The late Dr. D. Michael Quinn was among the many scholars who were forced to choose between promoting church propaganda and maintaining their integrity as historians in response to Elder Packer’s controversial talk “The Mantle is Far Greater Than the Intellect,”. Quinn delivered a pointed response to Elder Packer’s remarks in his lecture entitled “On …
Continue reading “On Being a Mormon Historian from Michael Quinn”
Joseph Fielding Smith wasn’t the only church leader that didn’t accept evolution. He claimed, “if evolution is true, the church is false.” He could be dismissed as a “man of his times”, especially now that it’s been a lifetime since he published that statement in his Doctrines of Salvation book. We have this same sentiment …
Continue reading “Russell M Nelson Continues Mormon Tradition To Deny Evolution”
When Latter-day Saints discover problems with church history and doctrine, they often turn to church leaders and scholars for answers. Sometimes these answers are more unsettling than the problems themselves. Here’s a video compilation followed by quotes with individual sources where available. Some struggle with unanswered questionsabout things that have been doneor said in the …
Continue reading “Changing The Narrative –Reconstructing Mormon History”
The church is working hard to inoculate the youth from the disease of church history. They are teaching seminary students in the scripture mastery program that historical details are not important since they can’t provide salvation, so let’s not get distracted by these less significant details. This conditions young members to ignore the troubling issues …
Continue reading “Church and its Inoculation Approach to Addressing Historical Details”
Joseph was in trouble with the law for treasure digging with Josiah Stowell. It seems he was working out a pivot in his life and transitioning from treasure-digging to becoming a religious leader. As he learns that you can get into serious trouble taking people’s money and leading a treasure dig with a peep stone …
Continue reading “Joseph Smith Confirms His Seer Stone Is Nonsense”
If Joseph Smith used a rock (seer stone or peep stone) in his hat as the main translation process, as the church is slowly teaching today, how do we call it a translation? If he didn’t use the gold plates to produce the Book of Mormon, why did he even have them? Why were they …
Continue reading “Joseph Smith’s Peep Stone Translation Method Renders The Gold Plates Useless”
There are many many acronyms in the nomenclature of the Mormon church. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has come up with many nicknames for parts of the organization or even doctrines, most of which are acronyms. Some of these are “official” acronyms while others have simply developed naturally over time. It should …
Continue reading “What does TSCC mean when referring to the Mormon church? TBM? PIMO? MFMC?”
Mason Allred and Mark Ashurst-McGee discuss the various historical accounts of the Book of Mormon translation process, including accounts of Joseph Smith using a Seer Stone to translate the ancient record and accounts of Joseph Smith using the Urim and Thummim in a video posted on the “Church History/Latter-day Saint History” YouTube account, the official …
The New Narrative We have many statements and posts from current church leaders trying to normalize Joseph’s seer stone translation. We have Elder Uchtdorf and Brother Brad Wilcox discussing the rock in a hat and independently comparing it to a mobile phone of all things. We even have President Nelson demonstrating the rock-in-hat procedure Joseph …
The church has done much to normalize the fact that Joseph Smith used a peep stone or seer stone when he purportedly translated the Book of Mormon. They have released images of the exact stone he used and have received quite a bit of pushback since in the past, the narrative was he used the …
Continue reading “Elder Uchtdorf Compares Peep Stone to His Smartphone”
After receiving the Faith Crisis Report, the church leaders commissioned and started quietly publishing what they call Gospel Topic Essays. These essays, for the most part, are the first time the church has published an official stance on many of the topics. They were published quietly and buried deep within the church site of materials. …
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There are myriad warnings against dissension and apostasy by church leaders. Church leaders are afraid of those who leave the church behind. Those who leave have the gumption and the gall to stand up for what they believe in, rather than believing what they are told to believe. Those who leave have the courage to …
Continue reading “Mormon Authorities Threaten Doubters With “Don’t You Dare Bail” Messages”
Jayme sought evidence for the testable truth claims of the church. He looked at the Book of Mormon and found it lacking when using history and science as his guide. I was a mormon. The testable truth claims that need to be true for the Book of Mormon to be true are not true. A …
Continue reading “Jayme Was a Mormon, an Ex-Mormon Profile Spotlight”
What Happened between Fanny Alger and Joseph Smith? As a young woman, Fanny Alger was a servant in Joseph Smith’s house. She lived with the family for a time while also serving as a maid. Joseph Smith and Fanny got very close. Multiple accounts exist of Emma Smith, Joseph’s wife catching Joseph celestializing (sexually involved) …
Continue reading “Fanny Alger, Joseph Smith’s “dirty, nasty, filthy affair” Teen Bride”
Joseph Smith purportedly knew he was going to be killed, and said the following, which is now canonized in the D&C scriptures as the dominant narrative of the church. I am going like a lamb to the slaughter; but I am calm as a summer’s morning; I have a conscience void of offense towards God, …
Continue reading “The Joseph Smith “Like a Lamb to the Slaughter” Narrative is Myth”
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints With all the hubbub about referring to the church by the proper name, as directed by church president Russell Nelson, let’s stop and look at what the church name is. Why does the official name of the church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) contain …
Continue reading “Retrofitting Revelation For The Mormon Church Official Name”
Orson Pratt was an early Apostle of the church. He believed and proclaims that the Book of Mormon is inspired and true. He has some pointed criticisms of the book though if it turns out not to be true. If false, [The Book of Mormon] is one of most cunning, wicked, bold, deep-laid impositions ever …
Continue reading “Orson Pratt Wouldn’t Have Left the Mormon Church Alone”
The CES Letter is a collection of questions, concerns, and doubts about the Mormon church’s truth claims addressed to a Church Education System Director from Jeremy Runnels. Learn about the background, the effects and rebuttals and some of the contents.
