What’s the difference between a valid conspiracy & a conspiracy theory? Dr Jesse James is a research psychologist and we’ll talk about why people get hooked on conspiracy theories. We’ll take a deep dive into the traditional polygamy narratives and the Brigham Young Conspiracy Theory, giving an overall narrative for each. Check out our conversation…
Dr. Jesse James’ Background and Expertise
Dr. Jesse James IS a research psychologist with a PhD in psychology, specializing in the science of memory and the psychology of religion and spirituality. He studied sleep and memory during grad school and his subsequent focus is 00n0 the psychology of religion and spirituality. Jesse clarifies that he is using the term “conspiracy theory” as an academic term, not an epithet, and explains that his discussion will summarize scientific literature on the topic. Jesse emphasizes that his observations are based on general trends from peer-reviewed articles and his own observations of polygamy skeptical podcasts.
Real Conspiracy vs Conspiracy Theory
How do we define a real conspiracy vs a conspiracy theory? Let’s talk abut specific examples like the JFK assassination, anti-vaxxers, and moon landing conspiracies. Jesse explains that a conspiracy theory involves a suspected nefarious activity requiring coordination among multiple people. Examples of real conspiracies include the Oklahoma City bombing and the Watergate scandal. Jesse emphasizes that real conspiracies do exist and that conspiracy theories should be taken seriously because they can be validated. They discuss the Tuskegee study as an example of a validated conspiracy. The study began in the 1930s when there was no cure for syphilis. Once penicillin was discovered in the 1950s, study authors refused to notify their black patients that a cure had been found. Instead they wanted to see what happened to a patient’s long-term health if left untreated. A whistleblower in the 1970s highlighted the ethical problems in the study, and it was halted due to bad publicity. The lingering effects of the Tuskegee Syphilis Study continues to cause distrust among African Americans against the medical community.
Belief in Conspiracy Theories and Their Psychological Basis
Jesse clarifies that belief in conspiracy theories is not pathological and is based on ordinary psychological processes. He explains that excessive fear, distrust, and insecurity can lead to irrational beliefs in conspiracy theories. Jesse outlines the two main areas of psychology related to conspiracy theories: the psychology of the person and the psychology of the theory itself. He shares his experience of watching a QAnon documentary and the difficulty of responding to such complex and unfalsifiable claims.
Jesse discusses the importance of understanding both the psychology of the person who believes in conspiracy theories and the psychology of the theory itself. He explains that conspiracy theories often involve confirmation bias, making it difficult to address individual claims within the theory. Jesse emphasizes the need for a systematic and unbiased approach to evaluating conspiracy theories, relying on expert conclusions. Rick expresses frustration with anti-vaxxers and the misinformation they spread, highlighting the importance of expert opinions.
The Brigham Young Conspiracy Theory
Jesse introduces the topic of the Brigham Young conspiracy theory, which suggests that Brigham Young, not Joseph Smith, started polygamy. He explains the traditional narrative that Joseph Smith was commanded by God to practice polygamy and the events leading up to its public acknowledgment.
Jesse outlines the alternative narrative that Brigham Young and other members of the 12 conspired to teach polygamy secretly while publicly denying it. He discusses the evidence behind this conspiracy theory, including the increase in polygamy practices after Joseph’s death that polygamy skeptics point out. Jesse provides specific examples of evidence used to support the Brigham Young conspiracy theory, such as the increase in polygamy practices and the editing of historical records. Skeptics believe Brigham Young had a desire to centralize power. Jesse explains the role of confirmation bias and the difficulty of addressing individual claims within the conspiracy theory because they are so numerous.
Psychology Behind Conspiracy Theories
Conspiracy theories are based on natural processes amplified by personality types or experiences. Emotions like distrust, uncertainty, and fear drive people to rationalize conspiracy theories logically. Pattern perception, the process of understanding cause and effect relationships, is a key cognitive process involved in conspiracy theories. Jesse describes pattern perception using laboratory experiments with random dot arrays to measure meaning perception. Different personality types are more likely to see meaning in randomness under certain conditions like fear or distrust. Conspiracy theories help people understand complex phenomena by tying events together in meaningful ways.
