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I don’t want to try to tell you how to do this, but I would recommend you don’t try to write down things that any of us say. I would suggest to you that that totally misses the mark. - David A. Bednar, LDS Apostle, Missionary Devotional, 2021 | wasmormon.org — I don’t want to try to tell you how to do this, but I would recommend you don’t try to write down things that any of us say. I would suggest to you that that totally misses the mark. - David A. Bednar, LDS Apostle, Missionary Devotional, 2021

If you see a person at the post office preparing to send huge sums of money to a Nigerian prince, do you not have an obligation to warn them that they're being scammed? Maybe they'll ignore your input. Maybe they'll tell you that the Nigerian prince makes them happy and so they don't mind giving him money. Fine. You don't force them to stop sending him money. But as a matter of human decency, you're obligated to let that person know about the countless news articles you've seen where the Nigerian prince always turned out to be a con man. It's the same with Mormonism. There's overwhelming evidence showing that Joseph Smith was the original Nigerian prince and that the brethren leading the church today are no better. It would be morally wrong to stay silent about all that evidence when you see people you love losing huge amounts of time and money to a scam like that. - Doug's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/doug/

Plato's Allegory of the Cave serves as a timeless metaphor for the journey from ignorance to knowledge and truth. It parallels the experience of leaving Mormonism in profound ways. Just as the freed prisoner emerges into the light, grappling with the shock of a broader reality, those who leave the church often confront unsettling truths that challenge their prior worldview. Both the freed prisoner and those undergoing a faith crisis face resistance upon returning to share their discoveries. Those still in the cave, or within the church, often reject their insights, perceiving them as threats rather than enlightenment, highlighting the tension between clinging to familiar beliefs and embracing transformative truths.

This is a spotlight on a profile shared at wasmormon.org. These are just the highlights, so please find the full story at https://wasmormon.org/profile/norkish/. There are stories of Mormon faith journeys contributed by hundreds of users like you. Come check them out and consider sharing your own story at wasmormon.org!

I Prayed my whole life to know if it was true. Read the Book of Mormon over a dozen times. Did everything I could. Did everything right. Turned 35, was poised to baptize my oldest, and realized if I hadn't got my answer yet, I never would. I wasn't ready to put my kids through it all if it wasn't true. - Paul's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/norkish/

Grew up in Oregon, oldest of four boys. 6th-generation mormon on every line. Served a mission. Studied 16 years at BYU and got my PhD. Served as young men's president and elder's quorum president. Married in the temple to a returned-missionary who taught at the MTC. Had four kids. Then we all left. - Paul's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/norkish/

Hi, I'm Paul. I'm a father of four. A computer science professor. A Cub Scout leader. And a musician. And I was a Mormon. - - Paul's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/norkish/

Many is the faithful Latter-day Saint parent who has sent a son or a daughter on a mission or otherwise out into the world with the direction: "I would rather have you come back in a pine box with your virtue than return alive without it." - Bruce R. McConkie, LDS Apostle, Mormon Doctrine, 1958 | wasmormon.org — Many is the faithful Latter-day Saint parent who has sent a son or a daughter on a mission or otherwise out into the world with the direction: "I would rather have you come back in a pine box with your virtue than return alive without it." - Bruce R. McConkie, LDS Apostle, Mormon Doctrine, 1958

"Loss of virtue is too great a price to pay even for the preservation of one's life-better dead clean, than alive unclean." - Bruce R McConkie, LDS Apostle, Mormon Doctrine, 1958 | wasmormon.org — "Loss of virtue is too great a price to pay even for the preservation of one's life-better dead clean, than alive unclean." - Bruce R McConkie, LDS Apostle, Mormon Doctrine, 1958

"We have been mischaracterized since 1830, when the church was re-established. That's always been the case. I don't think it will ever go away. We don't like it, but we don't spend all of our time trying to respond to it." - David A. Bednar, LDS Apostle

This is a spotlight on a profile shared at wasmormon.org. These are just the highlights, so please find the full story at https://wasmormon.org/profile/doug/. There are stories of Mormon faith journeys contributed by hundreds of users like you. Come check them out and consider sharing your own story at wasmormon.org!

