John P. Dehlin
Born	1969 (age 54–55) Boise, Idaho, U.S.
Alma mater	Brigham Young University (BA) Utah State University (MS, PhD)
Occupation(s)	New media journalist and commentator Moral entrepreneur Faith crisis coach
Spouse	Margi Weber Dehlin[1]
Website	http://johndehlin.com/

John Parkinson Dehlin^[2] /dəˈlɪn/ is an American podcast host and excommunicated member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Dehlin founded the Mormon Stories Podcast, as well as several other Mormon-themed podcasts, blogs, and web sites.^[3] Dehlin is most well-known for his public criticism of the beliefs, practices, history, and leaders of the LDS Church. [1]

Born in Boise, Idaho and raised in Katy, Texas,^[4] he attended Brigham Young University (BYU) in Provo, Utah. He graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science in 1993.^[5] In 2007, Dehlin also completed a Master of Science degree in Instructional Technology.^[6] In 2015, he received his doctorate in clinical and counseling psychology from Utah State University.^[7]

After graduation, Dehlin worked for five years in software and as a consultant for Bain & Company, Arthur Andersen, Citicorp, Heidrick & Struggles, and the LDS Church. He then worked at Microsoft for seven years in programs for developers, marketing, speech technologies, and product demos.^[5]

In 2004, Dehlin moved to Logan, Utah, to begin work under David A. Wiley at Utah State University (USU) on OpenCourseWare-related projects.^[8] Dehlin would serve two years as USU's OpenCourseWare Consortium Coordinator and Director of Outreach for the Center for Open and Sustainable Learning, promoting OpenCourseWare to other universities,^[5] and a few years as director of the OpenCourseWare Consortium for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In January 2007, MIT hired Dehlin as the Director of the OpenCourseWare Consortium.^[8]

During Dehlin's early career developing massive open online courses (MOOCs) he had branched into Latter-day Saint themed new media. Dehlin approached the Sunstone Education Foundation and presented to its Board of Directors about the importance of participating in developing internet communities through blogging and podcasting, in order to address the then limited internet presence for constructive Mormon intellectual sources. The Board accepted his offer to initiate these programs^[9] and, in September 2005, Dehlin joined the Board of Directors and began a Sunstone podcast as well as SunstoneBlog.^[10] In July 2007, he also became executive director of the Sunstone Education Foundation, in which he was to focus on strategic initiatives to strengthen Sunstone's position as an open forum for Mormon issues.^[11] In that role, he increased organizational focus on its longstanding motto, "faith seeking understanding", and worked to attract new and younger membership.^[12] Dehlin resigned from Sunstone in January 2008.^[13]

In September 2005, after experiencing doubts in his faith and subsequently finding reasons to remain a member of the LDS Church, Dehlin created the Mormon Stories podcast as an open discussion of Mormon issues, intending to give listeners reasons to remain in the church.^[14] Through interviews, Mormon Stories focused on varying Mormon experiences and perspectives. Mormon Stories has been featured in many venues, including being broadcast on KVNU in Logan, Utah.^[15]

Intermittently conflicted about continuing Mormon Stories, Dehlin stopped and restarted the project a few times.^[16][17] In January 2010 Dehlin resumed the blog and podcast, focusing on faith crises and mental illness. The podcast has featured many notable guests,^[18] beginning with interviews of Joanna Brooks and John C. Hamer.^[19][20] Two other regular hosts joined Dehlin in conducting interviews for the podcast: Dan Wotherspoon, former editor of Sunstone magazine; and Natasha Helfer Parker, a licensed clinical marriage and family therapist.

In June 2007, Dehlin started Mormon Matters as a blog and weekly podcast.^[21] The format was a discussion panel on events, culture, politics and spirituality within Mormonism. Panelists were to represent different sides of each issue, although the show later struggled to retain regular conservative LDS panelists.^[22] In early 2008, Dehlin converted Mormon Matters into a group blog and lessened emphasis on new podcast episodes,.^[23] Dehlin resumed the Mormon Matters podcast on March 5, 2011 with Dan Wotherspoon as the host, and Joanna Brooks as a frequent co-host.

Dehlin is also the co-founder of the pro-LGBT Mormons for Marriage website.^[24] He co-founded Stay LDS,^[25] a community that was dedicated to helping unorthodox Mormons stay in the LDS Church.^[26]

Dehlin briefly blogged at a non-partisan religion website Patheos.com in a current-issues/events dialogue format with Mormon studies scholar Patrick Q. Mason.^[27]

Dehlin has been criticized by a wide-array of individuals, both inside and outside of Mormonism.