Historical and Modern Examples of Pattern Perception
Rick uses the example of dating to illustrate pattern perception. In trying to understand why a breakup happened., many people use pattern perception to try to come up with reasons to explain the breakup. Pattern perception is used in various facets of life, like cooking or understanding animal behavior. Historical examples include the belief in demons or karma for getting sick. Some people believed that ice cream caused polio because it was known that polio cases and ice cream sales increased in the summer. It wasn’t until the polio virus was discovered in lakes where people swam that the true reason for polio was discovered. Rick uses this as an example in his statistics classes for the famous phrase “correlation is not causation.” Correlation does not imply causation, but sometimes it can be useful, even if not completely accurate.
Fear of Uncertainty
Jesse discusses compensatory conviction, where people retreat to strongly held beliefs to stabilize their worldview. Fear and uncertainty can lead to higher levels of vigilance and agency detection, like attributing a bush rustling to a lion. When people leave a danger zone, they can be saved by fear an vigilance. Even if the rustling was due to a squirrel instead of a lion, this heightened vigilance can be life-saving at times. People with higher baseline levels of fear and anxiety are more likely to believe in conspiracy theories. Rick mentions that it seems like there is a correlation between anti-vaxxers and polygamy skeptics. Fear of past or fugure polygamy can be attributed to fear and uncertainty.
Trust Eroding Experiences and Conspiracy Theories
Jesse explains that trust eroding experiences, like high inflation, political divisiveness, and mental health challenges, can lead to distrust in authorities. Conspiracy theories provide a sense of control and certainty in tumultuous times. Some personality types are more prone to conspiracy theories. This includes those with a higher need to reduce uncertainty, external locus of control, and willingness to believe in limited evidence. Extremists and conspiracy theorists often have a lower trust in the rule of law and become more distrustful of institutions.
Appeal of Conspiracy Theories
Conspiracy theories make people feel like they have elite, insider knowledge, validating their distrust and contrarian identity. Examples include the Illuminati world domination theory and the Brigham Young conspiracy theory. Believing in conspiracy theories can reinforce feelings of superiority and provide a sense of control. Both believers and skeptics of conspiracy theories can engage in mental bugs.
Proportionality Bias and Conspiracy Theories
Jesse explains the proportionality bias, where people believe in conspiracy theories more when the event is monumental. The JFK assassination is an example where the proportionality bias led to widespread conspiracy theories. A study on the shows that people are more likely to believe in a conspiracy theory if the leader dies. Some polygamy skeptics also believe that Brigham Young orchestrated the death of Joseph Smith. This is an example of the proportionality bias.
Simple Explanations for Complex Events
Conspiracy theories provide simple explanations for complex events, giving a sense of control and predictability. Populist movements often oversimplify complex issues to provide a sense of certainty. The Brigham Young conspiracy theory simplifies the complex reasons for polygamy into a single, lecherous motive. Jesse suggests that Joseph Smith’s psychological dissociations made him more susceptible to religious experiences such as revelations and visions.
In our next conversation, we will discuss religious motivations and theological justifications behind the polygamy skeptic theories. Jesse adds that the COVID vaccine push by the First Presidency can lead to fear and uncertainty, driving people to disempower the church authorities. Historical polygamy or future polygamy continues to bother many members, leading to conspiracy theories. Theological reasons include breaking the chain of authority from Joseph Smith to President Nelson and questioning the legitimacy of Church leaders.
What are your experiences in dealing with conspiracy theories? Were you aware of why they appeal to friends and family?
Wheat & Tares 
In part II, at the 13:40 mark, Dr. James acknowledges that there is a legitimate reason to be skeptical and suspicious about the government claim that the Covid vaccine was “safe & effective”. As he explains, there was no rational basis to claim the product was safe given it would take years to validate the claim.
I am literally astonished that in the 21st century it has become mainstream / establishment thinking that to be skeptical of the claims of pharmaceutical companies makes one a “anti-vaxxer”, “anti-science” and a “conspiracy theorist”. There are countless reasons to be skeptical of the claims of pharmaceutical companies – real life examples where we know pharmaceutical executives lied and covered up harms and intentionally manufactured and sold products that caused harm. There is also common sense as in the example Dr. James points out – should we trust people who make unprovable claims? In 2021, one could honestly say the Covid jab MIGHT be beneficial. It was impossible to claim it WOULD be beneficial, and especially impossible to claim it would be beneficial to EVERYONE. Yet that claim was made and repeated and those who questioned it were disparaged.
