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By Tia Smith
Thinning of the Veil is a podcast by Tia Smith about how heaven communicates with us — personal revelation, dreams and visions, the ministering of angels, temple worship, and connection with loved
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The podcast currently has 278 episodes available.
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Send us Fan Mail Can our deceased ancestors visit us from the spirit world? In this LDS (Latter-day Saint) family history message, President Russell M. Nelson and Sister Wendy Watson Nelson share a remarkable account of a father who returned after death to visit his living son — and teach why temple and family history work is so urgent. Recorded at RootsTech Family Discovery Day on February 11, 2017 (when President Nelson was serving as President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles), this beloved address uses a game of Scrabble to walk through the spirit of Elijah, the sealing power, and the "sacrifice of time" that opens the windows of heaven. Inside this message: - The journal account of Andrew Clarence "A.C." Nelson — President Nelson's grandfather — whose deceased father appeared to him on the night of April 6, 1891, describing missionary work in the spirit world - Sister Nelson's story of her ancestor Sarah, "The Power of Sarah's Prayer," and how family history stories turn hearts across generations - Why preserving photos and stories is not enough without completing temple ordinances for our kindred dead - How family history opens natural doors for missionary work - President Nelson's challenge: make a sacrifice of time for temple and family history work this year — "and then watch what happens" Whether life feels full of joy or heartbreak right now, this teaching on LDS temple and family history work offers a path to more peace, more revelation, and a deeper connection to loved ones on both sides of the veil. ▶️ WATCH & LISTEN 🎬 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thinningoftheveil 🌐 Website: https://www.thinningoftheveil.com 🎧 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/thinning-of-the-veil/id1753511394 🟢 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6jWCfMHkZXwnSwy2b98J4M 🎵 Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/a0a45561-d4c2-46d3-af8d-a1e967a21a25 📖 BOOK Patterns of Revelation — Spiritual Foundations for Hearing God's Voice: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BW36MG9B 📱 CONNECT Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinning.of.the.veil Facebook Group (Gathering of the Gatherers): https://www.facebook.com/groups/1429562078443774 Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61572121559456 💛 SUPPORT THE SHOW Venmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/thinningoftheveil PayPal: https://paypal.me/thinningoftheveil ✉️ Have you had a thinning of the veil experience? Email [email protected] — your testimony may be exactly what someone needs to hear. #ThinningOfTheVeil #SpiritWorld #TempleWork #FamilyHistory #LDS #LatterDaySaints #GatheringOfIsrael #MinisteringAngels #FamilySearch #PersonalRevelation Support the show

Send us Fan Mail Should we keep our spiritual experiences sacred, or share them? It's one of the most misunderstood questions among Latter-day Saints (LDS) — and in this episode, host Tia Smith works through it using scripture and prophetic teaching to show that the answer is both. After a tender, personal thinning-of-the-veil experience involving her children on the other side of the veil, Tia received a public comment insisting that such things should always be kept private. That comment sparked this study — because while keeping certain experiences sacred is absolutely part of the doctrine of Jesus Christ, so is sharing them when the Holy Ghost prompts us to. Tia uses the image of an umbrella: some experiences are meant to be guarded and kept private. But when we shove EVERY spiritual experience under that umbrella, the umbrella that shields us from rain also blocks out the light — leaving whole generations who no longer believe that dreams, visions, and the ministering of angels are a normal part of life in this dispensation. The scriptures and latter-day prophets show a consistent pattern: sacred experiences are often shared — when the Spirit directs — to build faith, bring joy, testify of Christ, and gather Israel. This episode looks at both halves of the principle: why some things must be guarded, and how to recognize when the Lord is asking you to testify — including the truth that sometimes we're to share only a portion of an experience and keep the rest sacred. Q: Is it wrong to share sacred spiritual experiences publicly? A: Not necessarily. Latter-day prophets teach that spiritual experiences should be treated with care and generally kept private — but also shared when the Holy Ghost prompts us to, for the blessing of others. Both keeping sacred and sharing are part of the same principle; the key is being guided by the Spirit. Q: How do I know when to share a spiritual experience and when to keep it private? A: Ask why you want to share it. If it's to be seen, praised, or to lift yourself above others, it likely should stay private. If the Holy Ghost prompts you to share it