Radio Free Mormon

In this episode of Mormonism Live, we walk through the full evolution of the Word of Wisdom—from its origin in 1833 to how it functions today as a requirement for temple worthiness. We start in Kirtland, where the School of the Prophets was filled with tobacco smoke, chewing, and spitting—and where Emma Smith’s frustration becomes… Read More »History of Mormonism’s “Word of Wisdom” Health Code

Joseph Smith was a treasure seeker in his youth. But it didn’t end there. The religion he founded, and the book he dictated into existence, also bear unmistakable signs of his treasure-seeking activities, specifically the process he used to locate buried treasure. Dr. John Lundwall shares his new theory that the Book of Mormon fits… Read More »Mormon Temple As Treasure Quest: RFM: 447

A confrontation of historic proportions happened forty-five years ago; a confrontation between an LDS apostle and a BYU professor; between Elder Bruce R. McConkie and Professor Eugene England. The subject was the nature of God. But the ramifications were more far-reaching than that. Join Bill Reel and RFM as they dig deep into this controversy… Read More »Bruce R. McConkie Lays Down The Law

Former Bishop Nathan Hinckley joins the show, together with a very special guest appearance from his wife, Amy! Together they tell us about their journey through Mormonism; a journey that ultimately led both of them out of the church just three short years ago. This is one you won’t want to miss!

In this episode of Mormonism Live, we sit down with Ember, a Native American and former Latter-day Saint, to explore a side of Mormonism that often goes overlooked – the lived experience of Native Americans inside the Church. For many Indigenous members, Mormon doctrine didn’t just offer a spiritual framework. It reshaped identity, ancestry, and… Read More »Lamanite to Self: A Native Reckoning with Mormonism

Dr. Randall Bell brings fresh new research to Mormon Studies in this fascinating episode of Radio Free Mormon! Apologists claim the presence of an ancient Hebrew literary form called “chiasmus” proves the Book of Mormon to be ancient. “Not so fast,” says Dr. Bell, who shares with us a much more plausible source for chiasmus… Read More »Chiasmus Destroyed! New BOM Research Changes Everything! RFM: 445

We’re having a party! And by “we,” I mean Radio Free Mormon and Kolby Reddish. What are we celebrating? Finally getting through our over-one-year dismantling of Austin Fife’s “Lite on Truth” Letter! And everybody is invited to this party! You will be able to join us in the studio by way of streamyard link. We… Read More »Mormon Truth Bombs: RFM: 444

Sam Young is the legend who did amazing things almost a decade ago to protect children in the Mormon Church. Of course, the Mormon Church didn’t appreciate Sam’s efforts to protect the children, so they excommunicated him. This is Sam’s story! And for the first time, Sam will speak publicly about what happened during his… Read More »Sam Young: Protector of Mormon Children!

Why Do People Leave the LDS Church? In this episode of Mormonism Live, Bill Reel and Radio Free Mormon examine a topic that has been discussed inside Mormonism for nearly two centuries: why do people leave the Church? From early sermons by Brigham Young to modern General Conference addresses, Latter-day Saint leaders have offered explanations… Read More »The LDS Label Machine

RFM blows up one of the most popular apologist theories for how the Book of Mormon can still be divinely inspired . . . even though it contains indisputable elements from Joseph Smith’s 19th Century environment. It’s called “The Expansion Theory.” It was created by Blake Ostler. And Mr. Ostler is not going to be… Read More »Nuking the Book of Mormon: RFM: 443

What is it like to be a Mormon missionary in Japan? RFM reflects on different aspects of his mission through the use of some recently acquired letters he himself wrote while serving his mission almost half a century ago!

