Stories of mormon faith transitions. Share your truth – own your story!
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"The Lord will never permit me or any other man who stands as President of this Church to lead you astray. It is not in the programme. It is not in the mind of God. If I were to attempt that, the Lord would remove me out of my place, and so He will any other man who attempts to lead the children of men astray from the oracles of God and from their duty." Official Declaration 1, Excerpts from three addresses by President Wilford Woodruff regarding the Manifesto
"What about you? If the truthfulness of this Church or the truthfulness of or your beliefs were judged by your errors, would anyone ever believe what you believe? Would there have been fewer mistakes, fewer messes, if God had only restored His Church and gospel through you?" - Elder Kyle S McKay: Lawyer, Seventy and Executive Director of the Church History Department
"So, what do we do with error? You can’t hide or hide from the humanness of humans. But it is equally unproductive to seek out error and wallow in it by making it an emphasis of study." - Elder Kyle S McKay: Lawyer, Seventy and Executive Director of the Church History Department
"You will never come to know and understand the truths of God by studying the errors of man. Nor has God appointed you, me, or anyone to be an ongoing arbiter of error in His leaders, scrutinizing every word or act of apostles and prophets to make sure they fit within our current understanding of correctness." - Elder Kyle S McKay: Lawyer, Seventy and Executive Director of the Church History Department
Perhaps it’s simply a way to show esteem for our leaders.
Tim Ballard Issues Statement Affirming Commitment to the Church
Tim Ballard Issues Statement Affirming Commitment to the Church
LDS Church Statement regarding Tim Ballard - Deseret News
Operation Underground Railroad (OUR) Statement regarding Tim Ballard
“Wendy, you won’t believe what has been happening for two hours. The Lord has given me detailed instruction about a process I am to follow.” President Russell M. Nelson. A story relayed by Nelson’s wife, as told by Neil Andersen on Facebook in 2018
This is not an ad, it's a spotlight on a profile shared at wasmormon.org. These are just the highlights, so please find Evert's full story at https://wasmormon.org/profile/evert/. There are over a hundred more stories of Mormon faith journeys contributed by people like you. Come check them out and consider sharing your own story at wasmormon.org!
"I am happy not to be controlled or influenced by the church. Not happy that my wife chose the church over me." - Evert | "I was a Mormon" https://wasmormon.org/profile/evert/
"I submitted my resignation the next day. So now I am Mormon with no church. A soon to be ex-wife who broke her Covenants she agreed to at the Alter of God when we were sealed for Time and All Eternity. 4 Kids, 28 1/2 years married, 32+ years together. She still believes, so I am the bad guy for not folding like a cheap sheet of paper. All my dreams gone." - Evert | "I was a Mormon" https://wasmormon.org/profile/evert/
"It all turned to crap when my wife told me that she was leaving because the church is true. I did not ask her to choose she decided that all on her own, or maybe someone at church did it for her." - Evert | "I was a Mormon" https://wasmormon.org/profile/evert/
"I do not believe the Scriptures are the literal Word of God or even a historical record. Their purpose is to provide a basic knowledge of God and to help us feel the Spirit. There are many Scriptures including the Bible, Book of Mormon, Qur'an, Tripitaka, Gita, Torah, Guru Granth Sahib and others. They teach the basics, Love God and Love your Neighbour." - Evert | "I was a Mormon" https://wasmormon.org/profile/evert/
"I started to feel uncomfortable at church, I tried to sit at the back but no good, I put my efforts into community service instead and felt more of The Holy Spirit and love of God there." - Evert | "I was a Mormon" https://wasmormon.org/profile/evert/
"I stopped attending Elder's Quorum and Sunday School because I didn't want to challenge the new leadership (I tend to answer questions a lot in class) and Sunday School was just the same, same each time: read your scriptures, pray, keep the commandments... No substance." - Evert | "I was a Mormon" https://wasmormon.org/profile/evert/
"I was given a calling in the Bishopric that I was not prepared for and no support was given. On meeting with the Bishop I shared that the 'call' was a mistake, I did not get confirmation when I prayed and fasted over the 'call.' This kicked off a diatribe where I was told that the Bishop does not make mistakes. I was released promptly and was not given a calling for 6 months." - Evert | "I was a Mormon" https://wasmormon.org/profile/evert/
"I attended Church regularly, met a girl, fell in love, went on a mission, she went on a mission, we got home and married in the temple. My non-Mormon family was not allowed to come and that created some conflict with my parents but, you know, "The Church is True", so the sacrifice was supposedly worth it." - Evert | "I was a Mormon" https://wasmormon.org/profile/evert/
"I joined the church at 20 when I felt a call from God, I was an atheist before then. After I accepted God into my life, the missionaries found me and I was baptized. I was a Mormon, then it was forbidden, I am still a Mormon just not a member of the church anymore." - Evert | "I was a Mormon" https://wasmormon.org/profile/evert/
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"Since I left I've been running an ex-mormon women's support group with my best friend. Life is definitely better without the church. I can recognize abusive relationships now, and think about my needs. It's a decision I've never regretted." - Emma | wasmormon.org
"I started feeling more, my personality could finally start to grow. It was kind of amazing. Of course there is the faith crisis and realizing you've been brainwashed your whole life, and I do still struggle with how much the church took from me." - Emma | wasmormon.org
"I was told that I was just confused, or it's okay to step away for a little, but I have to come back or else I won't go to heaven. My father told me that all ex-mormons are bad people with bad agendas. It felt like the whole world was telling me not to remove my records, but I held firm and removed them anyway." - Emma | wasmormon.org
"I found Zelph on the Shelf, and that started my branch to finding the ex-mormon reddit, and ex-mormon content creators. I soon saw patterns in how other people were treated in church and how I was treated in church. I started learning about church history and the amount of abuse the church has hidden. I was disgusted and wanted nothing to do with the church. I decided to leave the church." - Emma | wasmormon.org