For me it's all about integrity, or lack thereof on the part of the Mormon church and its members. Since Mormon church leaders refuse to face the facts, act with integrity, and admit that their church is built upon a foundation of lies, then somebody else has to say it for them. I know that my Mormon friends genuinely WANT to act with integrity, and in fact they believe that they ARE acting with integrity. However, closing your eyes to unrefuted proof that the church is a scam in NOT an act of integrity. The price of membership in the Mormon community is too high, and I’m not referring to tithing when I say that. I’m referring to the requirement that you have to throw away your integrity in order to be a Mormon. You have to close your eyes to clearly obvious truths and pretend like those truths don't matter. - Doug's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/doug/

In pretty much EVERY case, the church falls back on the claim that prayer is the one and only way to know truth. Well, if a warm feeling in your heart when you pray is all you've got to counter a mountain of solid, tangible evidence, then you've got nothing. Do Mormon church leaders seriously expect us to believe that Mormons are the only ones who get a warm feeling in their hearts when they pray to their chosen god, asking for confirmation that their chosen religion is true? People in other religions get warm feelings in their hearts that are EVERY BIT as strong as what Mormons feel. A warm feeling in your heart isn't worth shinola as evidence for the truth of the Mormon church. When people want to believe something will help them (perhaps only subconsciously), their minds can cause very real and measurable changes to their bodies. When Mormons report feeling a "burning of the bosom" they're not necessarily imagining things, but what they're feeling is not necessarily from God. The burning in their bosom is much more likely to be from chemicals that their brains caused to be released into their bloodstreams or from subtle muscle contractions or something similar. - Doug's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/doug/

Joseph did a whole lot of things that would get a person rightfully thrown in jail if they tried those things nowdays, and which would definitely keep that person out of the Celestial Kingdom according to the teachings of Mormonism, but Mormons just shrug it off. They say, "Don't delve into the mysteries". They say not to worry about those "unknowable questions". They say to just be patient and God will explain it all later. This shows a stunning lack of integrity on the part of Mormons. Look at the articles published by the church which attempt to explain away that fact that Joseph Smith's "translation" of the Book of Abraham scrolls bears no resemblance whatsoever to what the scrolls actually say. Published right there in the Pearl of Great Price are images from the scrolls, side by side with Joseph's alleged translations. At the time the Pearl of Great Price was published, nobody could argue with Joseph's "translation" since nobody at that time could read Egyptian. But now people CAN read Egyptian and Joseph's "translations" are laughably wrong. And what's the church's explanation? They don't have one. The articles they publish which claim to refute that evidence simply say, "The Book of Abraham is a religions text, not a historical one, and therefore the only way to know if it's correct is to pray about it." - Doug's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/doug/

Don't fall for the claim that "they were just speaking as men, not as prophets when they said it". A core idea that was drilled into me and every Mormon I grew up with was the promise that "the Lord will never permit any man who stands as President of this Church to lead you astray". Teachings which the church now tries to distance itself from were taught as official church doctrine from the pulpit in general conferences and included in books and magazines that were published by the church, with the full knowledge and blessing of the president of the church. I find it incredible that "the brethren" can just do a Jedi hand wave while saying to the members, "you didn't see what you saw or hear what you heard", and the members simply say, "OK". - Doug's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/doug/

I've now been free from Mormonism for more than forty years... or at least as free as is possible for someone who still lives in Utah. My neighbors still try to bear their testimonies to me. They don't know that I’m an escapee. They just know that I’m not a Mormon. When they give me Books of Mormon and tell me how it'll change my life, I want to tell them that the reason I'm not Mormon is NOT because I haven't read the Book of Mormon. The reason I'm not Mormon is because I HAVE read it. I found a mountain of unrefuted evidence proving conclusively that Joseph Smith was con man, not a prophet. But if I say that to them then I'll be marked as one of Satan's emissaries and shunned by people with whom I need to have good relationships, so of course I have to just smile and nod and thank them for their concern on my behalf. - Doug's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/doug/

By the time I was nineteen I had complied a thick three-ring binder full of Mormon doctrinal issues that were either highly dubious or outright absurd. When I showed my parents my three-ring binder and I told them how sincerely I had prayed about it without getting any "burning in my bosom", they told me the problem was my doubting mind. The people who I had loved and trusted all my life were fervently assuring me that God would answer my questions, but he would only do that if I went on a mission. If I didn't go on a mission then God would withdraw the Holy Ghost from me, my questions would never get answered, and it would all be MY FAULT since I was being disobedient by not going on a mission. I eventually decided to trust my parents and went on the mission, but of course my questions were never answered and the Holy Ghost never showed up. Looking back on it now, I'm extremely offended that the church forced me to go out into the world and lie to people all day every day for two whole years. - Doug's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/doug/

I once wrote a letter to the Smithsonian Institution asking them if they had ever discovered any archaeological evidence backing up the historical claims of the Book of Mormon, not really expecting that they'd actually reply, but they did. They apparently got asked that question a lot and they sent me a letter listing all the types of artifacts which SHOULD be readily found all over the place if the Book of Mormon was true, but informing me that none of that stuff had ever been found. - Doug's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/doug/

I was born into a devout Mormon home, but from an early age I questioned many Mormon beliefs and practices that didn't make sense to me and I never received convincing answers to those questions. I encountered soooo many church practices and doctrines that made no sense to me and/or which contradicted the available evidence or other teachings of the church. I was a Mormon, but I've since repented of that. - Doug's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/doug/

This is a spotlight on a profile shared at wasmormon.org. These are just the highlights, so please find the full story at https://wasmormon.org/profile/andycwilson/. There are stories of Mormon faith journeys contributed by hundreds of users like you. Come check them out and consider sharing your own story at wasmormon.org!

