Tag Archives: doubt

Uncertainty about truth claims. Church teaches to ‘doubt your doubts before you doubt your faith.’

I’ll Pray for You — Hate mail

Visitors sometimes ask why wasmormon.org exists, or why former members don’t just move on. Fair questions deserve straight answers. Occasionally, though, the mail isn’t a question—it’s a script: pity, prophecy, and the old line that people who leave should leave the Church alone. We recently received that kind of message and had an insightful exchange. Below is the full …

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Millions Shall Worship Brother Joseph Again But Don’t Google Us

In his BYU–Idaho devotional Millions Shall Know Brother Joseph Again, Jayson Kunzler urges students to reject any information—inside or outside the Church—that might “humanize” Joseph Smith or acknowledge his flaws. He warns that those who study inconvenient history “serve the wrong master” and risk their eternal standing. He insists that members can only truly know …

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Religion and Tribes

The LDS Church is Just Another Man-Made Religion One of the hardest truths to face when stepping back from Mormonism is this: The LDS Church is just a man-made religion, no more divinely authoritative than any other. That sentence alone might feel heavy, especially for a “true believing Mormon” (TBM). It cuts directly against the …

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Joseph Smith’s Polygamy Denials: Carefully Worded Lies, Loopholes, and Lasting Damage

One of the most unsettling aspects of Mormon history is the secret practice of polygamy. Joseph Smith publicly denied practicing polygamy while secretly marrying between 30 and 40 women, including teenagers and other men’s wives, as the church’s published essay confirms (in a footnote). The exact number of women to whom he was sealed in …

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Nathanael Was a Mormon, an Ex-Mormon Profile Spotlight

Meet Nathanael, whose story demonstrates the profound courage required to choose integrity over comfort, even when it means dismantling the very foundation upon which you’ve built your life. As a descendant of Mormon pioneers with deep ancestral roots in the faith, Nathanael’s journey represents one of the most authentic and thoughtful deconversion stories we’ve encountered. …

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Why Didn’t Cowdery, Whitmer, or Harris Expose Joseph Smith as a Fraud?

A common apologetic argument in defense of Joseph Smith is that his closest early associates—Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer, and Martin Harris—never outright denounced him as a fraud, even after they left or were cast out of the church. The logic goes: if anyone would have known the “truth” behind the origins of the Book of …

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Did Sidney Rigdon Influence the Priesthood Restoration?

The modern LDS Church presents the restoration of priesthood authority—first the Aaronic Priesthood by John the Baptist on May 15, 1829, and then the Melchizedek Priesthood by Peter, James, and John—as pivotal, well-documented events in church history. However, early sources and the timeline of doctrinal development tell a much murkier story, one that raises serious …

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Elijah Abel, the NAACP, and the Abandoned Float That Helped Pressure for Change and Revelation

In the spring of 1978, 47 years ago to the day, there was a “Days of ‘47” parade for Pioneer Day in Salt Lake City. At the time the parade was planned, the church continued its unpopular priesthood ban on black members of the church. The ban was lifted weeks before the parade occurred, but …

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“I think in some ways people used to leave the church because they didn't think it was true and now people are leaving the church because they don't think that it's good.” - Jared Halverson, Can Doubt be a Spiritual Gift? Faith Matters May 11, 2025 | wasmormon.org
“I think in some ways people used to leave the church because they didn't think it was true and now people are leaving the church because they don't think that it's good.” - Jared Halverson, Can Doubt be a Spiritual Gift? Faith Matters May 11, 2025

Priesthood Restoration Apologetics = Retrofitting and Narrative Engineering

A BYU Studies article, Priesthood Restoration Documents (BYU Studies, Volume 35, Number 4, 1996), attempts to compile and legitimize the historical claims surrounding the restoration of the priesthood in Mormonism. While the compilation appears scholarly on the surface, the conclusion it draws is apologetic rather than academic. The piece says one thing, but the data …

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Retrofitting the Priesthood Restoration into the Doctrine and Covenants Revelation

The church narrative states the priesthood was restored to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdry in 1829. There are a few Revelations used to tell this narrative. There are problems with these priesthood restoration claims, and specifically these revelations, they aren’t contemporary to the stories, and the few that are the closest, have been changed. Doctrine …

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“After having expressed myself so freely upon this subject, I do not doubt but those who have been forward in raising their voice against the South, will cry out against me as being uncharitable, unfeeling and unkind—wholly unacquainted with the gospel of Christ. It is my privilege then, to name certain passages from the bible, and examine the teachings of the ancients upon this matter, as the fact is uncontrovertable, that the first mention we have of slavery is found in the holy bible, pronounced by a man who was perfect in his generation and walked with God. And so far from that prediction’s being averse from the mind of God it remains as a lasting monument of the decree of Jehovah, to the shame and confusion of all who have cried out against the South, in consequence of their holding the sons of Ham in servitude!” - Joseph Smith, Letter to Oliver Cowdery, April 9, 1836 | wasmormon.org
“After having expressed myself so freely upon this subject, I do not doubt but those who have been forward in raising their voice against the South, will cry out against me as being uncharitable, unfeeling and unkind—wholly unacquainted with the gospel of Christ. It is my privilege then, to name certain passages from the bible, and examine the teachings of the ancients upon this matter, as the fact is uncontrovertable, that the first mention we have of slavery is found in the holy bible, pronounced by a man who was perfect in his generation and walked with God. And so far from that prediction’s being averse from the mind of God it remains as a lasting monument of the decree of Jehovah, to the shame and confusion of all who have cried out against the South, in consequence of their holding the sons of Ham in servitude!” - Joseph Smith, Letter to Oliver Cowdery, April 9, 1836

Mormon Apologist Handbook: Argument does not Create Conviction, Lack of it Destroys Belief

Latter-day Saint apologetics—through institutions like FARMS, FAIR, and now the Interpreter Foundation—have largely operated on a defensive crouch, crafting arguments not to generate genuine conviction, but simply to keep belief from crumbling. Their aim isn’t to persuade the outsider or satisfy the seeker; it’s to keep the disillusioned member tethered, just barely. But Farrer warns …

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Facsimile Problems with the Book of Abraham Translation Theory of Papyri as Catalyst

Apologists for the LDS Church have proposed a theory, the Catalyst Theory, to explain the translation of the Book of Abraham. This theory suggests that the Egyptian papyri Joseph Smith obtained were merely a spiritual trigger, or “catalyst,” for receiving inspired scripture. In other words, the physical texts weren’t actually translated in the traditional sense; …

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Shifting Visions of God: Unpacking Mormonism’s Developing Theology Through Joseph Smith’s First Vision Accounts

Joseph Smith’s various accounts of the First Vision provide a window into his evolving theology, particularly regarding the nature of the Godhead. The changes in each version, when looked at as a narrative through a lens to understand the thinking of church leadership at the time, show ideas developing and how these changing ideas were …

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Painted into a Corner: Prophets, Revelation, and the Mormon Church’s Integrity Crisis

The Mormon Church has painted itself into a theological and historical corner. Its unwavering position—that all teachings and policies come from direct revelation from God through a living prophet—has created a system resistant to introspection and allergic to correction. For nearly 200 years, this stance may have worked for the institution. But in the age …

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