Confirmation bias refers to the cognitive tendency of individuals to interpret or seek out information in a way that confirms their preexisting beliefs or hypotheses. When someone experiences confirmation bias, they are more likely to notice, remember, and give greater weight to information that supports their existing beliefs, while disregarding or downplaying evidence that contradicts …
Tag Archives: mental gymnastics
Mark E Petersen, LGBT Are Worthy of Death
Over time, the LDS Church’s perspective on homosexuality evolved from a stance of subdued disapproval to one of pronounced institutional homophobia. In the 1950s, church leaders increasingly characterized homosexuality as both a crime and a treatable mental disorder. In 1968, they further intensified their stance by including “homosexual acts” as grounds for excommunication, effectively aiming …
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The Scary Dangers of Mormon Doubt
A member of the LDS Quorum of the Seventy, Hugo Montoya, shared a message in the Ensign, the church magazine, in June 2017. He is among the top leadership of the religion. He adds to the Mormon paranoia of doubt. The church demonizes doubt and uses fear to scare members from questioning their authority or …
Jarad Was a Mormon, an Ex-Mormon Profile Spotlight
Jarad was born and raised in the Mormon Church and in the Mormon Corridor in Utah. He reached a point where he experienced doubts and eventually chose to leave the LDS Church. Despite putting in extra effort to study the church doctrine and history, and engage in faith-promoting activities, Jarad found that his doubts not …
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Book of Mormon Invites Criticism
Hugh Nibley (1910–2005) was an American scholar and prominent figure in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was known for his contributions to LDS scholarship, particularly in ancient history, languages, and religious studies. Nibley held a Ph.D. in ancient history and wrote about ancient civilizations, religious history, and Mormonism. Nibley’s influence extends …
Church encourages Members to Assume the Good; Doubt the Bad
The church leaders know what they are doing. They are working feverishly to keep people in the church. They don’t want members to be bothered by the bad things the church has done and is doing. They embed lines in their talks and devotionals encouraging members to only think positively of the leaders, and ignore …
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Convince Mormons of Delusions and Errors
Orson Pratt, an Apostle in the Mormon church once invited others to “teach us our errors; convince us of our delusions.” He thought that the church was walking in true Christianity. This echoes a statement from Joseph Smith asking others to “convince us of our delusions,” and claiming that “we will be ever grateful for …
A Fig For Polygamy?
Early church leaders (Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, and Orson Pratt among others) allegedly had a change of heart for polygamy. At first, they reportedly resisted the practice but later on accepted it and vehemently defended it. Did they really resist in the first place or are these just retro-active stories and manipulation in order to …
Judging Past Leaders by Today’s Standards
Church members and leaders enjoy the refrain that we can’t judge Joseph Smith (and other church leaders) by modern standards. Nobody today should criticize them for living according to the cultural norms of the day. People thought and did things differently back then. This expands beyond Mormon church leaders into politics etc. There are many …
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Major Victories for Satan
LDS Church leader, Russell Nelson, has for decades wanted to do away with the nickname of the church. It seems to have been a pet peeve of his, and he single-handedly announced a plea to use the full name of the church in 1990 when he was a junior apostle. The next conference, however, President …
November Policy of LGBT Exclusion, The Reversal, and Mormon Mental Gymnastics
![“[We] have continued to seek the Lord’s guidance and to plead with Him in behalf of His children who were affected by the 2015 policy. We knew that this policy created concern and confusion for some and heartache for others.” - Russell M Nelson, regarding the November Policy Reversal, BYU Devotional, September 2019 | wasmormon.org](https://i0.wp.com/wasmormon.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/nelson-policy-reversal-Lords-guidance-2015-policy-created-concern-confusion-heartache.jpg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1)
In November 2015 a new church policy was leaked and upset many members of the church and those outside the church. It became known as the November Policy of Exclusion. It affected those who are LGBTQ+ allies and family and friends by prohibiting children of same-sex married couples from being baptized or blessed at church …
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Daniel Was a Mormon, an Ex-Mormon Profile Spotlight
Daniel was raised Mormon and cruised along the Mormon conveyor belt in life. He’s also a physician and was educated to “research and investigate, to seek truth from reliable sources”. He suffered from religious scrupulosity and constantly felt like a sinner. He came across the Gospel Topic Essays though and quickly felt “uneasy with the …
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The Anachronistic Olive Tree Allegory from Zenos in Jacob 5
Jacob 5 is a story about an orchard of Olive Trees and a servant who grafts branches from wild trees to tame trees and vice versa all according to the commands from the Lord of the Vineyard. The allegory represents the past, and future history of the House of Israel. It discusses the scattering of Israel before …
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Defiant Apologists Challenge the New Seer Stone Narrative
The Mormon church is shifting the narrative surrounding the Book of Mormon translation lately by admitting that Joseph used a rock in his hat as a main translation method. This narrative shift has put some apologists in an awkward position. The Joseph Smith Foundation apologist group has published a book discussing Joseph Smith’s use of …
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Timeline of the First Vision Story and Development
The First Vision is a foundational event in the history and theology of the Church. It refers to an experience Joseph Smith claimed to have had as a young man. In the spring of 1820, he seeks guidance and religious truth. In later accounts, he described going into a grove of trees and praying to …
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Elder McKay’s Sure and Certain Foundation for Unhistory and Brainwashing
Elder McKay the official Church Historian, with no credentials for history, but a career lawyer and executive gave a devotional at BYU-I in April 2023 titled A Sure and Certain Foundation. He detailed to students and young adults how to strengthen their faith in the church and how to face doubts. Elder McKay, Church Historian …
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What is the CES Letter? Is it True/Safe to Read?
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.
Anachronisms Found in the Book of Mormon
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 …
Kelly Was a Mormon, an Ex-Mormon Profile Spotlight
Kelly has a story of conversion and deconstruction and deconversion. She went from being a “Golden Convert”, to feeling racist discrimination for the first time in her life in the Mormon church doctrines. She dug in to learn all the hidden issues in church history and despite her best efforts, could no longer believe the …
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Yesterday’s Anti-Mormon “Lies” Are Today’s Church Essays
What are the Church Essays? The church has quietly published some essays discussing some hard-to-reconcile issues. There are multiple topics in these essays, such as Multiple First Vision Accounts, Rock in a Hat Translation & Mormon Institutionalized Racism, a collection of essays about Polygamy referred to as Plural Marriage & even Heavenly Mother. Haven’t heard …
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