Despite losing my faith, I still feel the church does a lot of good in the world. I love the community. It was an important part of my life for over 65 years and most of my family and friends still believe it. Now, I am finding new paths to spirituality and discovering new ways of thinking about "god" and death and meaning in my life. So far, I am finding it exciting, even mind-bending. I feel a new sense of freedom and authenticity. I'm glad groups like wasmormon are here to help me.Now, photography, family and finding a new purpose in life keep me busy. - Andy's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/andycwilson/

A church that, despite so much evidence to the contrary, insists that the Church's credibility and all its claims of being the one true church depend on the reality of Joseph's (final) first vision story, and upon the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. If either or both of those two things fail, then the entire structure fails. The Church's patriarchal gerontocracy knows that evidence for such truths is very thin, so they insist that members ignore it and live by faith alone. This, of course, is done by following the living prophet and conveniently ignoring many of the words of former prophets, an arrangement that results in continuing tithing revenue for the corporation. - Andy's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/andycwilson/

A church who lies to its members about its own history. A church founded by a gold-digging sexual predator, who, though a sort of religious organizational genius in his own right, concocted an elaborate tale of seeing God and Jesus, digging up gold plates, peep stones, and fake "reformed Egyptian" writings to make members believe in his Book of Mormon. - Andy's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/andycwilson/

If God loves all of his children, why would s/he reserve his/her highest blessings for an infinitesimally small number of those children, i.e., those who wear funny underwear, participate in Masonic rituals and pay money to a large religious corporation. Those who support a church that lies about its members' $100+ billion tithing monies, spends less of that money on charitable work than does Walmart, keeps a bevy of highly paid (with tithes) lawyers to protect child abusing leaders and pay hush money to their victims. - Andy's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/andycwilson/

Along the way, I started watching Mormon Stories videos and other exmormon podcasts, reading things that I had previously put off reading because, well, they might be of the devil. Reading the CES Letter was a key event for me in putting my faith crisis in perspective. I finally gained the assurance that I wasn't alone in my faith deconstruction journey. - Andy's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/andycwilson/

When my wife suddenly and unexpectedly passed in 2022, for me, part of grieving was realizing that I needed to let go of many things in my life that no longer served me. It was scary, but necessary for my future well-being. Now, I was free to approach my life in completely new and authentic ways. - Andy's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/andycwilson/

I had reached a point where the only thing keeping me in the Church was my wife's unwavering faith, in which I noticed a few small cracks appearing post-COVID. I didn't want to hurt her or our marriage of 40+ years, so I kept quiet and acted like a faithful member. I didn't like my own inauthenticity, but figured I would eventually come clean when the time was right. Besides, I still appreciated the support and community aspects of the Church, and 90% of my friends and family were all active members, so I played along. Then she died. My world was shattered. - Andy's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/andycwilson/

I had questions about many aspects of Church history, doctrine and practices that often gave me pause from the time I was a young missionary, but, good Mormon that I was, I dutifully blamed myself for questioning the Church and the Prophet, repented and shelved the questions. My faith was shaken many times along the way as I grew older and started to realize there's no real, spiritual power in the Church, or in any religion made by men, other than what its members all agree upon, or, rather, what the leaders tell them they need to agree upon in order to please God, which often has the added benefit of enriching the Church through greater tithes and donations. - Andy's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/andycwilson/

I was raised in the Mormon faith. I come from Mormon polygamy stock on my Mom's side. Dad joined the Church when I was a 20 years old missionary in Taiwan. I graduated from BYU, married my wife in the temple in Laie, Hawaii, had five kids, nine grandkids. I served in many positions, and up until a couple of years ago I always held a temple recommend. I am a truth-seeker. I was a Mormon. - Andy's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/andycwilson/

This is a spotlight on a profile shared at wasmormon.org. These are just the highlights, so please find the full story at https://wasmormon.org/profile/007shrimp/. There are stories of Mormon faith journeys contributed by hundreds of users like you. Come check them out and consider sharing your own story at wasmormon.org!

