Altar Ego

Episode 34: Brigham Young: Prophet, Polygamist, and the Making of Mormon Utah

In the second episode of Heather's Mormonism in Utah series, we pick up after the death of Joseph Smith, when the future of the Mormon movement was uncertain. Into leadership stepped a carpenter-turned-apostle who would lead thousands of followers across the American frontier and transform the desert of Utah Territory into the center of a new religious empire. Brigham Young was more than a pioneer; he practiced and fiercely defended polygamy, married dozens of women, fathered more than fifty children, amassed extraordinary political power, and governed both church and state. Under his leadership, Mormonism expanded rapidly. His legacy is tied to the Mountain Meadows Massacre, the Utah War, and teachings that continue to be highly debated in modern day. In this episode, we examine the life of Brigham Young from multiple perspectives: faithful believers and critics. We explore how Young impacted the religious, political, and cultural landscape of the American West. Sources: “Brigham Young.” Encyclopaedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Brigham-Young “Joseph Smith.” Encyclopaedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Joseph-Smith-American-religious-leader “Succession Crisis (Latter Day Saints).” Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Succession_crisis_(Latter_Day_Saints) “The Nauvoo Crisis and the Twelve.” The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/history/topics/succession-in-the-presidency “Sidney Rigdon and the Succession Crisis.” Joseph Smith Papers Project. https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/articles/sidney-rigdon-succession-crisis “Brigham Young and the Quorum of the Twelve.” Joseph Smith Papers Project. https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/articles/brigham-young-and-the-twelve “Succession of Church Leadership.” BYU Studies Quarterly. https://byustudies.byu.edu/article/succession-in-the-presidency/ Saints Unscripted. Who Was Brigham Young? YouTube. Saints Unscripted. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0wY0gQ8o0tQ Biography. Brigham Young: Mormon Leader and Colonizer of the American West. YouTube. A&E Television Networks. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0mB4L5vXK4I

Episode 33: MC5's Total Assault on American Ideology

This is the final installment of Jeri's LSD series, and we're ending it in Detroit. A group of kids from Lincoln Park start playing guitar after school in 1963, and by 1968, they are living in a commune run by their manager, getting surveilled by the FBI, and sharing a roof with someone on the bureau's ten most wanted list. MC5 was performing punk rock before anyone had a name for it. This episode is about MC5's history, impact on culture, their relationship to LSD, and how a revolutionary-minded poet saw a broke Detroit cover band as the vessel for revolution. Kick Out The Jams (Live Recording): https://open.spotify.com/track/1cLfXnBwTFuRngRZfQeLof?si=1445176dcf9d4370 Sources: * Boisvert, L. (2026, April 16). 57 years ago, MC5 got booted from Elektra Records after profanity-laden magazine ad. VICE. https://www.vice.com/en/article/57-years-ago-mc5-got-booted-from-elektra-records-after-profanity-laden-magazine-ad/ [https://www.vice.com/en/article/57-years-ago-mc5-got-booted-from-elektra-records-after-profanity-laden-magazine-ad/] * Wikipedia contributors. (2025). MC5. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MC5 [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MC5] * Every Record Tells A Story. (2021, September 14). Recalled and censored: The story of the MC5's Kick Out the Jams. https://everyrecordtellsastory.com/2021/09/14/recalled-and-censored-the-story-of-the-mc5s-kick-out-the-jams/ [https://everyrecordtellsastory.com/2021/09/14/recalled-and-censored-the-story-of-the-mc5s-kick-out-the-jams/]