My wish for my American society and especially for my Christian fellowship is we could recognize the corrosion of groupthink. Ideas need to be considered on their merits and not on the narrative. Those who claim to believe in the Book of Mormon are given clear instruction about this. In the Book of Helman there is a “conspiracy theory” where the chief judge is murdered. Nephi knows the truth of the murder but what he says is opposed by the popular narrative. Nephi is headed to prison and only by his persistent persuasion is he able to get the judges to see the evidence for what it shows.
I find Dr. James to be fair-minded and the discussion worth watching. However, it is a disservice to the viewer to stick with the “conspiracy theory” label. Despite James directly explaining his usage of the label at the beginning of the video, the disparaging use of the label persists throughout the conversation and impedes understanding. As we see in this post the negative association persists. The label “anti-vaxxer” is presented as a pejorative when in fact there is absolutely good reason for every individual to be skeptical of pharmaceutical products and claims about those products.
Personally, I stick with the dictionary definition that a “conspiracy theory” requires a sinister group of actors. Where behaviors can be prescribed to normal human motivations, no conspiracy theory is needed. When a banks give loans to consumers that consumers cannot repay, that is not a “conspiracy theory”. That is lenders being greedy, or maybe not! Maybe the banker is trying to provide a loan to a consumer who wants one. When a car maker allows a defect that results in a small number of people to die, that is not a “conspiracy theory” but simple greed, or maybe not even greed but a simple difference of opinion on the risk and consequences of a decision.
Of course another aspect of a “conspiracy theory” is certain parties will cover up their participation. But again, it is human nature to cover up one’s mistakes. Thus the dilemma. So much of what we might label a “conspiracy theory” is normal human behavior. What this means is the ability to label a thing a “conspiracy theory” is a very useful defense! A group that does something wrong – makes a mistake – can defend itself by labeling criticism a “conspiracy theory”. We need to be mindful of this tactic and not allow guilty parties to shield themselves by blindly discrediting their accusers.
As for the JFK assassination. I am 95% certain the official narrative is true. At the same time, I 100% believe the CIA and other agencies do engage in sinister plots. And we actually know this! So labels or not, I will exercise skepticism of any mainstream narrative and desire evidence so I can reach my own understanding of matters that personally concern me.
And about Polygamy. The controversy is not who started it. It is that it began in “secret”. There is no good explanation for this and the LDS church knows it. Thus we now have the current establishment LDS movement to show that polygamy was widely taught while Joseph Smith was alive. I don’t think this effort is working as the evidence simply isn’t there to justify this claim. Polygamy in Nauvoo was highly contentious and for good reason – it was a secret, very controversial practice. I don’t see how the LDS narrative can untie that knot. And I actually do not understand this tact. Why not give credit to Brigham Young for institutionalizing polygamy? Credit Joseph Smith for originating the idea if you want, but Brigham Young is who permanently attached polygamy to the church and made it “church doctrine”.
Thanks for confirming that people who believe in 1 conspiracy theory, believe in multiple, which you forgot to timestamp. We mentioned that in Part 2 at 11:31. (Interestingly, that’s right before what you quoted at timestamp 13:40.) I was the one who brought that point up, and I specifically mentioned anti-vaxxers are correlated with polygamy skeptics. You’re only adding to the data.
You also didn’t timestamp the very beginning of the first video, so I’ll quote Jesse here.
“Polygamy skeptics or monogamy affirmers understandably take umbrage at the term conspiracy theory being applied to their narrative, because that term has a negative connotation in our culture. Indeed, sometimes this phrase is used by polemicists as an epithet, but I intended it throughout the podcast as an academic term. What I mean by that is there’s a body of scientific literature about conspiracy theories that investigates the ways they tend to operate, and I’m summarizing and applying that literature. I didn’t mean any offense in using the term. Also not everything I say applies to everyone who believes in a conspiracy theory. The research on individuals who believe in conspiracy theories shows average trends, but those motivations and behaviors aren’t going to be true in every case, I’m just describing general trends about the findings I’ve read in peer reviewed articles. In my conversation with Rick, I’ve also made general observations about some of the polygamy skeptical podcasts I’ve listened to, but I’ve listened to exceptions as well, where some pundits are especially careful and rigorous to avoid conspiratorial psychology.”
You also didn’t mention our Part 1 conversation about the difference between real conspiracy vs conspiracy theory. It’s too long to quote here, but I’ll just direct people to go to Part 1, timestamp 4:14. I will agree with you that I found Jesse fair-minded and very neutral in his presentation. It is very interesting to see what you cherry-picked.