to build another's faith, bring them joy, or point them to Christ, that's the invitation to testify. It takes inspiration to know the difference. Q: Are dreams, visions, and ministering angels really part of the Church today? A: Yes. Prophets and apostles have taught that these experiences are not uncommon and are part of what the Lord has revealed in this dispensation. Latter-day teaching is that we live in an especially intense period of revelation, and that the greatest manifestations are still ahead as we prepare for the Savior's return. Q: Why does sharing spiritual experiences matter? A: When we testify as the Spirit directs, it helps others feel that God knows and loves them, assures them their own prayers can be answered, and helps them recognize spiritual experiences in their own lives. Silence can breed unbelief; Spirit-guided testimony builds faith. Q: What can I do with the spiritual experiences I've been given? A: A helpful pattern taught by Elder Neil L. Andersen: embrace them, believe them, write them down, and share them when prompted. With that, the promise is that more will come. 👉 Full episode of David B. Haight's Experience: https://youtu.be/7sMVK3DOqns?si=FHylpc6p_NbgiHC6 Full Episode of Harold B. Lee's blessing from the other side of the Veil: https://youtu.be/egK9zWkEYgM?si=DQC513IsxXB6HmsX ▶️ WATCH & LISTEN 🎬 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thinningoftheveil 🌐 Website: https://www.thinningoftheveil.com 🎧 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/thinning-of-the-veil/id1753511394 🟢 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6jWCfMHkZXwnSwy2b98J4M 🎵 Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/a0a45561-d4c2-46d3-af8d-a1e967a21a25 📖 BOOK Patterns of Revelation — Spiritual Foundations for Hearing God's Voice: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BW36MG9B 📱 CONNECT Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinning.of.the.veil Facebook Group (Gathering of the Gatherers): https://www.facebook.com/groups/1429562078443774 Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61572121559456 💛 SUPPORT THE SHOW Venmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/thinningoftheveil PayPal: https://paypal.me/thinningoftheveil ✉️ Have you had a thinning of the veil experience? Email [email protected] — your testimony may be exactly what someone needs to hear. #ThinningOfTheVeil #SpiritualExperiences #PersonalRevelation #MinisteringAngels #SacredOrShareable #LDS #LatterDaySaints #GatheringOfIsrael #ComeFollowMe #Testimony Support the show

Send us Fan Mail How do angels communicate with us — and why do we say it's through the Holy Ghost, even when we sense a specific ancestor? In this LDS (Latter-day Saint) episode, Tia Smith answers a listener's question by teaching that angels speak by the power of the Holy Ghost (2 Nephi 32:3), so their messages reach us spirit-to-spirit through that same medium — whether we hear a name, feel peace, or see with the eyes of our understanding. She walks through Moroni 7:29–32 (angels have not ceased to minister), Elder Dallin H. Oaks on how the Aaronic Priesthood and the sacrament open the door to angelic ministration (October 1998 General Conference), the Guide to the Scriptures on the two kinds of angels, and Parley P. Pratt's testimony at the laying of the Salt Lake Temple cornerstone that Elijah's keys opened communication between worlds. Woven throughout are real listener testimonies of ancestors prompting temple and family history work from the other side of the veil. Q: How do angels communicate with us, according to LDS doctrine? A: Latter-day Saint doctrine teaches that angels speak by the power of the Holy Ghost, so their words are the words of Christ delivered spirit-to-spirit through that medium (2 Nephi 32:3). This is why an experience can feel like a specific ancestor is present while still coming "through the Holy Ghost" — the Spirit is the channel by which angelic ministration reaches us. Q: If I sense a deceased loved one giving me a name or a prompting, is it really them or the Holy Ghost? A: In this episode Tia Smith explains it can be both: a real ancestor may be ministering, but the message is carried by the Holy Ghost, which is why we perceive it as feelings, words to the mind, or impressions rather than a face-to-face conversation. An Ensign article ("Angels We Have Heard," 2014) notes that what we perceive as the voice of the Spirit may itself be the result of angelic ministration. Q: Have angels stopped ministering to people today? A: No. Moroni teaches that angels have not ceased to minister and are subject to Christ, showing themselves to those of strong faith and a firm mind (Moroni 7:29–32). Tia adds that the main thing holding us back from recognizing them is unbelief, and that living our covenants opens the way for their ministry. Q: What do the temple and the sacrament have to do with the ministering of angels? A: Elder Dallin H. Oaks taught that through the Aaronic Priesthood ordinances of baptism and the sacrament we are cleansed and promised His Spirit — a promise that includes the ministering of angels, since angels speak by the power of the Holy Ghost (October 1998 General Conference). Weekly, worthy partaking of the sacrament renews access to both the companionship of