This week, we’re so excited to welcome Adam Miller and Rosalynde Welch to talk about their brand-new book, Seven Visions. This book is an exploration of seven visionary experiences in the Doctrine and Covenants—moments where heaven and earth meet in powerful and sometimes surprising ways.
This week, we’re really excited to share a conversation about a brand-new Children’s book called Changemakers by McArthur Krishna and Anne Pimentel, with beautiful artwork by Jessica Sarah Beach. The book is a powerful and much-needed affirmation, especially in a moment when many women are quietly wondering where they fit. Through stories from scripture and the global history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, it highlights women whose ideas, faith, and courage have helped shape the church in meaningful and lasting ways.
Today we’re bringing you a special conversation hosted by Jared Halverson, who’s joined by three women—Bethany Brady Spalding, Kathryn Knight Sonntag, and me—who’ve been part of a larger, ongoing conversation sparked by one of Jared’s recent videos on social media.If you haven’t seen the video, here’s the context: Jared highlighted the recent trend of women leaving the Church in greater numbers than men and encouraged women to stay, he connects this to D&C 25, highlighting how much depends on them.
We have a really fun episode for you today—We’re talking with James Goldberg about his delightful book Tales of the Chelm First Ward, which he co-wrote with his, wife Nicole Wilkes Goldberg, and his brother, Mattathias Singh.The book is a collection of fictional stories set in a Latter-day Saint ward in the imagined town of Chelm—a nod to Jewish folklore and the famous “village of fools.” The humor is wonderfully absurd but beneath the silliness is something powerful and profound.In this conversation, we explore what might be called a theology of humor. James reflects on how laughter opens us. It softens the edges of our seriousness and rigidity, and draws us closer in shared connection. He reminded us that not everything about “church culture” needs to be critiqued or stripped away—sometimes it can be embraced with lightness and joy, as part of what brings us together and helps us live in community. The idea that stayed with us most was this: maybe what makes a ward great isn’t how aligned everyone is theologically or politically, or how smoothly things run, or how polished people are in their callings. Maybe it’s just about creating a group of people who are all rooting for each other—through the everyday moments, the imperfect efforts, and the callings that stretch us. It’s about showing up with love, having each other’s backs, and learning to see one another the way God does—with patience, grace, and deep affection.We hope this episode might just help you love your ward a little more—with all its quirks and imperfections. We hope it helps you see the people around you with a little more grace, a little more humor, and a little more tenderness.And with that, here’s our conversation with James Goldberg.https://www.wayfaremagazine.org/p/tales-of-the-chelm-first-ward-introductionAffiliate link for Chelm: https://bookshop.org/a/108982/9781961471030
This week, we’re joined by Mike Petrow, who serves as the Director of Formation, Faculty Relations, and Theological Foundations at the Center for Action and Contemplation. The CAC is a nonprofit founded by Father Richard Rohr that introduces seekers to the contemplative Christian path of transformation.Mike is intimately involved with the CAC’s Living School, a core educational offering from the CAC that last year offered a course called Essentials of Engaged Contemplation that Tim and I participated in.
This week, we’re excited to share a conversation between Zach Davis and New York Times columnist and author David French. David French began his career as a constitutional litigator, with a special focus on religious liberty. He has since become known for his thoughtful, principled political writing, having worked previously for The National Review, The Dispatch and The Atlantic. In their conversation today, David emphasizes the need for Christians to move from a fear-based political culture to one centered on care and compassion for our neighbors—and that instead of seeking political control or domination, Christians should embrace equality for Americans of any or no religion.
This week, we’re welcoming back our good friend Jeff Strong. Last year, Jeff and his team sent out a survey to the Faith Matters audience as part of a larger research project on faith and church participation. Over 1,600 of you responded, and the results were fascinating! We’re excited to share them with you today. What emerged was a picture of a significant and often unheard cross-section of the Church—a community of people who are deeply devoted but also wrestling, holding both conviction and complexity, faith and struggle, all at once.
For today’s episode, we’re releasing a fascinating conversation that Aubrey had with Rich Hanks about the life and legacy of his father, Marion D. Hanks. For those who know his name, you’ll know exactly why this conversation matters so much to us—Marion D. Hanks embodied so many of the values we hold dear. He was a leader of immense integrity, a champion for those on the margins, and a disciple of Christ in the truest sense. Even today, the ripples of his influence continue to shape the Church and the lives of so many.President David O. McKay once gave him a blessing with a simple but powerful charge: “Let your voice be heard, even if it is in opposition to the stated norms.” And he did. For forty years, he consistently pushed for change—advocating for humanitarian work long before it became a priority, fighting against the priesthood and temple ban, and insisting that sustaining leaders meant honest engagement, not silent agreement.
We have been waiting a long time for this episode with our friend Thomas McConkie. As many of you know, Thomas is an incredibly skilled meditation teacher and guide on the path of spiritual awakening. Faith Matters produced his very popular online course Transformations of Faith and also published his incredible book At-One-Ment, which has deeply impacted so many readers. For the last several years, Thomas has been doing graduate work at Harvard Divinity School.
This week, Tim and I are sharing a fascinating conversation with therapist and researcher Janeen Martin about the complex and deeply personal ways that religion and mental health intersect. Janeen has spent years working with clients navigating the full spectrum of religious experience—some who find their faith to be a source of deep resilience and healing, and others for whom it has been a source of pain and struggle. That contrast led her to ask some big questions: What makes religion a protective factor for some and a source of distress for others? How do individual personality, family dynamics, and church culture shape the way we engage with faith? And most importantly, how can we cultivate a relationship with God and our faith that supports our mental and emotional well-being?