Latter Day Struggles

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Series Title: "Latter Day Missionaries": A Mental Health Resource for LDS Missionaries & their Families [Part I of II]
Do you know anyone who experienced issues with anxiety, depression, homesickness, getting along with that annoying companion, or struggles with shame and perfectionism on their LDS mission? Was that you? Your child? If you have been touched in any way with the LDS mission experience and would like a resource that is worth its weight in gold, this series is for you. 
In today's episode you will meet Dr. Bryson Ensign, a former LDS missionary and psychiatrist in training who has dedicated countless hours creating a resource that he wishes he had on his own mission. As a devoted listener to the Latter Day Struggles podcast, Bryson shares a passion with Valerie to help those in and around the LDS faith with issues of mental well being that are often not understood (and therefore not addressed ) at the institutional level. 
This episode shares his vision, sense of call, and an overview of his program. The next episode walks you through an entire segment of his curriculum (dealing with scrupulosity on the LDS mission). Enjoy!
Timestamps:
00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro 
02:48 Bryson's Background and Faith 
07:24 Why Mission Mental Health 
10:56 Program Overview: Latter Day Missionaries 
16:01 Mental Health Training Center 
20:36 Lesson Topics and Tools 
28:19 Designed for Every Faith Stage 
33:13 Holding Complexity: Obedience, Shame, and Mental Health 
36:13 Systemic Challenges and Early Returns 
40:30 Real Stories: Missionaries Suffering in Silence 
46:10 The Church, Mental Health, and Cultural Change 
51:16 Personal Call and Inspiration 
57:52 Next Episode: Scrupulosity Preview 
01:00:00 Closing and Resources
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Series Title: Religion IS Political [Part VII of VII]
This final episode of this series is our response to the point of view that Jesus did not ‘get political’. Jesus (and each of us) cannot avoid being political. We state our “politics” with each stance to either uphold or resist dominator hierarchies. And Jesus’ whole ministry can be defined by resistance to any system that placed the life of any human being over the life of any other human being. 
Listen to this episode to answer for yourself the following questions: Did the actual Jesus of Nazareth embody radical love for all human beings and speak strongly and often about very "political" topics?  Or did claim neutrality in a way that left those of his time uncertain about how he felt about authoritarian power structures and their treatment of "the least of these"? 
Timestamps:
00:00 Welcome and Series Finale
02:06 Recap of Episodes One to Six
05:01 Liberation Jesus or Empire Mascot
06:42 Scripture Lenses and Competing Jesuses
08:47 Jesus of Nazareth vs Christ of Empire
12:48 Refusing Power and Inner Kingdom
20:30 Flattening Margins and Social Norms
27:58 Good Samaritan and Bad Laws Today
34:42 Challenging Religious Gatekeeping
40:05 Taking Jesus Name Through Action
43:23 Love Over Fear God Image
47:06 Closing Thanks and Fellowship Invite
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Hey listeners of the Latter Day Struggles podcast!  Join Val in this bonus episode as she answers audience questions that will help you feel like you've come to the right place for psychologically sound resources and community on your LDS faith expansion journey.    We're not about burning anything down.  We are about bridging.  Building. Expanding.  Transcending. Including.  Becoming.  
In this bonus episode Val answers a couple of questions about relationship struggles that inevitably come up when our relationship with the LDS church is evolving.  She also shares her vision for the future of the LDS church if faith expanding people continue to gather and practice a more radical, inclusive, and non-polarized love than currently exists in our present LDS culture as groups gather at the opposite poles.  
To be a part of a movement that actively practices critical thinking and personal growth--join Valerie & others leading out in a new way to manifest what true faith expansion is.
Timestamps:
00:00 Welcome and Purpose
02:07 How We Are Different
05:09 Beyond Binary Healing
07:45 Transcend and Include
12:18 Monday vs Friday Episodes
14:32 Friday Spiritual Expansion
21:57 Live Fellowship Overview
24:36 Fellowship Topics and Schedule
30:11 Upcoming Mission Mental Health Series
34:52 Why Groups Matter
42:52 Talking Across Ladder Rungs
52:15 Enrollment and Closing
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Friday Episodes Annual Access $89
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Series Title: Religion IS Political [Part VI of VII]
In this episode Val & Nathan break down what religious institutional silent is communicating in times of social unrest.  Don't miss this episode or series if you want to more deeply understand why religions are simply never neutral!  They are loudly communicating what they stand for when they choose silence over speaking truth to power.  
Timestamps:
00:00 Series Recap Setup
02:12 Religion Meets Politics
05:24 Legitimacy vs Transformation
06:59 Silence Equals Complicity
08:48 Why Churches Stay Quiet
13:23 Truth Claims Block Reform
20:05 Faith as Moral Reform
26:01 Rethinking Prophets
29:37 Prophetic Not Partisan
31:30 Closing and Next Episode

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Friday Episodes Annual Access $89
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Series Title: Religion IS Political [Part V of VII]
In this episode exploring the intersection of religion and politics, Val & Nathan explore several specific areas where politics and religion are addressing the exact same fundamental questions around human dignity & worth; justice & injustice; and the appropriate use of power.  
They then compare how these fundamental issues are confronted in real time on a world stage as Politician Donald Trump and Religious Leader Pope Leo XIV prove powerfully that politics and religion cannot be dissociated but must dialogue in order to find common ground in questions of human value, safety, and basic dignity.  They also each demonstrate (through their respective approaches and value systems) two very different levels of human moral & consciousness development.  
Timestamps:
00:00 Welcome and Setup 
00:33 Religion Meets Politics 
02:33 Same Core Questions
06:21 Human Dignity and Rights 
11:22 Consciousness Development and Political Behavior 
13:35 When Laws Protect the Wrong Values
14:40 Christian Nationalism and the LDS Church's Silence 
20:42 LDS Shadow History and the Epstein Files 
22:52 Justice and Accountability 
26:07 Power Morality and Resistance 
28:18 Rosa Parks and Inner Authority 
30:03 Early Faith vs Transformation 
33:08 Follow the Leader vs Follow the Divine Within 
33:21 Elder Gilbert, ICE Raids, and LDS Silence 
35:07 Legitimacy as the Highest Value in Mormonism 
41:45 Pope Leo vs Trump 
51:33 Episode Wrap and Next Steps
Support the show
Support the show
Join The Live Fellowship
Listen, Share, Rate & Review EPISODES
Friday Episodes Annual Access $89
Friday Episodes Monthly Access $10
Valerie’s Support & Processing Groups
Gift a Scholarship
Download Free Resources
Visit our Website