1106: Sean and Crystal Escobar’s Journey out of Mormonism Pt. 1
Mormon Stories Podcast
Dr. John Dehlin
4.5 • 5.7K Ratings
🗓️ 9 May 2019
⏱️ 63 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Join us today on Mormon Stories as we interview both Sean and Crystal Escobar to learn about their faith journey out of Mormonism. Sean recently made national newswhen he revealed a recording he made as he confronted his abuser as a child, Sterling Van Wagenen—co-founder of the Sundance Film Festival and director of many LDS Church-produced films, including the films shown in LDS temples.
This portion of the interview focuses on Sean and Crystal's faith journey and will include themes such as:
- Their Mormon background including their experiences in the church as youth and as missionaries
- How guilt and shame from transgressions as a youth impacted Sean's mission and outlook on life
- Sean and Crystal's difficult experiences with the repentance process affected their early marriage
- How discovering a calling Sean had received was uninspired by his priesthood leader greatly shook his faith
- How Crystal's experience with Mormon Stories helped her be more empathetic towards Sean's struggles with his faith and church leadership
- How leaving the LDS Church has caused a new awakening in their marriage and family as they reevaluate their relationship, their parenting, and their new moral code for living
...and so much more.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Mormon Stories is a production of the Open Stories Foundation and relies solely upon the support |
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| 0:50.0 | Hello everyone and welcome to another edition of Mormon Stories podcast. I'm your host John |
| 0:54.7 | Delin. It's May the 4th, 2019. May the 4th be with you. We are broadcasting live this Saturday |
| 1:01.4 | morning from the Mormon Stories studios in Salt Lake City, Utah. We are very, very excited today to |
| 1:10.6 | have a very special couple with us. It is Crystal and Sean Eskobar and they are known for many things. |
| 1:20.1 | They have both been members of the Mormon Church for quite some time. Of course they have |
| 1:27.6 | lots of family and friends that love them and care about them and they have their own experiences |
| 1:33.7 | and journey within Mormonism that we are going to be talking about today. But in addition to that, |
| 1:40.1 | Sean Eskobar has been in the news as of the past few weeks and months. |
| 1:50.4 | For those of you who don't know, Sean was sexually abused as a child by one of the most famous |
| 1:58.2 | Mormon filmmakers ever. His name is Sterling Van Wagnan and Sean came out with an audio recording |
| 2:07.1 | of a confrontation that he had with Sterling Van Wagnan last year in 2018. That was originally released |
| 2:16.4 | on the Truth and Transparency Foundation's website under the pseudonym David. |
| 2:23.5 | Over time, as Sean realized that he was not the only victim, he decided that he was willing to come |
| 2:31.6 | out and use his real name and talk openly about Sterling Van Wagnan's abuse of him and of others. |
| 2:39.7 | The story has caught fire. Most of the TV shows and radio shows are different programming here in |
| 2:47.9 | Utah. But also the story was picked up by the New York Times. Sterling Van Wagnan is now |
... |
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