Standard of Truth

In a premium episode several weeks ago Gerrit may or may have gone on a rant about Doctor Philastus Hurlbut and Solomon Spaulding and we wanted to play a section of that rant. So In this episode, Gerrit provides additional context to Hurlbut and the Solomon Spaulding Manuscript. Gerrit also talks about the Restoration Proclamation that was read during General Conference in April 2020.

We continue our discussion of Eliza Gibbs and the trials she suffered in Nauvoo, Iowa, and Utah. Despite her difficulty, she remained faithful. Gerrit shares a letter to Eliza from Wilford Woodruff to comfort her and share with her the laws that govern angels and spirits that depart this life.  

Sign up for our free monthly email: ⁠ ⁠htt...

We begin this episode, like most episodes, with a discussion of the faith crisis of a 19th-century 20-year-old woman with consumption (tuberculosis). She has a miraculous experience and seven years later is introduced to the gospel. She believes the message immediately and despite the opposition she faced by her family she joins the Church. 

In this episode, Gerrit discusses D&C 128 and the identity of the Angel Raphael. We start with what we know from modern revelation and then bring in the Apocrypha. We talk about the Book of Tobit, written by Tobit, where Raphael is discussed but his identity is not disclosed. Gerrit also discusses the Book of Jude and the Book of Enoch. The Book of Enoch is not in the Apocrypha but was me...

Gerrit shares some of his thoughts about the responses to several talks during General Conference. He compares the responses of General Conference to the responses to “The Vision”. We read a letter from Joseph Smith discussing the response to “The Vision”.

We also had a very kind anonymous donor offer to pay for the Standard of Truth Tour for six peopl...

In this episode, Richard starts by thanking all the kind listeners who donated money to help 118 people in Peru travel to the Arequipa Temple. We discuss a listener’s question about Joseph Smith telling the missionaries in Cincinnati to wash the dust of that wicked city off their feet. Gerrit talks about the likely origin of that story and provides additional context. We also discuss the keys...

On Thursday we released an episode that sounded like it was recorded in Gerrit’s bathroom in a cave. We fixed the audio and explained how you can access it. We also give our thoughts from the 194th Annual General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Spoiler Alert, we liked it.

Sign up for our free monthly email: ⁠ https://stan...

We had a corrupted audio file that made the episode sound terrible. We have fixed the audio quality, however, the terrible content remains. We apologize for the inconvenience.

We begin the episode with how a person can resolve concerns they may have with Church history. Gerrit begins by sharing several statements from Martin Harris as he witnesses of the...

In this episode, we really wanted everyone in attendance to feel comfortable, so we discussed politics and polygamy. We learned the history of political parties in Utah, and we talked about the insanity of Idaho’s Anti-Mormon Constitution that disenfranchised Mormons regardless of whether or not they practiced polygamy. We also learned that Richard is not capacitated to pronounce the word “an...

Like every sitcom in the 1980s, this episode was recorded in front of a live studio audience. We cannot even begin to thank all the amazing people who attended the event. People came from all over the country and we cannot properly articulate how much fun we had. Many listeners to the show brought friends and significant others who do not listen and have never listened. These people b...

We finally get back to the Witnesses of the Book of Mormon. Sure, we first spend a little time talking about the Book of Abraham and the characters copied from the gold plates, but then we jump right into the Whitmer family being baptized. After much “teasing” by Martin, Oliver, and David Joseph Smith goes to the Lord and receives D&C 17 as a revelation. The Angel Moroni shows the gold pl...

In this episode, we discuss the historic purchase of the Kirtland Temple and other Nauvoo properties. Gerrit provides additional insight into the properties that the Church has acquired. 

Map of Nauvoo: ⁠https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/bc-jsp/content/jsp/images/content/library/pdf/D10_Nauvoo-Plat.pdf⁠

In this episode, we begin the podcast by talking about the pseudepigraphal nature of some of the books of the New Testament and the problem with the process academics use for identifying pseudepigraphal records. We also talk about the importance of modern-day revelation in understanding the scriptures. A litner talks about their frustration with politics making their way into their Sunday exp...

In this episode, we take a slight departure from the Witnesses of the Book of Mormon to answer a litner’s question about Oliver’s attempt to translate the Book of Mormon. Gerrit provides additional context for Doctrine and Covenants Sections 7, 8, and 9. In addition, we find out that California exports 56 million pounds of cilantro per year.

For detail...

Richard feels so confident coming off his first ever successful football pick (Kansas City over San Francisco) that he predicts the Collingwood Magpies to repeat winning back-to-back McClelland Trophies under the veteran leadership of Jack Crisp. Gerrit discusses the context and history of Doctrine and Covenants sections 10 and 17. Gerrit also talks about the items seen by the Three Witnesses...

In this episode, we continue our discussion about the witnesses of the Gold Plates, but we start with Richard’s picks for the Super Bowl which he claims to be his stone-cold lock of the century. We also read several wonderful emails from listeners. For those that care to listen to more spiritual matters the Rex’s Elders Quorum President start time is 27:17. We talk about a vision of the Savio...

In this episode, we continue our discussion about the witnesses of the Gold Plates. We discuss the setting where Joseph first learns that he will be allowed to show the plates to witnesses. We also talk about the attempt by Lucy Harris to force Joseph to show the plates or be found guilty of fraud. Rex’s Elders Quorum President start time: 17:37

For de...