Ep 32: Joseph Smith: Prophet, Polygamy, and the Birth of Mormonism

Content Warning: This episode discusses polygamy, coercion, and religious control within a historical context. Joseph Smith is known as the founder of Mormonism, a prophet to millions and a figure surrounded by faith, devotion, and controversy. But the story of how the religion began is far more complex than many realize. In this episode, we step into early 1800s America to trace Smith’s rise from obscurity to religious authority. We unpack the origins of his revelations, the creation of the Book of Mormon, and the structure of the movement he built. Along the way, we examine the role of secrecy, power, and polygamy within the early church, including the relationships that have sparked ongoing debate and criticism. This is not a story told to sensationalize. It is an exploration of belief, influence, and the ways people can shape and be shaped by faith. With historical context and careful attention to the human impact, we look at the man behind the movement and the foundation that continues to influence millions today. SOURCES & Further Reading: Corey Miller. What Do Mormons Really Believe? PBS NewsHour (Correction: actually published by Phoenix Seminary). April 27, 2022.  The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Plural Marriage in Kirtland and Nauvoo. Gospel Topics Essays. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/history/topics/plural-marriage-in-kirtland-and-nauvoo The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Doctrine and Covenants, Section 132. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/132 [https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/132] Richard Lyman Bushman. Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling. Alfred A. Knopf, 2005. Fawn M. Brodie. No Man Knows My History: The Life of Joseph Smith. Vintage Books, 1971. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Becoming Like God. Gospel Topics Essays. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics/becoming-like-god [https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics/becoming-like-god] The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Word of Wisdom. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics/word-of-wisdom [https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics/word-of-wisdom] The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Book of Mormon Translation. Gospel Topics Essays. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/history/topics/book-of-mormon-translation [https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/history/topics/book-of-mormon-translation] Terryl L. Givens. The Book of Mormon: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press, 2009. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Book of Mormon Translation. Gospel Topics Essays. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/history/topics/book-of-mormon-translation [https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/history/topics/book-of-mormon-translation] The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Book of Mormon. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/bofm [https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/bofm] The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Joseph Smith History 1. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/pgp/js-h/1 [https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/pgp/js-h/1] Richard Lyman Bushman. Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling. Alfred A. Knopf, 2005. Terryl L. Givens. The Book of Mormon: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press, 2009. J. Gordon Melton. Encyclopedia of American Religions. Gale, 2010. Fawn M. Brodie. No Man Knows My History: The Life of Joseph Smith. Vintage Books, 1971. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Brigham Young. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/history/topics/brigham-young [https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/history/topics/brigham-young] Leonard J. Arrington. Brigham Young: American Moses. University of Illinois Press, 1985. John G. Turner. Brigham Young: Pioneer Prophet. Harvard University Press, 2012. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Mormon Pioneer Overland Travel. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/history/topics/pioneer-overland-travel [https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/history/topics/pioneer-overland-travel] Utah War. Utah War, 1857–1858. https://history.utah.gov/utah-war [https://history.utah.gov/utah-war] Richard Lyman Bushman. Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling. Alfred A. Knopf, 2005. Grenfell, Alyssa. Joseph Smith’s Polygamy Cult. YouTube, 2025. https://youtu.be/4BJqFHEyW4s [https://youtu.be/4BJqFHEyW4s]  Remembering the Wives of Joseph Smith. Wives of Joseph Smith, n.d. https://www.wivesofjosephsmith.org/PDFBooklet/PDFBooklet.pdf [https://www.wivesofjosephsmith.org/PDFBooklet/PDFBooklet.pdf]

Episode 31: The White Panther Party: The Most Misunderstood Movement of the 1960s

Founded in 1968 as a radical response to systemic racism and state power, the group openly aligned themselves with the Black Panther Party as supporters. Once referred to by the FBI as one of the most dangerous and threatening groups in America. Their message was simple and controversial: white Americans had a responsibility to dismantle oppressive systems from within. How? Through altering relationship to self… including altered consciousness with a substance known to all as LSD. In this episode, we unpack the origins of the White Panther Party, the ultimate dismantling by state interference, their ties to counterculture movements, mind altering drugs and Rock.

Episode 30: The Crossroads Legend: Did Robert Johnson Really Make a Deal with the Devil?

At a quiet crossroads in the Mississippi Delta, a legend was born. Robert Johnson is one of the most influential blues musicians of all time. His music shaped generations, yet his story is wrapped in something far darker. According to folklore, Johnson disappeared as an unremarkable guitarist and returned with a talent so extraordinary that people struggled to explain it. The answer, some believed, was simple and unsettling. He had made a deal with the devil. In this episode, we explore the origins of the crossroads myth and how it became tied to Johnson’s life and legacy. We look at the cultural and spiritual significance of crossroads in African American folklore and Hoodoo traditions, where these spaces were seen as places of transformation, power, and exchange. We also examine how religion, fear, and storytelling shaped the narrative, and why this legend has endured for nearly a century. Was it a supernatural pact, a carefully crafted persona, or something else entirely? Sources: Crossroads (folklore and mythology) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crossroads_(folklore) Robert Johnson – Biography and legacy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Johnson Tommy Johnson – Origins of the crossroads legend https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_Johnson “Cross Road Blues” myth and analysis (compiled research and scholarship) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross_Road_Blues Wald, Elijah. Escaping the Delta: Robert Johnson and the Invention of the Blues https://www.harpercollins.com/products/escaping-the-delta-elijah-wald Guralnick, Peter. Searching for Robert Johnson https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/159166/searching-for-robert-johnson-by-peter-guralnick/ Graves, Tom. Crossroads: The Life and Afterlife of Blues Legend Robert Johnson https://www.press.uillinois.edu/books/?id=p072051 Evans, David. Tommy Johnson (1971 biography) Conforth, Bruce. “The Truth About Robert Johnson” (Living Blues Magazine) National Blues Museum – Robert Johnson history and myth clarification https://nationalbluesmuseum.org