I live to witness the good, the beautiful and the true in this life which includes food, music, and intellectually stimulating conversations, and coming to understanding another's point of view. I can think for myself now. - Cameron's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/007shrimp/

The church taught great principles of honesty, integrity, hard work, the importance of family, and love. What got me questioning the church is the actions taken by church leaders since the beginning that were not in line with what I thought the church was. After doing some experiments, I concluded that as much as I wanted the church to be true, the church is indistinguishable from a fraud. - Cameron's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/007shrimp/

I was born and raised in Orem, Utah. My 7 brothers, as well as my sister grew up very active and although it was a very strict home with high expectations of conforming behaviors, rules, and discipline, there was always love in the home and we rarely fought. The Church was life. Baptism, receiving the Priesthood, going on a mission, and getting married in the temple were mile markers worth celebrating. I did all that, but ultimately I was disillusioned by the church. I was a Mormon. - Cameron's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/007shrimp/

This is a spotlight on a profile shared at wasmormon.org. These are just the highlights, so please find the full story at https://wasmormon.org/profile/bparks898/. There are stories of Mormon faith journeys contributed by hundreds of users like you. Come check them out and consider sharing your own story at wasmormon.org!

Losing faith in Mormonism was easy. Having the courage to fully detangle all the pieces of it in my life was hard. - Brooklyn's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/bparks898/

What a lovely thing being out is. I kept going to church for 9 months after losing my faith just to observe. It was fascinating — well, it was at best boring and at worst disturbing. So many people internalize the most horrid things from this church. Why does Relief Society always devolve into trauma sharing hour? - Brooklyn's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/bparks898/

I watched a Mormon Stories of Tim Kosnoff, and I was so repulsed by what he shared, I decided it was time. That fortuitously coincided with LDS Discussions series on Mormon Stories, and a month later, I was out. - Brooklyn's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/bparks898/

I recognized there were things about the Mormon Church that I heard on the fringes but didn’t want to digest. Things that I knew that if I knew them, I’d have to act. I'd have to decide if this was all hogwash or not. Then came the Arizona abuse case. - Brooklyn's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/bparks898/

I decided that would be the end of that and to love myself unconditionally. Funny thing is, when you do that, you give yourself room to disagree with everything that doesn’t fit with that message. So I was frequently hearing things at church and THINKING. A dangerous pastime, I know. - Brooklyn's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/bparks898/

My deconstruction started in college when I realized every week so much of what people said was the same self-hatred coded in self-righteousness. People always found something to dislike about themselves to share with the class. And I did the same thing — praying every day to be better and always feeling I was coming up short. - Brooklyn's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/bparks898/

I grew up in St Louis in a relatively small ward. So I didn’t really have members in my school. All of my ward experience after childhood has been a series of singles wards at BYU then in Orem. I knew I was ignorant of what Mormonism was. Then I decided it was time to learn. I was a Mormon. - Brooklyn's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/bparks898/

This is a spotlight on a profile shared at wasmormon.org. These are just the highlights, so please find the full story at https://wasmormon.org/profile/searjasub/. There are stories of Mormon faith journeys contributed by hundreds of users like you. Come check them out and consider sharing your own story at wasmormon.org!

There's so many things I've learned about the church that I had no idea. I was in the wrong for so long. The few issues mentioned are only the tip of the iceberg. Finally, my wife and I decided after all the facts, the Mormon church is not true at all and we started our journey as faithful and true Christians. - Searjasub's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/searjasub/

When missionaries teach other people about Mormonism, they always leave crucial details out. "Preach my Gospel" does not tell missionaries to share about the 30+ wives Joseph Smith had, and as young as 14 years old, nor the 50+ wives Brigham Young had. They don't teach you about the actual reason why Joseph Smith was killed - that he burned down a press. They don't teach that Joseph Smith was a known treasure digger. All these details are just the tip of the iceberg and will show red flags to anyone trying to join this cult. All the characteristics of a cult are present in the Mormon church. - Searjasub's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/searjasub/

The church is dishonest by not being upfront with everyone, members and non members about their past. They always change the church principles to adjust to the current world situation. It's pretty much up to the current president of the Mormon church to dictate what's the new standard. There's plenty of examples of this going on throughout church history. - Searjasub's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/searjasub/

After almost a year of rewiring our brains from the brainwash caused by the mormon church we took one of the most important steps in becoming a true disciple of Christ. We got baptized!! This time we got baptized into Christ and not any church. Which is contrary to mormon teachings since you have to be baptized to be a member. We used the facilities of another non-denominational church to perform our baptism. Being baptized and being member of a church are two separate things, also contradicting the LDS view of baptism. - Searjasub's "I was a Mormon" story. Read more at https://wasmormon.org/profile/searjasub/

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