Restoration - wasmormon.org

Elder Oaks Claims Apostolic Duty to Sacrifice Anything That Makes The Church Look Bad

"My duty as a member of the Council of the Twelve is to protect what is most unique about the LDS church, namely the authority of priesthood, testimony regarding the restoration of the gospel, and the divine mission of the Savior. Everything else may be sacrificed in order to maintain the integrity of those essential facts. Thus, if Mormon Enigma reveals information that is detrimental to the reputation of Joseph Smith, then it is necessary to try to limit its influence and that of its authors." - Elder Dallin H Oaks, LDS Apostle, First Counselor in First Presidency | wasmormon.org

The authors of the fascinating book about Emma Smith, Mormon Enigma were reprimanded for publishing it. They weren’t excommunicated, but they were forbidden to speak in meetings and firesides. Elder Oaks spoke with Linda Newell (one of the authors of Mormon Enigma) as she recounted in her talk at the 1992 Pacific Northwest Sunstone Symposium called “The …

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The Anachronistic Olive Tree Allegory from Zenos in Jacob 5

"There are two major Biblical passages that provided structural material for this parable, and a number of shorter passages that supplied secondary ideas. The primary passages are Isaiah's parable of the vineyard, contained in Isaiah 5:1-7 and Paul's discussion of the relationship of Israel to the Gentiles (Romans 11:16-24), in which he used the metaphor of an olive tree..." Sources of Zenos's Allegory of the Olive Tree in Jacob 5 | wasmormon.org

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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Timeline of the First Vision Story and Development

The second argument frequently made regarding the accounts of Joseph Smith’s First Vision is that he embellished his story over time. - First Vision Accounts, Gospel Topic Essay | wasmormon.org

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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The Strange Hidden First Vision Account of 1832

"Joseph Smith evidently wrote his history on the first three leaves of the book in summer 1832." "These three leaves were later cut from the volume but have since been reattached." The 1832 First Vision Account is displayed with visible tape to reattach it back into the journal in the Joseph Smith Papers Project.

There are multiple accounts of Joseph Smith’s “first vision”. This is a fact and today the church admits it. The church wants to dismiss these different accounts though by claiming that they really aren’t different because they tell the same consistent story. The details are in fact very different though. The earliest version of this …

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Demonizing Doubt: Nelson’s Talk on Lazy Learners and Lax Disciples

"Lazy learners and lax disciples will always struggle to muster even a particle of faith." Russell M Nelson, Mormon Church President | wasmormon.org

In his lazy learners and lax disciples talk at the April 2021 General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, church President Russell M Nelson emphasized the importance of developing faith in Jesus Christ through intentional effort and action. Those who don’t succeed in this self-administered brainwash he refers to as “lazy …

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Explore the Origin Story of wasmormon.org – A Mormon Book Reviews Podcast Episode

A recent episode of the Mormon Book Reviews podcast features an interview with Evan, the creator of wasmormon.org, and his brother Garrett. Evan shares the story of how he came to create the website and why he chose to share his experience of leaving the Mormon church. The interview includes the personal stories of faith …

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On Being a Mormon Historian from Michael Quinn

"The tragic reality is that there have been occasions when Church leaders, teachers, and writers have not told the truth they knew about difficulties of the Mormon past, but have offered to the Saints instead a mixture of platitudes, half-truths, omissions, and plausible denials... A so-called "faith-promoting" Church history which conceals controversies and difficulties of the Mormon past actually undermines the faith of Latter-day Saints who eventually learn about the problems from other sources." Dr. D Michael Quinn, Excommunicated Mormon | wasmormon.org

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 …

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Church and its Inoculation Approach to Addressing Historical Details

"It is important to remember that historical details do not carry the saving power of covenants, ordinances, and doctrine. To be distracted by less significant details at the expense of missing the unfolding miracle of the Restoration is like spending time analyzing a gift box and ignoring the wonder of the gift itself." The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or Mormon Church | wasmormon.org

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 …

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Joseph Smith’s Peep Stone Translation Method Renders The Gold Plates Useless

"It implies it’s like darkening a room when we show slides. It implies that there is an image appearing in that stone and the light would make it more difficult to see that image. So, that implies a translation that’s a reading and so gives us a little clue about the whole translation process. But it also raises the strange question, ‘What in the world are the plates for? Why do we need them on the table if they are just wrapped up into a cloth while he looks into a seer stone?’" - Richard Bushman, Mormon Historian | wasmormon.org

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 …

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Elder Uchtdorf Compares Peep Stone to His Smartphone

“In reality, most of us use a seer stone every day. My mobile phone is like a seer stone”. - Elder Uchtdorf, Mormon Apostle

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 …

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Other First Visions, Which are Not of This Fold

"I turned and bent my course toward the woods, feeling that I must be alone, and away from all human eyes and ears, so that I could pour out my prayer to God... I attempted to pray I found that my heart would not pray... when I came to try, I was dumb... In attempting to pray I would hear a rustling in the leaves..." Charles Grandison Finney, Upstate New York, 1821

The First Vision of Joseph Smith is told today as an original exact story detailing the unique experience that sets the foundation for Mormonism and the restoration movement. We’ve discussed that even though one version of the story is canonized in Joseph Smith History as the “official” version, there are multiple versions of the first …

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The Mormon Church Published The Gospel Topic Essays

It was a soft roll out. There wasn’t an announcement saying “You can go to this website to learn everything weird about the Mormon church you ever wanted to learn”. - Elder Steven E Snow, Church Historian | wasmormon.org

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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What is the CES Letter? Is it True/Safe to Read?

CES Letter is one Latter-day Saint's honest quest to get official answers from the LDS Church on its troubling origins, history, and practices. Jeremy Runnells was offered an opportunity to discuss his own doubts with a director of the Church Educational System (CES) and was assured that his doubts could be resolved. After reading Jeremy's letter, the director promised him a response. No response ever came.

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.

Personal Mormon Faith Crisis Report – Faith Crisis Profiles

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.

Personal Mormon Faith Crisis Report – Faith Crisis Stages

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.

Personal Mormon Faith Crisis Report – Research Summary

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.

The Problems with Joseph Smith and Peep Stone Translations

"We know that they had a table like this. We know they had the golden plates, covered usually. And Joseph used these: the Urim and Thummim, seer stones, in the hat. And it was easier for him to see the light when he'd, uh, take that position." Russell M Nelson, LDS Church President awkwardly gaslights everyone about Joseph Smiths translation process including looking at a rock in his hat.

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 …

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Garrett Was a Mormon, an Ex-Mormon Profile Spotlight

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 …

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The Nauvoo Expositor And More Lies From Joseph Smith

"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.

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 …

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Dominant Narrative of Church is Not True

For the Church to remain strong it has to reconstruct its narrative. The dominant narrative is not true; it can’t be sustained. - Richard Bushman, Mormon Historian & Stake President

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 …

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