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Church History
Tough Questions & Responses with Paul Reeve (Part 6)
A discussion on consensus-based leadership, learning from history, and leading out in racial justice.
Tough Questions & Responses with Paul Reeve (Part 5)
Why did God not clearly communicate to the prophets that all His children should receive the priesthood and temple blessings?
Tough Questions & Responses with Paul Reeve (Part 3)
Historian Paul Reeve explores racialized verses in the Book of Mormon and clarifies they were never used to justify racial restrictions on Black Africans.
Tough Questions & Responses with Paul Reeve (Part 2)
Paul Reeve tackles the tension between claims of prophetic guidance and the historical errors of LDS Church leaders regarding racial restrictions.
Tough Questions & Responses with Paul Reeve (Part 1)
A scholar of Mormon history examines whether the 1978 revelation lifting the racial priesthood ban offers lessons for understanding the Church's current position on same-sex marriage.
Blacks in Mormonism: Black Africans in the Early Church (Part 1)
The early Mormon Church was unusually progressive on race — until the priesthood ban changed everything.
Blacks in Mormonism: Black Africans in the Early Church (Part 2)
Spencer W. Kimball's path to the 1978 revelation that removed the priesthood ban reveals a pattern of faithful seeking, scriptural study, and readiness for change.
Blacks in Mormonism: Black Africans in the Early Church (Part 3)
On June 1, 1978, after months of fasting and prayer, President Spencer W. Kimball and the Quorum of the Twelve received what they described as a manifestation confirming the time had come to extend full priesthood blessings to all worthy members regardless of race.
Blacks in Mormonism: Black Africans in the Early Church (Part 4)
As the Church's restoration continues, leaders reflect on how to reckon with the past priesthood ban while inviting all people to abandon prejudice.
Tough Questions & Responses with Paul Reeve (Part 4)
How do we explain the origins of the LDS priesthood ban without questioning our faith, and how do we know current prophets aren't making similar mistakes?
The Unfolding Restoration Lesson 22: Plural Marriage
Anthony Sweat explores how Joseph Smith's practice of plural marriage unfolded as part of the Restoration, why it remains difficult for many, and the theology behind it.
Joseph Smith Wives: The Law of Marriage
How Doctrine and Covenants 49 and Jacob 2 frame the Lord's law of marriage — and the exception that set the stage for the doctrine of plural marriage.