-June 4, 2021
- Gospel Topics Chapter 10 Harris Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5June 7-11, 2021
- Gospel Topics Chapter 11 Taysom Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 June 28-July 2, 2021
- Gospel Topics Chapter 12 Kline/Steenblik Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 July 5-8, 2021
- Gospel Topics Chapter 13 Toscano July 9, 2021
See an article written at this time titled “Why a 4th Gospel Topics Essay on Plural Marriage?”
Review of each of the 13 Gospel Topics Essays
Are Mormons Christian? (originally posted 11/20/2013)
MRM’s written response to this article covering the essay point by point.
Viewpoint on Mormonism podcast response that originally aired May 12-22, 2014: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9
Becoming Like God (originally posted 2/24/2014)
MRM’s written response to this article covering the essay point by point.
Viewpoint on Mormonism podcast response that originally aired March 7-18, 2016: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10
Book of Mormon Translation (originally posted 12/30/2013)
MRM’s written response to this article covering the essay point by point.
Viewpoint on Mormonism podcast response that originally aired October 5-14, 2015: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8
Book of Mormon and DNA Studies (originally posted 1/31/2014)
Viewpoint on Mormonism podcast response that originally aired February 11-14, 2014: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4
There is also an article available.
First Vision Accounts (originally posted 11/20/2013)
MRM’s written response to this article covering the essay point by point.
Viewpoint on Mormonism podcast response that originally aired June 2-13, 2014: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10
Joseph Smith’s Teachings about Priesthood, Temple, and Women (originally posted 10/23/2015)
MRM’s written response to this article covering the essay point by point
The Manifesto and the End of Plural Marriage (originally posted 12/23/2013)
MRM’s written response to this article covering the essay point by point.
Viewpoint on Mormonism podcast response that originally aired September 27-October 7, 2016: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10
Mother in Heaven (originally posted 10/23/2015)
MRM’ s written response to this article covering the essay point by point.
Viewpoint on Mormonism podcast response that originally aired November 16-18, 2015: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3
Peace and Violence among 19th Century Latter-day Saints (originally posted 5/13/2014)
MRM’s written response to this article covering the essay point by point.
Plural Marriage and Families in Early Utah (originally posted 12/16/2013)
MRM’s written response to this article covering the essay point by point.
Viewpoint on Mormonism podcast response that originally aired January 28-31, 2014: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4
Plural Marriage in Kirtland and Nauvoo (originally posted 10/22/2014)
MRM’s written response to this article covering the essay point by point.
Viewpoint on Mormonism podcast response that originally aired November 10-23, 2014: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12
Race and the Priesthood (originally posted 12/6/2013)
An excellent article that discusses the essay, point by point, can be found on IRR’s website here. Also, click the following for related articles:
- “Were the reasons behind the priesthood ban on blacks based on ‘theory’?”
- “A Doctrine that was to Always Be”
- Race essay banned from LDS Church classroom (Blog)
Viewpoint on Mormonism’s podcast response that originally aired January 13-17, 2014: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5
Translation and Historicity of the Book of Abraham (originally posted 5/13/2014)
MRM’s written response to this article covering the essay point by point.
Viewpoint on Mormonism’s podcast response that originally aired December 1-5, 2014: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5