Episodes

  • 223. CFM: Leviticus

    223. CFM: Leviticus
    May 27 2026

    In this episode, Casey and Skyler discuss and critique the official 2026 LDS Come, Follow Me manual’s coverage (or lack thereof) of Leviticus.


    Please read (and even listen) to Leviticus (ESV, KJV)


    Come, Follow Me – Home and Church (Old Testament Manual)

    Old Testament Seminary Teacher Manual

    “The Law of Sacrifice” by Elder M. Russell Ballard

    D&C 13


    Check out: Connecting Scripture New Testament

    Christ and the Bible by John Wenham

    Who Shall Ascend the Mountain of the Lord?: A Biblical Theology of Leviticus by L. Michael Morales

    “You Shall Be Clean”: A Biblical Theology of Defilement and Cleansing by G. Geoffrey Harper

    The Bible Among the Myths by John Oswalt (also, here)

    American Awakening: Identity Politics and Other Afflictions of Our Time by Joshua Mitchell (also, here)


    The Pentateuch by J. Daniel Hays

    God Spake By Moses by Oswald T. Allis

    An Introduction to the Old Testament by Edward J. Young

    Biblical Theology: Old and New Testaments by Geerhardus Vos

    The Pentateuch as Narrative by John Sailhammer


    The Book of Leviticus (NICOT) by Gordon Wenham

    Leviticus by Jacob Milgrom
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    1 hr
  • 222. Kyle Beshears on 40 Questions About Mormonism

    222. Kyle Beshears on 40 Questions About Mormonism
    May 25 2026
    In this episode, we welcome back Dr. Kyle Beshears to discuss his book 40 Questions About Mormonism. Is Mormonism a “global religion”, and how do we balance the unity and diversity among the various branches of the Restoration Movement? What is some of the history and taxonomy of traditional Christian engagement with the LDS? What is the LDS priesthood, and how does it connect throughout the system of Mormon doctrine and practice? Is the LDS Godhead of “separate beings and persons” a form of “social Trinitarianism”, and how is this a paradigm for understanding fundamental differences amid superficial similarity? Listen in as we ask Dr. Beshears this, and more – including how difficult it is to prioritize sources of authority when discussing LDS doctrine, and whether “Heavenly Mother” is indeed, official doctrine. We also ask about the difference between building temples and temple theology – and ask Kyle about what he thinks is the biggest challenge from Mormonism toward traditional Christianity, and vice versa.Book: 40 Questions About MormonismOther resources by Dr. Kyle Beshears:- “Wingfield Scott Watson and His Struggle to Preserve the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite) After the Death of Its Founder” (Past interview: here and here)- “’That Sacred Depository’: Biblical Content in Joseph Smith’s 1832 First Vision Account” (found here; past interview: here)-"The Phrase That Came To Pass"Other resources:“Approaching Latter-day Saint Doctrine”The Family Proclamation; O My Father“What Are People Asking about Us?”; “The Marvelous Foundation of Our Faith” by President Gordon B. Hinckley"The Only True God and Jesus Christ Whom He Hath Sent" by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland"The Light of Christ" by Elder Boyd K. PackerThe Miracle of Forgiveness by President Spencer W. KimballThe Great Apostasy by Elder James TalmageA Rational Theology by Elder John WidtsoeThe American Religion by Harold BloomWrestling the Angel by Terryl GivensMormons and the Bible by Philip Barlow“This Is My Doctrine”: The Development of Mormon Theology by Charles HarrellLatter-day Saint Theology among Christian Theologies by Grant UnderwoodScattering of the Saints, edited by Newell G. Bringhurst and John C. HamerEarly Mormonism and the Magic World View by D. Michael QuinnThe Mysteries of Godliness by David BuergerThe Development of LDS Temple Worship, 1846-2000: A Documentary History, edited by Devery AndersonThe Spirit of Early Christian Thought by Robert Louis WilkenThe Temple and the Church’s Mission by G. K. BealeRediscovering the Church Fathers by Michael HaykinBiblical Theology; Reformed Dogmatics by Geerhardus VosReformed Dogmatics (4 vol.’s) by Herman BavinckSimply Trinity by Matthew BarrettThe Triune God by Fred SandersThe Trinity by Scott SwainThe Person of Christ by Stephen WellumThe Attributes of God by Gerald Bray
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    1 hr and 47 mins
  • 221. Jeff Strong on LDS Disaffiliation, Why It's Happening - and Why It Matters

