Ella bravely considered the scary question. “What if the church isn’t true?” In the end, everything makes more sense once we consider that conclusion. “I finally had the thought; What if it isn’t true? I’d read the gospel topics essays when they came out. I’d served a mission. I’d seen miracles and felt the gift …
Continue reading “Ella Was a Mormon, an Exmormon Profile Spotlight”
Jordan found happiness in authenticity, even though it meant leaving the mormon church behind. “It never felt congruent with who I knew I was internally. It felt inauthentic to my internal reality.” “I have never been as happy as I am now that I am allowed to be the person that I always knew I …
Continue reading “Jordan Was a Mormon, an Exmormon Profile Spotlight”
Jude found the absurdity when BYU instructors ridiculed him for now fully grasping mormon theology and dove in deep. “when I went to BYUI for my sophomore year of college, I got CALLED OUT by my accounting professor who spent like 80% of our accounting class preaching. How dare I not know the answers to …
Continue reading “Jude Was a Mormon, an Exmormon Profile Spotlight”
Jim isn’t the only profile to mention the “Dark night of the soul” experienced during a faith crisis. He shows resilience in growing through it while also admitting that it does take some time. “To have been forced into a “Dark night of the soul” was, at first, devastating. But it did teach me to …
Continue reading “Jim Was a Mormon, an Exmormon Profile Spotlight”
Katie cuts to the chase with the simple acknowledgment that mormon culture is toxic. It’s not worth staying, she doesn’t even have to consider the other reasons. “Why I left: The culture is toxic.” Continue reading the full wasmormon profile at https://wasmormon.org/profile/ktsheets/ Find on social media:
Robbie feels abandoned by God when leaders promise blessings and nothing happens. His only relief is found in accepting that there are only men playing god. “I looked at my watch — they had started my disciplinary council at 7pm and it was now midnight. I went home to a cold dark house. Despite my …
Continue reading “Robbie Was a Mormon, an Exmormon Profile Spotlight”
Nate has two issues and could potentially forgive the first (the church being fictional) if not for the second issue of the church just didn’t work for him. It is fiction and it also doesn’t work. “Besides it being completely fictional, the church just did not work for me.” Continue reading the full wasmormon profile …
Continue reading “Nate Was a Mormon, an Exmormon Profile Spotlight”
Shelby knows that if she wasn’t born into the church, there’s no way she would believe it. Tradition keeps many people in the church. Luckily, her husband stumbled on the CES letter and she didn’t take much convincing after reading it. “I’d always said ‘If I wasn’t born into it, I wouldn’t believe it.’ I …
Continue reading “Shelby Was a Mormon, an Exmormon Profile Spotlight”
Becca admits that her shelf was loaded with questions and her church leaders were not comfortable with them. Presumably, because they couldn’t answer them, and even permitting space to ask them was too risky for them. The CES letter was bold enough to answer these questions. “I always had more questions than my leaders were …
Continue reading “Becca Was a Mormon, an Exmormon Profile Spotlight”
Olivia noticed that the promises from the church were empty as she did everything asked and saw the double standard applied to leaders and founder Joseph Smith. He didn’t live the sexual standards of the church. “My main concern has been sexuality— how it’s controlled in the personal lives of members, especially those who are …
Continue reading “Olivia Was a Mormon, an Exmormon Profile Spotlight”
Beth could not rationalize the mental gymnastics required to stay mormon. “My faith transition was not something I took lightly. I spent several painful years trying to make the church work for me. Over time, it became more and more difficult to defend and justify certain things about church history, doctrine, teachings, and culture. I …
Continue reading “Beth Was a Mormon, an Exmormon Profile Spotlight”
Shawn feels that in leaving mormonism he has discovered real unconditional love! “I love now for love’s sake (not a transactional hope of reward, or fear of a God that shakes his finger). My self-identity is no longer enmeshed in a church, which I once looked to in co-dependence for my emotional/spiritual needs.” shawnmatheson Read …
Continue reading “Shawn Was a Mormon, an Exmormon Profile Spotlight”
We’ll start spotlighting profiles in the blog section with some memorable quotes in graphics format. First up, a concise snippet from Francis. He found that the church was not what it claimed to be. Remaining a mormon would require betraying his own values. “My reasons for leaving the church are most succinctly explained this way: …
Continue reading “Francis Was a Mormon, an Exmormon Profile Spotlight”
The honest investigator must be prepared to follow wherever the search of truth may lead. Truth is often found in the most unexpected places. He must, with fearless and open mind insist that facts are more important than any cherished, mistaken beliefs, no matter how unpleasant the facts or how delightful the beliefs. Hugh B …
Continue reading “Facts More Important than Cherished, Mistaken Beliefs”
The church struggles to understand the exmormon community. That is, if they even have the intention of understanding. They are quick to vilify and dismiss those who have chosen to leave. Church leaders have even resorted to calling exmormons names. They try to control the narrative about those who leave. They try to “tell our …