the Spirit and angelic ministration. Facebook Group (Gathering of the Gatherers): https://www.facebook.com/groups/1429562078443774 ▶️ WATCH & LISTEN 🎬 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thinningoftheveil 🌐 Website: https://www.thinningoftheveil.com 🎧 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/thinning-of-the-veil/id1753511394 🟢 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6jWCfMHkZXwnSwy2b98J4M 🎵 Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/a0a45561-d4c2-46d3-af8d-a1e967a21a25 📖 BOOK Patterns of Revelation — Spiritual Foundations for Hearing God's Voice: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BW36MG9B 📱 CONNECT Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinning.of.the.veil Facebook Group (Gathering of the Gatherers): https://www.facebook.com/groups/1429562078443774 Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61572121559456 💛 SUPPORT THE SHOW Venmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/thinningoftheveil PayPal: https://paypal.me/thinningoftheveil ✉️ Have you had a thinning of the veil experience? Email [email protected] — your testimony may be exactly what someone needs to hear. #ThinningOfTheVeil #SpiritWorld #TempleWork #FamilyHistory #LDS #LatterDaySaints #GatheringOfIsrael #MinisteringAngels #FamilySearch #PersonalRevelation Support the show

Send us Fan Mail What if understanding both sides of the veil — pre-mortal and post-mortal — is the key to making sense of mortality? Brent L. Top, retired BYU professor, author of more than 20 books, and sealer in the St. George Temple, returns to the podcast to teach two revolutionary doctrines of the Restoration: first, that we are literal offspring of heavenly parents with what he calls "celestial DNA" — spiritual capacities activated and refined by the Holy Ghost as we live the gospel; and second, that the work for the dead means every one of Heavenly Father's children will be given every opportunity to hear the fullness of the gospel and receive its ordinances, whether in this life or the next. "All are within the reach of pardoning mercy," Joseph Smith taught — a doctrine that, as Brother Top says, "is well calculated to enlarge the understanding and sustain the soul under troubles, difficulties, and distresses." Drawing on the three-act-play metaphor of Elder Quentin L. Cook, he teaches that walking into mortality without understanding pre-mortality and post-mortality is like arriving at the second act of a play with no knowledge of the first or third — and that the plan of salvation, when seen whole, answers the questions that otherwise make life seem arbitrary or cruel: why little children die, why people are born into vastly different circumstances, why faithful parents lose children to disbelief. As a sealer, he shares the deeply personal insight he calls "the as-if principle": in the sealing ordinance, through the Atonement of Jesus Christ, all the as-ifs of mortality — all wrongs, all handicaps, all injustices — are made as if they had never been. He testifies that sealing power is not only for the next life: it infuses marriages and families with a reclaiming, healing, strengthening power right now. President Joseph F. Smith taught that when God sends a messenger to any person, it is a family member — and Brother Top's witness is that those on both sides of the veil are working for our salvation, that our rescue attempts go beyond this life, and that the story is never finished being told. Q: What are the "two veils" in LDS doctrine? A: There is a veil of forgetfulness separating us from our pre-mortal life, and a veil separating us from those who have died. Brent L. Top teaches that both are veils, not concrete walls — and that understanding what happens on each side is essential to making sense of mortality. Elder Quentin L. Cook compared the plan of salvation to a three-act play: without the first act (pre-mortality) and the third act (the spirit world and resurrection), the second act (mortality) seems arbitrary and purposeless. Q: What is the "as if" principle in the temple sealing? A: In the sealing of children to parents, a phrase declares that the ordinance operates "as if" certain conditions had been met. Brother Top, a sealer in the St. George Temple, teaches that it is the Savior who makes all the "as ifs" of mortality possible: through the Atonement, a sinner can be made as if they never sinned, a person born with disabilities can be made as if those had never existed. The sealing links families to the Atonement of Jesus Christ so that all wrongs, injustices, and conditions of mortality are ultimately resolved. Q: Does the power of a temple sealing help families in this life, or only in the next? A: Both — and Brother Top emphasizes the "here and now" dimension. He teaches that sealing power infuses marriages and families with a reclaiming, healing, strengthening power in mortality: "Why I keep my covenants is not just so that I can be with my beloved wife and family in the next life, but that I can have the marriage and family I need in this life." He compares it to the gift of the Holy Ghost — the ordinance confers a power that those without it "don't have quite the same way." Q: When God sends a messenger, is it always a family member? A: President Joseph F. Smith taught