Inside Out with Jim Bennett and Ian Wilks

By Jim Bennett

The format of Inside Out is simple - Jim Bennett is still on the inside of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and Ian Wilks is on the outside of the Church. Yet both care about the Ch

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How many episodes does Inside Out with Jim Bennett and Ian Wilks have?

The podcast currently has 191 episodes available.

Best of Inside Out with Jim Bennett and Ian Wilks

The most played episodes among Podcast App listeners.

Number 1: Greg Prince and the Temple - Part IV
Send us Fan Mail Greg Prince returns to Inside Out for the fourth installment of our deep dive into the LDS temple recommend interview—and this time, some of the most consequential questions take center stage. Ian, Jim, and Greg tackle tithing: What exactly constitutes a “full tithe”? Gross? Net? Increase? Should someone struggling financially be denied temple attendance because they can’t afford ten percent? And what happens when individual bishops and stake presidents interpret the requirement differently? From there, the conversation turns to financial obligations to former spouses and children, followed by a wide-ranging discussion of temple garments—the history of how they’ve been worn, changing Church instructions, stories about garments providing physical protection, and the larger question of what the garment is actually intended to represent. Ultimately, the discussion returns to the purpose of the recommend interview itself. Is it primarily a worthiness test administered by Church leaders, or could it become something more pastoral—a conversation designed to help people draw closer to God?
September 12, 20261h 29min
Number 2: Inside Out Livestream: Meet Your New Bishop
Send us Fan Mail There’s been a disturbance in the Force—and apparently he’s been called to preside over the Alcatraz First Ward. The livestream kick things off with an unexpected visit from Bishop Darth Vader before turning to a surprisingly substantive question: What is happening to the LDS Sunday meeting schedule, and what do shorter meetings mean for the future of Mormon community? Ian and Jim discuss experiments with shorter classes, the move from three-hour to two-hour church, the unintended consequences of “home-centered, church-supported” worship during COVID, and whether efficiency has come at the expense of one of church’s most important functions: giving people a place to form friendships and actually enjoy being together. They compare the very different realities of compact Utah wards and geographically enormous stakes and branches elsewhere, drawing on their own experiences in Utah, Canada, Scotland, and the mission field. Along the way, they talk about church culture, spiritual autonomy, what makes people actually want to show up on Sunday—and why sometimes the most valuable part of church happens in the hallway rather than the chapel.
September 19, 20261h 29min
Number 3: Inside Out Livestream: Greg Prince and Ganesh Cherian
Send us Fan Mail What will it take for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to thrive in the decades ahead? Greg Prince and Ganesh Cherian join Ian and Jim for a wide-ranging conversation about two of the biggest challenges facing the modern Church: growth and retention. Why are record numbers of convert baptisms not necessarily translating into comparable growth in active membership? Why are younger Latter-day Saints increasingly willing to walk away? And what could the Church learn from other religious traditions about creating worship that is vibrant, meaningful, inclusive—and actually worth showing up for?
September 09, 20261h 33min
Number 4: The Next Big Thing?
Send us Fan Mail Jim’s cryptic social media post about potentially “revolutionary” Church news sparked plenty of speculation—but no, this isn’t about coffee, one-hour church, or a dramatic change in doctrine. In this episode of Inside Out, Ian and Jim unpack what they’ve been hearing about the Church’s new Faith and Learning Center planned near the Preston England Temple—and why they believe it could represent something much bigger. Could this be a pilot for a new approach to investing in young people, supporting higher education, opening Church resources to the broader community, and collaborating more closely with other faiths and organizations? Jim and Ian separate what’s publicly known from what they’ve heard and what they hope may be coming, while exploring the enormous potential—and possible pitfalls—of such a shift.
September 05, 20261h 55min
Number 5: Greg Prince and the Temple - Part III
Send us Fan Mail In the third installment of our conversation with historian Greg Prince about the LDS temple recommend interview, we turn to two of its most consequential—and complicated—questions: the Law of Chastity and the Word of Wisdom. Jim, Ian, and Greg examine how the wording of these questions has changed, what those changes may reveal, and whether simple yes-or-no worthiness standards can adequately address complex questions of sexuality, morality, health, personal conscience, and religious commitment.
August 29, 20261h 33min