    221. Jeff Strong on LDS Disaffiliation, Why It's Happening - and Why It Matters
    May 18 2026

    In this interview, we welcome Jeff Strong to discuss his book Torn: Why People We Love Are Leaving the Church and What We Can Learn From Them. What is disaffiliation, and how does it differ from inactivity? Drawing on extensive study and experience – as well as qualitative and quantitative research, we seek to understand truly what is happening when it comes to LDS disaffiliation, and why. Do we know how many once active and faithful Latter-Day Saints have disaffiliated and transitioned away from the LDS Church? Taking us through this answer – and seeking to properly understand it against the contextual backdrop of religion in America more generally, we then seek to understand why they have left. Describing the four main reasons as “waves”, we learn about how issues of Lifestyle, Church History, Social Issues and Church Experience have ranked in how people have identified their reasons for leaving. Listen in as Jeff takes us through this and how and why there has been a shift in what people have prioritized when it comes to the “primary pathways” that have “shaped religious conversion and commitment”. Moreover, we discuss some of the cultural tensions that religious communities face today – as well as a discussion of how to evaluate what is and what should be essential shared doctrinal confession and moral behavior at the base of the community.


    Book: Torn: Why People We Love Are Leaving the Church and What We Can Learn From Them

    Website: tornbyjeffstrong.com


    Any feedback please send to distinctivechristianity@gmail.com

    Other resources:

    “LDS Church sees a record rise in converts, but why are fewer babies being added to the rolls?” by Mark Eddington (The Salt Lake Tribune)

    The Next Mormons by Jana Riess

    "Closing Remarks" by President Russell M. Nelson


    Shaman and Sage by Michael Horton

    Spiritual Marketplace by Wade Clark Roof

    The American Religious Landscape; The Nones; The Vanishing Church by Ryan Burge

    Ligonier: The State of Theology Survey


    Christianity and Liberalism by J. Gresham Machen

    No Place for Truth; The Courage to Be Protestant by David Wells

    The Westminster Confession of Faith, Ch. 25

    OPC Book of Church Order
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    2 hrs and 8 mins
  • 220. Shelby Fisher on Tracy Young Cannon and LDS Hymnody

    220. Shelby Fisher on Tracy Young Cannon and LDS Hymnody
    May 11 2026
    In this episode, we welcome Dr. Shelby Fisher to discuss her book Tracy Y. Cannon: Tabernacle Organist and Pioneering Musician, 1879-1961. Who was Tracy Young Cannon, and why does he matter? A highly-trained organist and accomplished musician, Tracy Cannon had a huge impact on the musical landscape of the LDS Community – both in his work as an educator, as well as his work on the General Music Committee that helped shape the development of LDS Hymnody and the music environment of Sunday services. Having trained under many then-famous experts in organ, piano and composition, Tracy Cannon had a vision of a more refined and improved musical culture among his people. This was even showcased by his playing public recitals on the famous Tabernacle organ for decades, for the enjoyment of member and non-member alike. Listen in as Dr. Fisher takes us through a tour of the development of LDS hymnody, from the Latter-day Saints Psalmody (of 1889) through to the Latter-day Saint Hymns (of 1927) to the official Hymns: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints of 1948. Tracy Young Cannon wrote the music for several of the hymns for the LDS church and people – including hymns like “Come, Rejoice”, “Praise the Lord with Heart and Voice”, and “How Beautiful Thy Temples, Lord”. In addition, Tracy Cannon wrote The Organist’s Manual – which aided in the improvement of the musical quality of wards throughout the LDS Church, which then had the organ as their official instrument for Sunday services. This tour will include names well-known and some less known, including a major part played by President Heber J. Grant, both in the desire for theological clarity when it comes to worship music – as well as his founding of the General Music Committee in 1920.Book: Tracy Y. Cannon: Tabernacle Organist and Pioneering Musician, 1879-1961Hymns of which Tracy Y. Cannon wrote the tune, and two of which he also wrote the text:- “Come, Rejoice” (also here)- “God of Power, God of Right”- “Praise the Lord with Heart and Voice” (also here)- “The Lord Be With Us”- “Come, Let Us Sing an Evening Hymn”- “Jesus, Mighty King in Zion”- “How Beautiful Thy Temples, Lord”“Sing What We Believe” by Elder Heber J. Grant“Farewell Address of Apostle Heber J. Grant” Hymns: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (1948)- “O My Father” (also here)George Q. Cannon: Politician, Publisher, Apostle of Polygamy by Kenneth Cannon IIEduardo Balderas: Father of Church Translation, 1907-1989 by Ignacio GarciaA sample of Alberto Jonas, Alexandre Guilmant (and here), and Pietro Yon (and here)The English Hymn: Its Development and Use by Louis Benson
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    1 hr and 59 mins
  • 219. Daniel Stevens on Reading the Psalms with the Author of Hebrews

