The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints can’t seem to leave John Dehlin alone. Church leadership excommunicated this former graduate of Brigham Young University in 2015, charging him with apostasy for allegedly claiming the Book of Mormon is “fraudulent” and a work “of fiction.” Dehlin believes his support of same-sex marriage and women’s equality in the church was also a major factor in the decision, a position the church disputes. In 2017, a major leak of internal church documents showed that LDS leadership shared a PowerPoint presentation accusing multiple people and organizations of “leading people away from the gospel.” Dehlin, who also has a doctorate in psychology from Utah State University, was on the list.
Now the LDS church is suing Dehlin and his popular “Mormon Stories” podcast using a surprising legal argument: that the show, which he launched during the early days of podcasting in 2005 and is openly critical of the church, is violating the church’s trademark rights. The podcast’s name and marketing materials, the plaintiffs argue, will “cause individuals to be confused” and believe the podcast “comes from or is affiliated with or endorsed by the Church.” The lawsuit takes special issue with the use of the word “Mormon,” though it also includes complaints that the font and colors used in the show’s logo, as well as images of Jesus and holy light, will cause audiences to mistake the podcast for an official LDS production.
