The Excommunication of John Dehlin Pt. 5 - President Bryan King (8/7/2014) | Ep. 1268

The Dehlin Excommunication and the Question of Doctrinal Conformity in Modern Mormonism

In August 2014, John Dehlin, creator of the popular Mormon Stories podcast, sat down with his bishop, Bryan King, for what would become one of the most publicly scrutinized disciplinary conversations in recent LDS Church history. The exchange, later detailed in the Mormon Stories Podcast and cited by the New York Times, illuminates a fundamental tension within contemporary Mormonism: the church's relationship with members who publicly express doctrinal skepticism or dissent on matters of conscience, particularly regarding LGBTQ+ inclusion. Understanding this conversation requires examining not just what was said, but the underlying assumptions about church authority, intellectual freedom, and the boundaries of acceptable membership that it reveals.

The Dehlin case matters because it raises questions that extend far beyond one individual's disciplinary status. It speaks to how religious institutions navigate the presence of digitally-connected, publicly-visible members whose doubts and criticisms circulate globally. For researchers, believing members grappling with faith questions, and those exploring Mormon history, the documented exchange offers rare transparency into how local church leadership frames doctrinal compliance and the costs of public dissent.

Background: The Mormon Stories Phenomenon and Growing Institutional Tension

John Dehlin founded Mormon Stories in 2008 as a platform for faith-centered conversations about Mormon history, theology, and contemporary issues. The podcast grew substantially, eventually reaching hundreds of thousands of listeners. By 2013–2014, Dehlin had become increasingly vocal about his concerns regarding the church's teachings on LGBTQ+ topics and historical issues, concerns he shared both publicly on his platform and in personal conversations with church leaders.

Dehlin's situation paralleled Kate Kelly's simultaneous excommunication proceedings (for her Ordain Women activism), creating what appeared to many observers as a coordinated effort to discipline high-profile dissenters. Church leadership disputed this characterization. According to the Mormon Stories Podcast account of the Dehlin-King conversation, President King explicitly stated there was "no direction" and "no coordinated effort," though he acknowledged the timing see