And It is also interesting to see you quote something from the Book of Mormon. Today’s episode, which I was planning to talk about next week, is religious motiviations for conspiracy theorists, and Jesse mentions several motivations for polygamy skeptics. See https://gospeltangents.com/2025/02/motivations-for-conspiracy-theories/
A conspiracy theory is simply an extraordinary idea that lacks extraordinary evidence or is based on logical fallacies. In this age of easy access to information, individuals can more easily fulfill their desire for information about a variety of topics without having to dig too much for it through a book, newspaper, class, talking to an expert, or put to much thought into the discovery and evaluation of that information. Easy access to information has also meant easier access for dissemination. There are now fewer filters and fewer barriers preventing liars, con-artists, delusionals, and malicious propagandists (foreign and domestic), from finding an audience. Individuals like quick information they can feel certain in. And the concocted conspiracy theories provide them just that. Most individuals also don’t have the learning or logic skills to push back against conspiracy theories in real time. They spread because if groupthink and confirmation bias. A friend or family member starts talking about some misinformation they read online about vaccines or 9/11. The natural human inclination is to be agreeable and believing of information that a friend shares. No one wants to appear disapproving, disagreeable, or invalidating. So the tendency is for the family member or friend to also latch onto the conspiracy theory which they then spread to other friends and family. It travels through groupthink. People then seek out information and other individuals who confirm their biases and make them feel validated. And voila you have a conspiracy theory community, almost akin to a religious community, who is immune to reason. For reason demands evidence, disagreement, and high standards for knowledge. Individuals don’t like feeling cognitive dissonance and the possibility that ideas that they’ve held for a while and which they’ve shared passionately with friends and family are not just a little misguided but deeply wrong and based on complete lies and fabrications. It is easier to hunker down and defend the lie with bad logic and more misinformation. It is painful to realize that you’ve been believing and spouting lies.
I have several family members who are deep into conspiracy. I feel as though our relationships have suffered because of it. But I don’t blame myself, I blame them for a lack of boundaries. Friends I’ve had whom I’ve found out to be conspiracy theorists are no longer friends. They push extraordinary ideas, I push back, it causes discomfort, they feel I don’t validate them. They don’t want to feel the pain of cognitive dissonance and acknowledge that they believe lies, and the relationship fades. I hate that this happens. But it’s hard on me to have these conversations. It’s either I remain quiet and give them the false idea that I agree with them and validate their views thereby giving them license to keep spouting bad faith lies or I push back giving them the sense that I deeply invalidate them as a person. It feels like lose lose. But many of these folks are simply incorrigible and their ideas are insufferable. They just can’t accept that they’ve been misled and that by saying that they’ve been misled that I’m not saying that their bad people. I’m simply asking you to reconsider some ideas and maybe your worldview politically. But alas, the zombification of so much of the US has taken place. People mindlessly latch onto conspiratorial thinking and Trumpism and they’re gone.
Rick B,
Can you explain what you mean when you write “Thanks for confirming that people who believe in 1 conspiracy theory, believe in multiple.” What “conspiracy theory” are you attaching to me?
What I wrote is that most “conspiracy theories” are basic human behavior, especially group social behavior. It seems to me that you are especially interested in attaching the “conspiracy theory” label to ideas you disagree with. What purpose does the label serve other than to bias and color the discussion?
You may be aware of the meme that a “conspiracy theory” is a claim proven correct six months later. We saw a lot of that during the pandemic. I’ll just point out one in particular. When vaccine skeptics began observing that the vaccine did not stop infection this was labeled a “conspiracy theory”. Several months later the government “experts” acknowledged that the vaccine did not stop infection. So was the original claim a “conspiracy theory”? Or was it an informed observation based on a review of the data?
As I wrote, it seems that people like to use the label of “conspiracy theory” as a defensive mechanism in response to criticism of their ideas and policies. And this defense works! It allows the group and its allies to deflect accountability and to reject challenges without answering the actual challenge.
That this has happened is a very 21st century thing. Back in 1986 when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded, I don’t recall anyone turning to “conspiracy theories” to explain the situation. There was an investigation and the investigation found that NASA management was over confident and ignored important safety parameters. Why did they do this? Well it is common sense – NASA management wanted to demonstrate that NASA was efficient and could avoid launch delays. Everyone wanted to do what they thought important and 7 people died.