Tonight on Mormonism Live, we tackle one of the most persistent and uncomfortable questions in modern Mormon scholarship: What does DNA actually say about the Book of Mormon? Our guest is Dr. Thomas W. Murphy, anthropologist, award-winning scholar, and author of Unsettling Scripture: Iroquois and the Book of Mormon. Dr. Murphy’s latest presentation, “DNerAsure: Unsettling… Read More »Book of Mormon DNA

In this episode, we step into one of the most provocative and uncomfortable chapters ever written about Joseph Smith — “The Don Juan of Nauvoo,” from Dr. W. Wyl’s 1886 exposé. These are not modern critics looking backward with hindsight. These are men and women living in Utah in the late 1800s — people who… Read More »The Don Juan of Nauvoo

This week, Radio Free Mormon gathers an all-star panel of Mormon influencers to respond to President Dallin H. Oaks’ recent devotional address delivered at Brigham Young University on Tuesday, February 10. Front and center is Oaks’ warning about “speculation and false information in podcasts and on social media” — and his counsel to avoid being… Read More »No Podcasts For You! RFM:441

THEY NEVER DESTROYED THE HELPLINE RECORDS! Did RFM just catch the LDS Church lying about its CSA Helpline records? In order to avoid turning over Helpline records, the Church has previously sworn all the records are destroyed at the end of each day. Now suddenly, in order to defend itself against the allegations of Beau… Read More »LDS Church Caught Lying!!! RFM: 440

RFM and esteemed co-counsel Kolby Reddish dissect Chapter 12 of Austin Fife’s “Lite on Truth Letter.” They completely decimate the apologetic attempt to make excuses for why Mormon prophets have a historically disastrous record of making failed prophecies and disavowed doctrinal pronouncements. Astonishingly, some new apologists such as Austin Fife and Jacob Hansen are trying… Read More »When Mormon Prophets Get It Wrong! RFM: 439

Was Joseph Smith’s relationship with Fanny Alger an early plural marriage, a sexless sealing, or a scandalous sexual affair? Long before Nauvoo polygamy, secret sealings, or theological justifications, there was Fanny Alger; a teenage girl living in Joseph and Emma Smith’s home in Kirtland, Ohio. When the relationship was discovered, it triggered scandal, apostasy, and… Read More »Joseph Smith & Fanny Alger: Barely Scraping By

Did Joseph Smith’s understanding of God come through divine revelation — or did it evolve alongside his education? In this episode of Mormonism Live, we examine one of the most important and least discussed developments in early Mormon history: the dramatic shift in Joseph Smith’s theology of the Godhead. Using early Mormon scriptures, historical documents,… Read More »Mormonism’s God Revolution

What does it say when you have to lie to defend your religion? Time to get a new religion? Not if you’re Jacob Hansen! For Jacob, lying is all in a day’s work for a Mormon apologist. Radio Free Mormon was an apologist for ten years back in the 1980s. RFM got to the same… Read More »Mormon Caught Lying: RFM: 438

This is it! The final episode! Words cannot express how happy Kolby and RFM are to finally be finishing their two-man demolition of this piece of apologetic dreck presented to the world by Austin Fife as “The Light and Truth Letter.” But after 58-hours of commentary from these two post-Mormon attorneys, spanning over an entire… Read More »The End of the Light On Truth Letter! RFM: 437

The LDS Church teaches that its top leaders are prophets, seers, and revelators; men who speak for God and whose guidance deserves trust, obedience, and moral authority. When serious problems arise in Church history, doctrine, or policy, the most common explanation offered is simple: prophets are fallible. But does that explanation actually resolve the issue?… Read More »Does Prophetic Fallibility Solve the LDS Problem?

Beginning with the classic fringe belief that “aliens built the pyramids,” Radio Free Mormon teaches you the simple but powerful technique that can defuse and destroy virtually any apologetic argument in favor of Mormonism. This silver bullet works every time! Apologists, beware!