Prominent Mormon and post-Mormon feminists, including Kate Kelly, have detailed allegations that Dehlin exhibits a patter of misogynistic behavior in his business practices and private behavior [2]. For example, one of Dehlin’s former female employees at the Open Stories Foundation (OSF) [3] alleged that Dehlin used his position of power to engage in an inappropriate relationship with her. After losing her job when the relationship ended, she wrote about Dehlin’s actions: “Well, as usual, he didn’t do as I requested. I went up to the child’s bedroom where I had been asked by the hosts to sleep and got in bed. Before long, John was at the beside groping my breasts (yes, the irony considering the current media situation). I was so hurt and scared and tired of the dynamics. That time I pushed him away. I had not consented. I was angry that he was treating me that way, but I was not safe because I was well aware by then of the huge consequences of saying no...Legally speaking, we did not have an affair because, legally, an affair must include sexual intercourse. We were not as chaste as 13-yos at their first junior high school dance. We did have what I would call an ‘emotional affair’ that I now understand was very predatory. At the time I did not yet comprehend the ways JD was manipulating me or intentionally using my vulnerabilities against me...I do not now, looking back, believe I had full power to consent to all that occurred. I was in great danger.” [4] Aside from this public accusation, several other women have similarly alleged that Dehlin sexually harassed them while working with or for his organization. [5] [6]

In May 2017, one of Dehlin's prominent female podcasters and employees, Dr. Kristy Money, announced on social media that she was leaving Dehlin's OSF to begin her own work, entitled "Mormon Transitions." In her announcement, Money detailed extensive financial improprieties by Dehlin at the OSF, but focused on the ways in which he compensated Money and other female employees far less than their male counterparts. [7] A few days after her public allegation, Dehlin responded to Money in a May 26, 2017 podcast episode where he largely denied the allegations while vowing to do better. [8]

For years, Dehlin has faced numerous accusations of unethical or dishonest financial practices from past donors and employees related to his Open Stories Foundation, a 501(c)(3). [9] [10] [11] Among these improprieties are: (1) Dehlin's hiring of his wife, Margi Dehlin, as a paid podcaster despite her lack of qualifications or professional background comparable to the other paid podcasters on Dehlin's payroll; (2) that Dehlin paid male employees more than his female employees; (3) lack of transparency regarding how donations are used or allocated, and (4) that Dehlin's personal compensation is greatly outsized when compared with similar organizations.

James Patterson's 2015 analysis of the OSF financials compared to the financials of other Mormon-related 501(c)(3)'s found that the Open Stories Foundation had the:

1. Highest paid executive (John Dehlin at $91,000+)
2. Smallest board
3. Highest % of executive pay to total revenue (67%)
4. Strongest direct ties between paid executives and the board (paid executives constituted the entire board in 2015) [12]

Since 2015, Dehlin has greatly increased his personal income from the OSF according to the publicly-available 990 tax form that all similar organizations are required to file. According to these mandated disclosures,

• In 2018, Dehlin took $227,308 in compensation (found on page 7) [13]
• In 2019, Dehlin took $236,021 in compensation (also found on page 7) [14]

These figures do not include the additional revenue streams that Dehlin has cultivated including moneys he collects from ex-Mormon retreats, [15] cruises,[16], other seminars or appearances, and one-on-one "faith crisis coaching" sessions ($200 per 50-minute session).[17]

From 1988 to 1990, Dehlin served as an LDS Church missionary in Guatemala. According to Dehlin, his mission began baptizing up to 700 converts per month using practices he believed to be deceptive. After reporting this to his mission president, Dehlin was transferred to an area that stoked his allergies, and he was subsequently sent home. He chose to resume mission service, and was reassigned to finish his two-year missionary term in Tempe, Arizona. Dehlin remained an active, faithful member of the LDS Church for the next 20 years.^[14]

In the Spring of 2011, Dehlin stated he had become inactive in the LDS Church (i.e., not attending weekly services), citing an inability to believe some of the church's claims.^[28][29] In 2014, Dehlin was investigated by his local church leaders regarding his online activity, culminating in a request by Dehlin for greater privacy.^[30]

Prior to 2014, Dehlin had faced church disciplinary hearings without any resulting disciplinary action.^[31] In January 2015, Dehlin's stake president initiated another disciplinary council,^[32][33] which determined Dehlin's online activity constituted apostasy. He was excommunicated for "conduct contrary to the laws and order of the church."^[27][34] Dehlin appealed to the First Presidency on March 10, 2015, stating his actions had not met the church's definition of apostasy.^[35][36][37] In July and August 2015, the First Presidency notified Dehlin via his stake president of the denial of his appeal.^[38]

As of 2015 Dehlin still considered himself LDS.^[39]

• Jeremy Runnells
• Mormon Stories Podcast

• Official site
• Mormon Stories, Dehlin's most well-known blog and podcast
• Dehlin's list of episodes for Mormon Stories, Sunstone, and Mormon Matters
• "5 Questions After 5 Years – From A Longtime 'Nacle Wannabe," by John Dehlin
• Ldspsychology.com, one of Dehlin's blogs, started in 2009
• Welch, Rosalynde (June 28, 2012). "The Odd Couple: Story and Community: John Dehlin's Mormon Stories project has a contradiction at its center. Whether it's a fatal error or a brilliant accident is yet to be seen". Patheos. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)

Multi-media

• "The Ally Within" (video of address). TEDx. November 5, 2013.
• Jennifer Napier-Pearce (January 22, 2015). "John Dehlin on 'Mormon Stories,' apostasy". Salt Lake Tribune (interview video).
• Utah Valley Post-Mormons (August 18, 2015). "An Evening with John Dehlin: "What I've Learned from 15-plus Years of Mormon Transitioning"" (speech audio). hwcdn.libsyn.com.

WorldCat

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