In the latter half of the 20th century a lot of research was made on how to avoid organizational dysfunction. Why? Because it was recognized that organizations had a difficult time avoiding costly mistakes – the Defense Departments handling of the Vietnam War being one of the huge concerns. Did organizations suddenly became infallible in the 21st century? Did corporations stop making short term decisions that proved costly in the longer term? Nope. They still do. But for some inexplicable reason it is now mainstream thinking to hold up large institutions and corporations as intelligent and altruistic. I wish I understood how this happened!
About the Book of Mormon, the prophet Mormon draws attention to the profit and power seeking of the Gadiantons and warns us these designs will threaten our liberty in our current day. Nephi also warns of “secret combinations” but he adds an important element. Nephi emphasizes the danger of Priestcrafts, which he describes as people setting themselves up as a “light unto the world” so they can get gain (money in their pocket) and praise of the world. Is this not the case! What do we do about it? How do we discern between good ideas and bad ideas? Do we think for ourselves or defer thinking to some anointed group? How do we know if that group actually cares for our welfare?
I asked AI if the polygamy practiced in Nauvoo was secret. Both Google and ChatGPT said yes, the practice of polygamy in Nauvoo was quote: “kept largely secret from the public and church members at the time.” Later, quoting AI: “Brigham Young led the Mormon community westward, and polygamy became more widely practiced and publicly acknowledged in the LDS Church.”
Is this not what I wrote? Do you accept these facts? Help me out Rick B. It seems to me that it has become a common thing these days for FACTS to be labeled “conspiracy theory”. I do not understand this other than a mindset that feels it necessary to control narratives and pigeon hole ideas. Maybe, instead of labeling concerns “conspiracy theories” greater consideration should be given to the legitimacy of the argument being made, and not who or what is threatened by the argument.
Conspiracies? One of these is not like the others:
NO…Moon landing: it really happened. Sorry to disappoint you conspiracy types.
NO…911: it wasn’t an inside job. The US government could never pull that off even if it wanted to.
NO…Jan 6: MAGA folks claimed it was ANTIFA and the FBI not Trump supporters. Strange that Trump then pardoned everyone. So Trump pardoned ANTIFA folks???
YES…COJCOLDS: they have covered up Church history from day 1. That’s basically why I’m out. I’m not a conspiracy guy but that doesn’t mean I don’t recognize one when it’s right in front of my face.
I am unable to speak for the hundreds of millions of people around the globe that received a COVID vaccine, but I chose to get one based on my lifetime experience with vaccines. I’m vaccinated against all the things. Never had polio; never had small pox. My kids have never had chicken pox, something I had because there was no vaccine available when I was a child. I will dutifully receive my shingles vaccine when I’m 50. Getting a COVID vaccine was my choice based on my experience with vaccines and had nothing to do with groupthink (can you even have groupthink on a global scale? Asking for a friend). YMMV.
As for conspiracy theories, people want their life experience to make sense. The world is chaos and we demand routine. Enter deity. When things don’t go according to script, the Greeks for example just invented another God to explain things. In our modern monotheism, we cannot just create another angry God so we blame each other. Enter conspiracy theories. Deconstructing religion required me to sit with the world’s chaos and come to not only accept it but to reverence it. I don’t need conspiracy theories to sleep at night.
Also what Brad D said.
A Disciple, for the record, you’ve written in the past stuff to the effect of COVID vaccines killing people, Jan 6ers not committing any crimes, Trump winning the 2020 election. For all these to happen, it would require a pretty vast conspiracy, the evidence for which you have none. You have no evidence of election officials conspiring to deny Trump a victory he clearly somehow deserved in 2020. You have no evidence that all sorts of court officials conspired to wrongfully convict Jan 6ers. That is what makes these conspiracy theories. The conspiracy is obviously implied in the argumentation. I wrote that a conspiracy theory is an extraordinary idea that lacks extraordinary evidence and is based on logical fallacies. I’ll add that it is an idea that ignores a large body of evidence for a mainstream idea that typically has the support of a large number of experts and important public figures, such as the effectiveness of COVID vaccines or that Biden won the 2020 election. So many of your long-winded thoughts on here are not just something I disagree with, but something that I don’t consider legitimate disagreement. In other words, they’re so outlandish and nonsensical that I don’t bother with them and they make me view you as a lost person in terms of reason and reasonability. A reasonable person responds to evidence and tries to attach their ideas and beliefs to it. An unreasonable person hunkers down and keeps denying what is obviously well-evidenced. You’re probably a great, nice guy in person. You’re probably someone who is a great neighbor, father, friend, etc. But so many of the ideas that you regularly promote here are ridiculous conspiracy theories. I think you get a kick out of coming on here and provoking people. So don’t get offended by someone calling you a conspiracy theorist. You are one. Paranoia has gotten the best of you.