    219. Daniel Stevens on Reading the Psalms with the Author of Hebrews
    May 4 2026
    In this episode, we welcome Dr. Daniel Stevens to discuss his book Songs of the Son: Reading the Psalms with the Author of Hebrews. Starting with the issue of how truly interconnected are the Old and New Testaments, we ask about how the Psalms should help us to see the Bible, in its diversity, as a unified whole. Is Christ Jesus objectively in the Psalms or is the New Testament often a collection of subjective reader-responses (with privilege)? What is the teaching of Hebrews on the matter, how does the author view the Psalms - and why does this matter when it comes to the claims of Christ? Listen in as we ask Dr. Stevens about “prosopological exegesis”, and how we can see that the one God who speaks in the Epistle includes and involves the personal voices of Father, Son and Holy Spirit – with even glimpses into the Father and the Son speaking to each other, and God the Holy Spirit speaking to the congregation. Why is the “divine conversation” between God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit key to the entire argument of the Epistle to the Hebrews, as a whole? Moreover, we hear this play out in how the Psalms point to Christ Jesus, and how the author of Hebrews helps us see greater clarity and resolution in the Psalms given the life, death, resurrection and exaltation of Jesus. The God-man himself is the source and substance of any hope fallen and sinful man has in entering the true Promised Land and being reconciled with the unique and sovereign God who created all things and upholds them in His power. Moreover, perhaps the pattern Hebrews models directly impacted the early Church’s Creeds, both in terms of doctrine and grammar.Book: Songs of the Son: Reading the Psalms with the Author of HebrewsOther resources by Dr. Stevens:- The Theme of Promise in the Epistle to the Hebrews: A Promise Remains - “More Than Red Letters: Jesus’s Teaching Across the New Testament” (TGC) - “Is It Valid? A Case for the Repunctuation in Hebrews 9:17” (JBL)Other resources:Divine Discourse in the Epistle to the Hebrews by Madison PierceThe Paradox of Sonship: Christology in the Epistle to the Hebrews by R.B. JamiesonThe Royal Priest: Psalm 110 in Biblical Theology by Matthew EmadiGod, Grace, and Righteousness in Wisdom of Solomon and Paul’s Letter to the Romans: Texts in Conversation by Jonathan LinebaughUncovering the Theme of Revelation in Romans 1:16-3:26 by Marcus Mininger“King Follett Discourse”; “The Sermon in the Grove” by President-Prophet Joseph Smith- See also D&C 93, 132; JST John 1; Abraham 3, 4“Be Ye Therefore Perfect” by LDS President-Prophet Spencer W. KimballWrestling the Angel; The God Who Weeps by Terryl Givens
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    1 hr and 43 mins
  • 218. Matt O'Reilly on Free to Be Holy

    218. Matt O'Reilly on Free to Be Holy
    Apr 27 2026

    In this episode, we welcome Dr. Matt O’Reilly to discuss his book Free To Be Holy: A Biblical Theology of Sanctification. What is biblical holiness – and how does biblical holiness relate to the Gospel of Grace? What does it mean to “be holy” as God is holy, and what is the role of God, the Holy Spirit in the sanctification of the believer? From the Garden of Eden to Isaiah 6, and from the “Holiness Code” of Leviticus to our Savior’s Sermon on the Mount, Dr. O’Reilly argues that holiness is an “integrative doctrine” - aiding the attentive reader to understand one of the deep threads of Bible, from our creation in the image of God to being conformed to the image of Christ. How do we properly understand holiness and sanctification without compromising the Gospel of Grace? Does man have a “sin nature”? And when Christ calls us to “be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect” – how do we properly understand the text, in context? Listen in as Dr. O’Reilly helps deepen our understanding of God, man, sin, nature – and the entire purpose God has for those who are made in his image and likeness.