It’s not that mormons are suffering from a faith crises, but rather, it’s the church that is suffering from a truth crisis. As members are learning actual truth rather than the faith promoting narrative taught by the church their faith ends up being dismantled and/or deconstructed. The truth, as it were, is found to destroy …
Continue reading “That Which Can Be Destroyed By The Truth Should Be”
The current president of the mormon church, Russell M Nelson, shared a thought in the October 2020 General Conference. After the world has dealt with the pandemic of Covid-19 and the US is in the throes of a heated election cycle, and much of the world is facing a racial reckoning and awakening, the self-proclaimed …
Continue reading “Mormons are Taught that outside the church is life filled with fear”
Must there be a purpose to have a meaningful life? Some of us find purpose and meaning in a faith transition after navigating groundlessness of a faith crisis and stages of grief. Others still debate whether this purpose is objective or subjective to each of us. Can we have different purposes? Is there one universally …
Many people have as their main defense of Mormonism is that it gives them purpose and meaning. “The church is good or useful for me so I stay.” Those who find it useful may or may not be all in believers, they might or might not drink deeply of the kool-aid. We each have a …
Continue reading “Experiencing Groundlessness in a Faith Transition”
There is a temptation for the writer or the teacher of Church history to want to tell everything, whether it is worthy or faith promoting or not. Some things that are true are not very useful. Elder Boyd K Packerhttps://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/teaching-seminary-preservice-readings-religion-370-471-and-475/the-mantle-is-far-far-greater-than-the-intellect?lang=eng#subtitle2 Not everything that’s true is useful. Elder Dallin H Oakshttps://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/elder-oaks-interview-transcript-from-pbs-documentary There have been many statements …
Continue reading “Some things that are true are not very useful to the Mormon church”
In response to those who wonder why mormons who leave the church and then speak out against it and echo the phrase: “You can leave the church, but you can’t leave it alone.” Glenn L. Pace, Follow the Prophet, General Conference, April 1989https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/1989/04/follow-the-prophet As mormons, we have been taught to share truth. That desire and …
You have almost certainly heard of the “shelf” if you’re Mormon. This wasmormon.org site lists many of these shelf items and questions that users have responded to. Check it out, do you share any of these shelf items or want to contribute with your own story? If you aren’t familiar with the Mormon shelf, the …
Continue reading “The Mormon “Shelf” and Why it’s a Problem”
In honor of Star Wars day, I wanted to spotlight the moment of betrayal from Obi Wan and the parallel to my own faith crisis. Today is May the Fourth, also known as Star Wars Day – due to the “May the Force”, be with you pun. One thing we can learn from the prequel …
Continue reading “Obi Wan channels a mormon faith crisis – The Chosen One and Betrayal”
A faith crisis may be hard, but it does get better – like wading past the crashing waves. We struggle with many difficulties navigating a mormon faith crisis. It is quite tumultuous, as the phrase ‘crisis’ implies. We often hear the advice that “it gets better” – which is helpful, but it does take time. …
Smallfoot is a story (find the book here) about Migo, a yeti who lives in a “perfect” community. He is very happy and has no issues with anything! He loves it! They have families and leaders and of course laws. The laws are written in stone. They don’t change and they make sense… that is, …
Continue reading “Faith Transition Parallels from Smallfoot the movie”
When an honestly mistaken man sees the truth, one of two things happens: (1) he will either cease to be mistaken, or (2) he will cease to be honest. For he will either accept the truth or he will reject it. If he accepts it, he is no longer mistaken; if he rejects it, he …
Each of us has to face the matter — either the Church is true, or it is a fraud. There is no middle ground. It is the church and kingdom of God, or it is nothing. President Gordon B. Hinckley – General Conference – April 2003 Many appreciated President Hinckley, but his binary way of …
Continue reading “There is no middle ground – It is the church and kingdom of God, or it is nothing”
Come tell your own story. Don’t let other people or the church tell it for you. They have a narrative about you and why you left. By far, the narrative they tell is not the truth. This is the story that is told currently, by an apostle of the church about those who choose to …
Continue reading “Mormon Apostle: Shame on Doubters For Playing “Church History Whack-a-Mole””
Come tell your own story. Why did you leave the boat? Don’t let other people or the church tell it for you. They already preach a narrative about you and why you left (and it’s not flattering). By far, the narrative they tell is not the truth. The church has a long history of telling …
Continue reading “Why did you leave? Tell your story or they will”
It’s General Conference weekend. Time to listen to the church authorities share their messages #ldsconf #generalconference Do you want a voice too? Share your story on wasmormon.org #nofilter