I’m not a conspiracy theorist, I’m just asking questions. Like, how can we KNOW that Obama wasn’t switched as a baby, with another baby that had the same name? And our real president still somewhere out there, being raised as a terrorist or something?
And if there was no Noah’s Flood, then how come there’s evidence of flooding on Mars? Checkmate, athianists.
Someone believes in science so they follow facts that are proven, verified, and trusted. If it leads to a new understanding it’s like the gospel principle of line upon line we come to an understanding of the truth.
Those that don’t believe in science still connect “the dots.” The think is the make up facts, deny facts, or twist facts. Their facts are not proven, verified, or trusted, at least by someone that puts them to the test. I’m sure there are people that will agree with their “facts” but agreement doesn’t make right.
There are conspiracies. For instance someone did write Project 2025 and it is being implemented from day 1 via executive orders and DOGE. But, 911 wasn’t an inside job as some conspiracy believers believe. I think the common thing about all conspiracies is “Lies.” In a real conspiracy, someone lies to cover it up but in a conspiracy theory, someone lies to create it.
Thank you, Rick B., for bringing this topic to light. My experience is that many orthodox Mormons eagerly embrace conspiracy theories – especially those involving supposedly clandestine government activities. Hence their infatuation with the book Visions of Glory, FOX News and the prepper movement.
The issue of Joseph Smith’s polygamy remains a widely discussed topic among Mormon conspiracy folks. I believe Todd Compton’s book: In Sacred Loneliness remains the gold standard for understanding JS’ polygamy. Compton largely used primary sources and provides an unbiased view. JS began practicing plural marriage in the mid 1830’s with his infamous marriage to then 14-year-old Fanny Alger. He expanded the practice in Nauvoo and eventually married at least 33 women prior to his death – including another 14 year old girl (Helen Mar Kimball).
In terms of how open the practice was in Nauvoo, the practice was known and accepted by a significant portion of the early Mormon leadership and community. I recommend A Disciple and other doubters read In Sacred Loneliness as well as the first and only issue of the Nauvoo Expositor. Destruction of the printing press and subsequent events leading to JS’ martyrdom were the direct result of polygamy. Fact not theory.
Why do discussions about wackadoodles always bring in a few wackadoodles to the comments? Oops, I guess I just slammed myself.
Disciple, ‘What “conspiracy theory” are you attaching to me?’
You answered yourself as anti-vaxxer, anti-science, & then came up with government and Book of Mormon conspiracies. My guess is you are probably a Bircher. Maybe I’m wrong. You’ve written talking points of anti-vax, anti-pharma, anti-government. You’re worried about “secret combinations.” If you haven’t studied conspiracy lingo, you write it quite well. I can spot it from miles away.
Honestly, I have far less patience for this BS than Jesse does. I just ask you to focus on the polygamy skeptic stuff in the comments. I don’t like whack-a-mole, and I’m not here to debate any of the other conspiracies. We’re just using them as examples of conspiracy theory thinking. And yes, Jesse’s disclaimer still stands, whether you like being labled a conspiracy theorist or not. The shoe fits, and you seem to be wearing it. Whether you’re proud to wear it is up for debate. If you don’t like the label, quit writing the talking points.
DeNovo, “many orthodox Mormons eagerly embrace conspiracy theories – especially those involving supposedly clandestine government activities.” So do orthodox and lax protestants, orthodox and lax Jews, orothodox and lax Catholics, Orthodox and lax evangelicals, orthodox and lax atheists. Mormons don’t corner the market, or we’d have a different person in the White House. Mormons aren’t a majority of voters, after all. We don’t hold a monopoly on this. It is widespread across many demographics, religious and otherwise.
If your surname was James would you really name your Jessy? A cross dressing outlaw. Conspiracy theory?