    Book: Free To Be Holy: A Biblical Theology of Sanctification


    Also, by Dr. O’Reilly:

    Reconstructing Methodism: Crucial Issues Facing the Global Methodist Church

    Paul and the Resurrected Body: Social Identity and Ethical Practice


    Other resources:

    Christianity and Liberalism by J. Gresham Machen

    Against God and Nature: The Doctrine of Sin by Thomas McCall

    Desiring the Kingdom; Imagining the Kingdom by James K. A. Smith

    Paul and the Person: Reframing Paul’s Anthropology by Susan Grove Eastman

    The Holiness of God by R.C. Sproul


    Teachings of the Presidents of the Church: Harold B. Lee

    The Miracle of Forgiveness by President Spencer W. Kimball (also here)

    “Call to the Holy Apostleship” by President (then-Elder) Russell M. Nelson

    1 Ne. 3:7; D&C 82:7; 130:20-21


    Scourby: Romans; Isaiah; Matthew
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    1 hr and 24 mins
  • 217. Paul Gutacker on The Old Faith in a New Nation

    217. Paul Gutacker on The Old Faith in a New Nation
    Apr 20 2026

    In this episode, we welcome Dr. Paul Gutacker to discuss his book The Old Faith in a New Nation: American Protestants and the Christian Past. Given a construct of “biblicism” - the standard narrative of American evangelicalism often assumes or involves the ahistoric and anti-traditional. Yet, as Dr. Gutacker both argues and writes: “American Protestants never read, or argued over, the Bible alone.” What was the place, role, and priority of the past in the polemics of early American history? Indeed, how does the key role that history played in the arguments all throughout the period of 1780-1864 contribute to a proper understanding of the “democratization of American Christianity”? What were the sources so often studied and cited in debates among all the Christian denominations – as well as their historiographical tendencies and patterns of analysis? From many of the Founding Fathers to Baptist minister James P. Boyce and the founding of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary – to even Restorationism, or the “Christian movement” - the arguments among Christians are saturated with appeals to history, and past Christian thinkers. Indeed, “religious memory contributed to denominational competition”. Moreover, far from “biblicism” alone leading to an inevitable impasse during the crisis surrounding the Civil War, tradition was no more able to settle the debates regarding slavery and even the place of the Church, either. Listen in as we hear Dr. Gutacker take us into this, and even more regarding questions of the Great Tradition, the place of history, and even how the blind spots of the past may help us be more sensitive to the blind spots of the present.


    Book: The Old Faith in a New Nation: American Protestants and the Christian Past

    Also check out: Brazos Fellows


    The Democratization of American Christianity by Nathan O. Hatch

    The Civil War as a Theological Crisis by Mark Noll

    How To Think by Alan Jacobs

    Dominion by Tom Holland


    Evangelicals and Tradition by D. H. Williams

    The Spirit of Early Christian Thought; Liberty in the Things of God by Robert Louis Wilken

    “General History of the Baptist Denomination” by David Benedict
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    1 hr and 6 mins
  • 216. Bradley Campbell on LDS Theology: Joseph Smith's King Follett Discourse (Part 2/2)

    216. Bradley Campbell on LDS Theology: Joseph Smith's King Follett Discourse (Part 2/2)
    Apr 14 2026

    In this episode, we welcome back and finish our interview with Bradley Campbell of God Loves Mormons (GLM) and the Mormonism Research Ministry (MRM). We ask Bradley about five more topics that indicate change over time in LDS teaching, what these changes indicate about the “official” teachings of the LDS church, and why it matters. Moreover, we discuss Joseph Smith’s King Follett Discourse, his most famous and important sermon – and ask whether it is Mormon doctrine. Indeed, we end with a discussion about the difficulty of determining “official doctrine” in the LDS theological system – and why it matters, especially from a Christian perspective.


    God Loves Mormons (GLM; YouTube)

    Mormonism Research Ministry (MRM)

    Utah Christian Research Center (also here)


    Videos:

    - “5 More Things the LDS Church No Longer Teaches”

    - “This One Sermon Might Prove That Joseph Smith was a Fraud”

    - “Why do Christians seem to Misrepresent Mormonism?”

    - “The LDS Church denied this for 100 years...until now”


    Please check out our interview with Dr. Loren Pankratz about Blake Ostler’s revisionism about the King Follett Discourse.


    Hear our previous interviews with Bradley here:

    - LDS Theology: Past and Present (Part 1/2)

    - LDS Theology: Past and Present (Part 2/2)

    - On the LDS Presiding Patriarch

    - Interviews Dr. Matthew Emadi about the Temple
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    1 hr and 40 mins