that when God sees fit to send a message or a messenger to any person, it is a family member. Brother Top connects this to both veils: we have ancestors who knew us in the pre-mortal world, who are watching over us now from the spirit world, and who are — in his words — "rooting for us" from both sides. He shares Oscar McConkie Sr.'s final words to his children: "I am going now into the spirit world, but I will not stop loving you. I will not stop praying for you. I will not stop working for your salvation." ▶️ WATCH & LISTEN 🎬 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thinningoftheveil 🌐 Website: https://www.thinningoftheveil.com 🎧 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/thinning-of-the-veil/id1753511394 🟢 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6jWCfMHkZXwnSwy2b98J4M 🎵 Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/a0a45561-d4c2-46d3-af8d-a1e967a21a25 📖 BOOK Patterns of Revelation — Spiritual Foundations for Hearing God's Voice: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BW36MG9B 📱 CONNECT Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinning.of.the.veil Facebook Group (Gathering of the Gatherers): https://www.facebook.com/groups/1429562078443774 Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/thinningoftheveil 💛 SUPPORT THE SHOW Venmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/thinningoftheveil PayPal: Support the show

Send us Fan Mail Are LDS (Latter-day Saint) temple workers cherubim? In this episode of Thinning of the Veil, host Tia Smith traces a pattern she had never noticed until just days before recording: the ancient cherubim of the Old Testament and the temple workers serving in the House of the Lord today share the same sacred calling. Cherubim were placed to guard the way to the tree of life; temple workers stand as sentinels at the veil, guarding sacred space and helping God's children return to His presence. Drawing on Genesis, Ezekiel, Alma 12, and Moses, along with teachings from Brigham Young, Bruce R. McConkie, and Elder Jeffrey R. Holland's talk "The Ministry of Angels," Tia walks through the many roles cherubim fill in scripture — facilitating the plan of salvation, ensuring the correct sacrifice is offered, restoring priesthood keys, serving as messengers of the covenant, protecting sacred records, and strengthening — and shows how temple workers echo each one. She closes with a perspective shift: to those on the other side of the veil, every patron and temple worker is a mortal angel, ministering on both sides of the veil. If you have ever thought of temple service as merely "the work," this reframes it as literal angelic ministration — and an invitation to prayerfully consider serving as an LDS temple worker. Q: In LDS belief, what is the role of a temple worker? A: Latter-day Saint temple workers guard sacred space, reverently administer and witness ordinances, and help patrons make and keep the covenants that allow them to return to God's presence — the same duties scripture assigns to the cherubim who guarded the way to the tree of life. This episode traces that pattern through Genesis 2:15, Ezekiel, and Alma 12, with teachings from Brigham Young and Jeffrey R. Holland. Q: Are temple workers considered angels in LDS doctrine? A: This episode draws on Elder Jeffrey R. Holland's talk "The Ministry of Angels," in which he teaches that not all angels come from the other side of the veil — some we walk and talk with here every day. Tia applies this to temple workers, describing them as mortal cherubim who minister to patrons and to those awaiting their ordinances on the other side of the veil. Q: Why should Latter-day Saints consider serving as temple workers? A: Tia teaches that temple service is not simply "work" but a sacred, angelic responsibility — standing as a sentinel at the veil and helping God's children on both sides return to His presence. She invites listeners to prayerfully consider applying, sharing that many report thinning-of-the-veil experiences while serving. ▶️ WATCH & LISTEN 🎬 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thinningoftheveil 🌐 Website: https://www.thinningoftheveil.com 🎧 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/thinning-of-the-veil/id1753511394 🟢 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6jWCfMHkZXwnSwy2b98J4M 🎵 Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/a0a45561-d4c2-46d3-af8d-a1e967a21a25 📖 BOOK Patterns of Revelation — Spiritual Foundations for Hearing God's Voice: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BW36MG9B 📱 CONNECT Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinning.of.the.veil Facebook Group (Gathering of the Gatherers): https://www.facebook.com/groups/1429562078443774 Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61572121559456 💛 SUPPORT THE SHOW Venmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/thinningoftheveil PayPal: https://paypal.me/thinningoftheveil ✉️ Have you had a thinning of the veil experience? Email [email protected] — your testimony may be exactly what someone needs to hear. #ThinningOfTheVeil #SpiritWorld #TempleWork #FamilyHistory #LDS #LatterDaySaints #GatheringOfIsrael #MinisteringAngels #FamilySearch #PersonalRevelation Support the show
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