Mormonism Live is honored to host the 2025 Brodie Awards, an annual event dedicated to recognizing excellence, courage, insight, and impact in the world of Mormon-related scholarship, commentary, media, and creative work. Named after historian Fawn M. Brodie, the Brodie Awards exist to spotlight voices—both established and emerging—who meaningfully contribute to public understanding of Mormonism.… Read More »The 2025 Brodie Awards Ceremony

The evisceration of the Light and Truth Letter continues! RFM is joined by Kolby Reddish as they continue their debunking of Austin Fife’s pride and joy. In this strange chapter, Austin claims he left Mormonism after he stopped believing in God. Then, using only common sense, he reconstructed a new version of God that just… Read More »Why Believe In Mormonism? RFM: 435

Black Skin A Curse From God? Rumors have been swirling recently that the LDS Church is changing certain verses in its African language translations of the Book of Mormon; certain verses that in the English Book of Mormon talk about black skin being a curse from God. The rumor is that those verses have been… Read More »LDS Church Changing Book of Mormon To Fool Africans? RFM: 434

We dig into one of the lesser-known but deeply revealing historical sources from early Mormonism: the Fayette Lapham interview with Joseph Smith Sr. Lapham’s account places Joseph Smith’s father in conversation about the earliest days of the movement — before the Church had polished narratives, before later offices were cleanly defined, and before memory had… Read More »Interview with Joseph Smiths Father

Join us on New Year’s Eve for a special episode of Mormonism Live. We’ll look back at the biggest Mormon news stories of the year from The Mormon Newscast and reveal the Top 5 stories you voted for. We’ll also dig into a few late-breaking developments, including the passing of Elder Holland. Support The Mormon… Read More »2025 Mormon Newscast Year in Review

Join us this Christmas Eve for the Third Annual Radio Free Mormon Christmas Eve Party. RFM will be joined by over Mormon influencers from the Mormon and post-Mormon space, and maybe even a few surprises! Get stocked up on eggnog and gingerbread cookies! Stay up with RFM and watch the stars come out! This is… Read More »A Radio Free Mormon Christmas Eve !

David Whitmer is one of the Three Witnesses of the Book of Mormon, but his life after Mormonism raises some of the most challenging questions anyone serious about truth claims has to wrestle with. He broke with Joseph Smith. He rejected Brigham Young. He condemned polygamy, secret combinations, and priesthood hierarchy. And yet, for nearly… Read More »David Whitmer: Book of Mormon Witness Examined!

WHY MORMONS HAVE TO LIE ABOUT MORMONISM. RFM and Kolby Reddish take Austin Fife out behind the woodshed yet again in this newest analysis of “The Light and Truth Letter.” The more Austin defends the LDS Church, the deeper the hole he digs for Mormonism. In Chapter 19 titled “Critical Myths,” Austin Fife proves that… Read More »Mormon Myths: RFM: 433

When Radio Free Mormon says this is the show the LDS church doesn’t want you to see, he’s not kidding! The LDS church already took down the original version of this episode by lodging a copyright strike against it with YouTube. But now, what with Dallin H. Oaks being made president of the LDS church,… Read More »The Show The LDS Church Doesn’t Want You To See! RFM: 432

Radio Free Mormon and Kolby Reddish dissect chapter 17 of Austin Fife’s Light On Truth Letter. Easily the worst chapter so far, Austin inadvertently reveals a lot about himself, including the fact that the way he deals with critics of Mormonism is to “stop listening to them.” This was surprising from somebody who wrote an… Read More »Debunking Bad Apologetics: RFM: 431

Tonight on Mormonism Live we celebrate the 5th anniversary of Mormonism Live. 5 years of in depth dives into Mormon History. 5 Years of examining the theology of the LDS Church, 5 years of current events. All on a weekly live show designed to entertain you! It’s our 5th Anniversary special, and we’re turning the… Read More »Mormonism Live 5th Anniversary !!!

A lot of people feel down around the holidays. So did RFM! But a few years ago, RFM stumbled across some wisdom from a guy who lived 2,000 years ago that turned everything around. And maybe it will for you, too! RFM shares how he used to be in love with Christmas as a boy,… Read More »Beating The Christmas Blues: RFM: 430

Oliver Cowdery was more than Joseph Smith’s scribe. Oliver was a co-founder of the Mormon movement, a visionary of sacred experiences with Heavenly Messengers, and one of the three witnesses to the Book of Mormon’s golden plates as well as an angel. But what happens when that witness walks away? In this episode of Mormonism… Read More »Oliver Cowdery: Book of Mormon Witness