Trump put a lot of effort into undermining American institutions, which seems to lay the ground for this kind of thing. Fake news, rule of law, trust in election process, etc.
This is a particularly American thing. During covid none of our leaders were undermined the medical experts. As a consequence we had far fewer deaths per head than America did.
So there are terrible consequences to believing untruths. Electing trump for example. Dismantling government institutions because government is too large, and should be smaller. Australia has twice as many public servants as America, but 30% the debt to GDP.
America and Australia have a free trade agreement, a legal document. Trump just ignored it.
Conspiracy theories, is perhaps a polite American term for lies.
So is God a conspiracy theory?
It checks all the boxes. Helps people make sense of a confusing world. Gives people a sense of control. Gives people a sense of meaning. Extraordinarily important but lacks extraordinary evidence. In fact, lacks much evidence at all, but people believe it anyway. Just because millions of people believe it doesn’t make it true. Millions of people believe a lot of stupid things.
Rick B,
How about we directly discuss “polygamy conspiracies”? What are these? Why makes them “conspiracies”?
I am aware of three lines of thought on the history of Polygamy in the LDS church. These are:
(1) The now LDS accepted narrative as published in their “essays” that Joseph Smith secretly taught and practiced polygamy and certain LDS leaders engaged in polygamy. The nature of Smith’s polygamy including both spiritual and physical union. All of it kept hidden from the public until the Mormons settled in Utah.
(2) That Joseph Smith taught polygamy as a spiritual covenant and he may have experimented with it but he struggled to accept it as a doctrine the church should abide. It was Brigham Young and his allies who lead in establishing polygamy as a doctrine of the restoration.
(3) That Joseph Smith fought against polygamy and Brigham Young and polygamy advocates were instrumental in introducing polygamy to church leaders and forcing the practice onto the church.
#2 was the generally accepted explanation of polygamy taught by the church in the 1960s – 1990s. In no way can this view of polygamy be labeled a “conspiracy”! It was the common church narrative for many decades!
#3 – the Denver Snuffer angle – could be said to be a “conspiracy theory” as it assumes a conspiracy of church leaders manipulated the church.
However, the irony in labeling any explanation for Mormon polygamy a “conspiracy theory” is that the now official church narrative for polygamy asserts the leadership engaged in a conspiracy! The leadership not only secretly practiced polygamy but they publicly taught against it and denied it! Thus, one of the great dilemmas of the LDS church is that their recognition that Joseph Smith was a polygamist invariably means Joseph Smith was a liar and deceiver. For how else can it be explained that Joseph Smith publicly denied practicing polygamy if he not only was actively engaged in it but that he secretly supported it?
As De Novo points out, the penultimate event for Joseph Smith in Nauvoo was his destruction of the printing press. Why did he destroy it? I believe and others have written that it was because the publisher was spilling the beans on polygamy as well as other secret dealings and Joseph Smith did not want those secrets exposed. Secrets. Conspiracies. Cover-ups. It’s all happening in Joseph Smith’s Nauvoo.
So what is the true story of polygamy and the Mormons in Nauvoo? Seems no one really knows. Or at least it appears there is insufficient detail to allow multiple narratives to thrive. all the while each of those narratives has major contradictions. Alas, I suppose my simply observing that the Nauvoo narrative is filled with moral and historical contradictions means I am a “conspiracist”. And yet, these contradictions are plain and obvious for any who read the histories of the Mormons in Nauvoo.
I really appreciate this clearly set out post Rick B. As a graduate student in counseling I have been intrigued by conspiracy theories. I found Dr. James information to really add to my understanding. His connection with an internal locus of control vs an external locus of control makes a lot of sense to me. Thank you.
It’s too bad the thread was jacked to another focus.
I’m late to commenting on this post, but this was one of the most fascinating episodes I’ve listened to in a long time. In my experience, LDS people in general are unusually primed to conspiracy theories. I believe this stems in large part from our epistemology. It all goes back to Alma’s “experiment upon the word” and Moroni’s promise and the way in which “ye may know the truth of all things.” (Moroni 10:5). At its core, its a conflation and confusion between belief and empirical, scientific, or historical knowledge.
LDS people are often taught that the truth of ALL things can be discerned through prayer and confirmed by feelings of the holy ghost. There is a segment of people who will take that quite literally and apply it to every claim. That extends to conspiracy theories too.