This faith crisis report next lists many anonymous faith crisis profiles each detailing the exit story of the member (along with precious statistics and demographics the church cares deeply about such as household income). Not to be confused with the actual faith crisis profiles shared on wasmormon.org.
The report also analyses a perpetual cycle of disaffiliated members, where a member finds troubling information and through the age of information and the internet confirms the troubling issue as true and feels betrayed by the church for not being honest, and ends up venting to a family member and causing the cycle to restart for them.
The report defines the stages of such a faith crisis from a true believing member, through a catalyst and traumatization, and then either through a traumatized disbeliever and ex-mormon or a nuanced believer and then secular participant.
This report studies a faith crisis in detail along with an actual research survey of members who have left the church due to faith crisis and these respondents’ demographics such as age, gender, education level, household income, and church callings held as well as the primary reasons why the member left.
Joseph Fielding Smith was the 10th president of the church, the son of Joseph F Smith, the 6th president of the church, and the grandson of Hyrum Smith. He returned from his mission to England in 1901, and began to work in the Churcvh History offices and was later called to the quorum of the …
Continue reading “Evolution vs Mormon Truth Claims from Joseph Fielding Smith”
Anyone who was raised Mormon, or even attended the church for any length of time knows the Urim and Thummim story. Joseph Smith is portrayed as having translated the Book of Mormon with some special seer stones which were found with the gold plates. The Book of Mormon translation was possible with this Urim and …
Continue reading “The Problems with Joseph Smith and Peep Stone Translations”
Garrett stumbled into the rabbit hole of doctrine inconsistencies while doing his best to teach the youth of the church. He studied deeply and what he was finding troubled him enough to stop. He felt the prompting to continue to “seek truth. [He] felt assured that if the church was true, if the restoration was …
Continue reading “Garrett Was a Mormon, an Ex-Mormon Profile Spotlight”
What was the Nauvoo Expositor? The Nauvoo Expositor was a four-page newspaper that only printed one issue. It reportedly printed so many vicious lies and slander about Joseph Smith that the prophet of the restoration had the printing press destroyed in retaliation or as the church claims to avoid violence. Somewhat ironic that they destroyed …
Continue reading “The Nauvoo Expositor And More Lies From Joseph Smith”
Bart was a long-time and deeply familiar member of the church. His family was in the church for 6 generations and he served in nearly all the callings in his 40 years of service. Finally, his shelf collapsed when he tried to make sense of the church’s truth claims. The truth claims don’t add up. …
Continue reading “Bart Was a Mormon, an Ex-Mormon Profile Spotlight”
What is an anachronism? Anachronisms are impossibilities or inconsistencies that include things that do not belong together. Something like the Flintstones is anachronistic because it portrays humans and dinosaurs living together, but science tells us that dinosaurs were long extinct before humans evolved. Something like the image above, portraying Abraham Lincoln with a laptop computer …
Prominent LDS historian Richard Bushman and famed author of Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling notes, “I think that for the Church to remain strong, it has to reconstruct its narrative. The dominant narrative is not true; it can’t be sustained. The Church has to absorb all this new information or it will be on very shaky grounds …
Based upon the song, Book of Mormon Stories. Numbers in parentheses indicate gestures performed at that point in the song. Gestures are listed following the lyrics. Here’s the tune (so you can sing along): Book of Mormon (1) stories that my teacher told to me Were about the Lamanites (2), but lack historicity Long ago the …
!["[Joseph Smith] told [me] his gift in seeing with a stone and hat... this 'peeping' was all damned nonsense." - Alva Hale, Emma's Brother, Joseph's Brother-in-law | wasmormon.org](https://i0.wp.com/wasmormon.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/AlvaHale-peeping-all-damned-nonsense.jpg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1)
![If false, [The Book of Mormon] is one of most cunning, wicked, bold, deep-laid impositions ever palmed upon the world, calculated to deceive and ruin millions who will sincerely receive it as the word of God, and will suppose themselves securely built upon the rock of truth until they are with their families into hopeless despair. - Orson Pratt, Mormon Apostle](https://i0.wp.com/wasmormon.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/orson-pratt-if-bom-false.jpg?fit=940%2C1200&ssl=1)
!["Joseph had asked [Jane Law] to give him half her love; she was at liberty to keep the other half for her husband." Elder William Law, Mormon Apostle. Defected from the First Presidency and published the Nauvoo Expositor when his wife Jane told him she refused Joseph Smith who came in the night while he was away seeking a polyandrous relationship.](https://i0.wp.com/wasmormon.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/William-Law-Joseph-Smith-sought-polyandry-with-Jane-Law.jpg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1)
