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All right, Jared. We've had a really good chance to get a rapid fire summary of some really excellent views from the academic world and a review of the New Testament.

Now is the time where we get to finally meet Jared to get your personal story, which is an important part of a Mormon Stories episode. So you ready for that?

Yeah, I mean, it's a big step because I'm someone who is very, very careful about how I present myself and who I tell what I am very careful to adapt, you know, what I share with the audience.

And I, you know, with the Mormon Stories audience, I think it's a good place to open up and really share what I believe, but I have never done it in a forum like this before.

Well, interesting. And I know what you're talking about, but I think it's really nice if nothing else just to, you know, share our personal viewpoints and, you know, let other people know that there's many viewpoints out there.

And so anyways, let's just, you know, dive right in. And so, you know, tell us a little bit about growing up. Let's just start at the beginning where you, did you grow up in an LDS family?

What was your experience with that?

Yeah, I grew up with a variety, a mix of different influences. And I'll just have to tell you now, things will get pretty personal because just what made me me was a variety of factors and, you know, quite an interesting life.

So, let's see, my mom said, I grew up in up to New York, really close to Palmyra, actually, Canon, Degua, New York. And so, you know, cradle of the restoration and all that. So I visited this Hickerd Grove and my grandparents were converted to the church.

So I was raised in the church, loved it my entire life. But where it gets a bit complicated is, I'm actually surprised. I'm as religious as I am because of the different influences. So on my dad's side, I have, you know, pioneer ancestry.

I have like a great, great grandfather, something with a patriarchal blessing by Hiram Smith, you know, that, that whole experience. But I met my dad, I don't know, 16, like met him.

But you met your dad when you were 16?

I met my dad on a 16. I do have one memory of him when I was about four years old. And I remember sitting on his lap and asking him when he was going to stop smoking.

So that was the only memory I have of my dad. And then he would call on birthdays and stuff. So, oh, let's see.

Was your, was your mother religious? Was she a member of the church?

Yeah, she, she is definitely one of my religious anchors. And so a little bit of background. My dad is bipolar with, get so effective disorder or was he died in 2001.

And so, you know, back in that day, they did not know what they were talking about. So there's a lot of self-medication and he was a heroin addict and lived on the streets in California for a lot of time.

Yeah, that's rough.

I was growing up. So I did, I didn't meet him when I was visiting my older brother out of BYU. And I remember, you know, opening the door and saying hi. And it was interesting because my father knew Hebrew and Latin.

You're kind of an interesting thing that I, I never met him, but we're so similar.

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