In case you think I am making a leap here, I assure you I am not. Consider the case of one Mindy Greene whose husband nearly died from Covid. Her family’s story was highlighted by The New York Times. How did she decide whether or not to get the vaccine? The same way one might decide whether The Church is true:
Being an RN and LDS, I watched with horror as an anti-vaccine ethos spread among our population. Some of this was correlated with political leanings, but often times in the LDS population the anti-vaccine rationale was laced with spiritual confirmations.
While I believe the conspiracy theorists are prevalent in all traditions and across all demographics, I suspect LDS people are far more prone to engaging in conspiratorial thinking than the median American or practitioner of a faith tradition. I have no evidence of this, but I think if evidence could be collected it would validate my suspicion. I noted above the unique way in which we are primed to try to discern “the truth of all things” through application of Moroni’s promise or Alma’s experiment which often amounts to little more than confirmation bias based on subjective feelings. That is just one way in which I think we are primed for conspiracies. But there are other theological reasons why I think this is true too from our scriptures.
The JS translation of the bible and the Peal of Great Price contains an aspect of the Cain’s story where Cain assumes the title of “Master Mahan” who was a master of a “great secret” and who covenanted with Satan to kill Abel. This aspect and revision of Genesis is unique to LDS theology. It is at the heart of the Book of Mormon through “secret combinations” and Gadianton Robbers. To my knowledge, these are not religious tropes that are found or accentuated in other branches of Christianity to the same degree. I think it is notable that practicing LDS voted in favor of Trump more than any other religious group. Central to his pitch was the narrative that the 2020 election was stolen and that J6 was not in fact an insurrection but a “peaceful protest.” We have a major political movement that is based on lies. The tenure of Ezra Taft Benson casts a long shadow over many members. I would say that conspiracy-prone LDS members hew strongly to his teachings “mingled with conspiracies.”
A Disciple’s general comments above are one of several reasons why we stopped attending church. Bad information ecosystems are not benign. Like vaccines, which are effective–including the various Covid vaccines–I wanted to inoculate my son from co-congregants who are awash in lies, misinformation, and conspiracies. Think of it like building up immunity. You cannot marinate in information pollution when you lack the critical thinking and rationality to analyze and discern the myriad errors of conspiratorial thinking.
Conspiracies are not the only reason we stopped attending, but as an RN who worked during the height of the pandemic and who had many ill-informed, ignorant, conspiracy theorists in Utah protesting at our hospital while people were dying on ventilators, I simply could not justify having my son be involved in a faith community that is so thoroughly wedded to so many conspiracies. I am sure these conspiracies were always there in segments, but it took the pandemic to bring them so forcefully to the forefront. I eventually realized, “these are not my people.” Maybe I would consider returning if I could create or belong to a ward where none of the members believe vaccines cause autism or that the 2020 election was stolen or that J6 felons are political prisoners who have now been rightly pardoned for heinous crimes.
Btw, thank you Brad D. You are doing a yeoman’s job. I’ll just close with this truism:
Interesting breakdown given by Dr. Jesse James. Real Conspiracy and Conspiracy Theory.
When I squint, I recognize James’ reasoning in my own religious experience, though I have no experience regarding polygamy.
When a child, I learned that God is All good, the only reality. And that evil is unreal. Time and experience fleshed out those ideas. Sure, maybe in some believed heaven, evil is unreal but evil, fear, and distrust must be dealt with here and now. In order for me to prove the unreality of evil, I have to first become aware of it, without conspiring against myself or humanity by making it more powerful than God.
By definition, human mind constantly plots and plans within limited knowledge. I suppose this is why I desire the mind of Christ, Truth. To think differently. I suppose its why I wrote the following in “21st Century Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures: A modern version of Mary Baker Eddy’s Science and Health”:
“Since God is All, there is no dimension for something unlike Spirit. God alone designed all and called it good. Therefore evil, being contrary to good, is unreal and can’t be the product of God. A limited, contradictory mindset can receive no encouragement from the fact that Science demonstrates the unreality of limitation and sin, for the contradictor would make a reality of that which opposes Life, Truth, and Love; would make that real which is unreal, and store up “wrath and indignation.” Do not join in a conspiracy against yourself. Continue to recognize the awful unreality by which the human mind is deceived. Repent, think differently, abandon the unnatural and you can fully understand the unreality of that which argues against the infinite.”