"After that, I definitely didn't want to go to church. I started questioning why God would choose such awful people for those callings. I didn't have anyone who had gone through a faith crisis in my circle, in fact the church had me believe that hardly anyone ever leaves the church." - Emma | wasmormon.org
"No one in my ward was concerned about me missing from the group or what happened to me. After that trip I didn't feel safe at church, mostly around my bishop. I took a hiatus from church to mentally prepare to go back to church. My young women's leader noticed I wasn't attending church and took me out for ice cream. She asked what was going on and I explained to her what happened in Nauvoo. She laughed in my face. I didn't know what to think of it and awkwardly laughed too." - Emma | wasmormon.org
"In 2019 all of the youth in my stake went to Nauvoo. The youth in my ward abandoned me, not knowing the area or where I was supposed to go. I eventually found the bishop and his wife who said I could walk with them. I had severe asthma, and walking through the groves to the temple I started having an asthma attack and I collapsed to the ground. The bishop looked back at me and said, "I promised to be at the temple in 5 minutes and you're not going to be the reason I'm late." And they left me there. I got sunburned laying there. Eventually the Albuterol kicked in and I made my way to the temple." - Emma | wasmormon.org
"I never felt that I belonged. It seemed that it was a chore for the other youth to include me, when they would include me. I was the only plus sized person in my ward. I always felt out of place, like I didn't look like a Mormon girl. The next big thing that happened is really what triggered my shelf breaking." - Emma | wasmormon.org
"I was born into the church. I left the church in 2020, after taking a hiatus from church for about a year. I decided I didn't want anything to do with the church and chose to leave instead of going back. I'm still healing from this journey and wouldn't change it for the world. I was a mormon." - Emma | wasmormon.org
"There were a always a few questions I had as a believing member but I put them off and just told myself I'd figure it out later." - Madison | wasmormon.org
Madison was a Mormon. https://wasmormon.org/profile/madisonc/
"If there was some divine power out there it was female. I prayed to a Heavenly Mother just one time, please please help me! Is this church true or not? I have to know, I have to know now. And the feeling I got was that She said no. No it's not true, and I'm you, I'm your daughter, and I'm love. I gave my daughter a baby blessing a few months later." - Madison | wasmormon.org
"My activity was less and less until I had my daughter. And I knew almost instantly that I would never set foot in a Mormon church again. How could I force onto her the shame I've held onto my whole life? This perfect little girl was my responsibility, my body grew her, gave her life." - Madison | wasmormon.org
"I was the Relief Society secretary for awhile until I found out how much the presidency gossiped and withheld food orders from members simply for not liking them personally. I went to one of the church's entrepreneur business classes but it was so ridged and focused on paying tithing I could not go back to those." - Madison | wasmormon.org
"I had seen and read a few whispers of what the temple rituals were like but I never allowed myself to look into it deeper. Even to the point where I did not want to take the temple prep classes before getting married. I figured that it was taken out of context or fabricated "anti-mormon" content. To my uncomfortable disappointment, I discovered that it was all true: the naked anointing, the handshakes, the Adam and Eve story as fact, the Masonic clothing, the secret names – it was exactly what I feared. I never returned to the temple but I did my best to stay in the church for my family for five more years." - Madison | wasmormon.org
"While in my late teens my mother said some thing odd like, well the Mormon church is a cult by definition, but that's ok this is God's plan. I'm not even sure what was brought up to make her say that." - Madison | wasmormon.org
"I was born and raised in the LDS church. I was part of an active family, always held callings, went to activities and seminary, and read my scriptures. I'm a mom who loves cooking and philosophy. I was a Mormon." - Madison | wasmormon.org
"Do we simply end up with more divisiveness in our culture than we already have? And we already have far too much everywhere. ...
Musket fire? Yes, we will always need defenders of the faith" - Elder Jeffrey R Holland, 2021
"Why did I leave? I wanted to have a healthy relationship with myself, my spouse, and my kids. The teachings of the church ate away at my self-image and any feelings of self-worth I might have had. Now I'm happier than I've ever been. I finally feel like I matter. I feel like I can give my kids what they need. I feel free." - Jeff https://wasmormon.org/profile/darthyagi/
"I was willing to overlook things like inconsistencies, especially when I would look at the writings of people like Hugh Nibley. They knew more than I did, so who was I to argue? They were able to square the circle and so should I. I was physically in, mentally out for several years, as I'd found too much wrong with the church, and it eroded my belief in the church." - Jeff https://wasmormon.org/profile/darthyagi/
"But the thing that broke my shelf was the treatment of and attitude regarding LGBTQ+ people. I found it reprehensible that apostles would incite hatred like Holland did with his now-infamous "musket fire" talk at BYU. And when I learned that BYU had carried out conversion therapy during Oaks' tenure as president—and that he blatantly lied about it—I knew I had to leave." - Jeff https://wasmormon.org/profile/darthyagi/
"I grew up in Utah County, and was a pretty good Mormon. I was a convert in some senses, as I wasn't active as a young kid and my ex-wife did the whole "flirt to convert" thing. But when I joined, I went all-in. I was a ward missionary in several wards and wanted to become a bishop. I was doing well with it. I was a Mormon." - Jeff https://wasmormon.org/profile/darthyagi/
"People like my kids don't know what they're agreeing to when they join the church. It's wrong to have someone agree to follow certain rules for their whole life when they don't know what it really means to pay tithing, wear garments, take time to go to the temple, clean the church, etc. for their entire life. My kids deserve to know." - Jeff https://wasmormon.org/profile/darthyagi/
