Bronze and Gonzo met, a long time ago over the phone. When they first met Gonzo was still trying to navigate involvement in the LDS Church but Bronze was well on his way to finding happiness and fulfillment through a more experimental approach to life; though he understood the challenge having been raised Mormon.  Over the years of working together and then through starting a company together Ben, Bronze, and Gonzo became friends and brothers. 

Bronze is one of the funniest people in almost any room. His designer's mind is drawn to the odd, ill-fitting, and beautiful in everything from architecture to personalities. When Gonzo shared the idea of a reactionary reading of the Book of Mormon devoid of religious context with him he was instantly on-board.

It was my first night of my first Burning man in 2022, and I wanted to channel all that creative energy that is so palpable on the playa that I turned to one of my closest friends (Ben) and said: I want to do a podcast reading the Book of Mormon. 

My inspiration was primarily this tweet storm by @SpeedReadDan, where he rightly called out that the Book of Mormon is the one book all educated people know about but haven't read. My relationship with this book and the primary church that claims ownership of it is a meandering path. At this point, I feel gleeful at the prospect of re-embracing this book that has figured so prominently in my childhood and early adulthood. 

When I dream about what might come of this project, I like to imagine more people having read this book devoid of religious context than have read it to prove or disprove a particular religious faith.