Flunking Sainthood
Allegations against Tim Ballard, inspiration behind ‘Sound of Freedom,’ explain rebuke by LDS Church
By Jana Riess — September 18, 2023
(RNS) — The church distanced itself from the 'Sound of Freedom' hero.
On 30 years of Mormon belonging and not-belonging
By Jana Riess — September 11, 2023
(RNS) — I became a Mormon 30 years ago with both eyes open, and that has made all the difference.
One BYU to rule them all … for better or for worse
By Jana Riess — September 1, 2023
(RNS) — A new one-size-fits-all conduct policy seems to be one step forward, one step back.
What Mormons can learn from Twitter — I mean X
By Jana Riess — August 28, 2023
(RNS) — If you’re still calling X 'Twitter,' don’t send me hate mail about saying 'Mormon.'
Joseph F. Smith: A traumatized and beloved Mormon leader
By Jana Riess — August 14, 2023
(RNS) — Loving, devoted Mormon prophet or rage-prone abuser? Yes to both, says a new biography of Joseph F. Smith.
Mormons behaving badly
By Jana Riess — August 7, 2023
(RNS) — While the church has handled the controversy politely, some individual members have not.
Two new books untangle the Mountain Meadows Massacre
By Jana Riess — May 26, 2023
(RNS) — The books challenge some of the longstanding narratives about the attack and its coverup.
6 things we now know (maybe) about the LDS church’s wealth
By Jana Riess — May 16, 2023
(RNS) — A new ‘60 Minutes’ interview raised questions about the LDS church's finances, including whether its wealth now amounts to $150 billion.
When it comes to religion, ‘Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret’ was decades ahead of its time
By Jana Riess — April 26, 2023
(RNS) — For me, the story’s attraction wasn’t just that it made me feel ‘seen’ in my anxieties about boys or periods or bras. It was also that someone finally understood my family’s complicated absence from religion.
Bing has a testimony of the Book of Mormon! And other adventures with AI chatbots.
By Jana Riess — April 14, 2023
(RNS) — AI chatbot searches are the next big thing. What will that mean in the Mormon world?
Mormons have discovered Holy Week. Why now?
By Jana Riess — April 8, 2023
(RNS) — Here's hoping that embracing Easter isn't merely a 'we’re not weird, please like us' campaign.
Most US Mormons are failing the Word of Wisdom, nurse says
By Jana Riess — March 29, 2023
(RNS) — Sugar and meat are killing us softly.
Mormons know how the Church sanctioned racial exclusion. That policy has a paper trail.
By Jana Riess — March 10, 2023
(RNS) — Paul Reeve's new book argues the decision to ban Blacks from priesthood and the temple began with Brigham Young but wasn't fully entrenched until the early 1900s under Joseph F. Smith.
More Jesus, less touching: 14 changes to the Mormon temple endowment ceremony
By Jana Riess — February 10, 2023
(RNS) — Just four years after the most recent revisions, the LDS temple ceremony has undergone more changes.
‘Real Housewife’ Heather Gay pens a juicy ex-Mormon memoir
By Jana Riess — February 8, 2023
(RNS) — Mormonism worked well for ‘Real Housewife’ Heather Gay — until it didn’t. She’s not looking back.
