Mormons & Anti-Mormons?

I think there is another reason that hasn't been addressed by anyone and probably avoiding being addressed - and that reason is apostacy, sin and loss of faith. I say this only because I have BEEN down this road personally.

When, for various reasons you begin losing faith you start to doubt, question and become negative, critical, and lose perspective on the spiritual & personal things in your life. Sometimes sin is the catalyst to this journey and our inability to shoulder the guilt of the sin leads us to a place where we can avoid the alternatives - ie, confession & repentance.

WHen we are in this dark place we open ourselves up to lots of whisperings & falsehoods. We are no longer within the protection of the spirit and we are prone to total apostacy unless we change course.

Trust me, I do not speak of this lightly. I was in THIS place 2 years ago and know of what I speak here. I was really on a downward spiral in every way, shape & form and somehow I was thrown a life line back from the dark place where I was and have been on a very long and arduous road towards feeling, seeing and regaining the light back to my heart & soul and life. I am broadly generalizing feelings & occurances here of course because I'm NOT about to extend very personal things beyond what I have already in this forum - but I can tell you boldly that I saw and felt WHY and how people leave the church because of the things I experienced and felt at that time.

It is almost easier (although not easy at all!) to leave then to face the guilt and inner judgement and conflict you must face if you sit in church with active, faithful LDS people but within yourself you carry the burden of serious sin that has not been resolved. I did this for nearly a year before I had to face these inner demons and I really gained an emphathy for those who leave the church and never return - I was there and it had nothing to do with my testimony or belief - but everything to do with my unresolved sin, remorse, guilt and sense of worth after the bad choices I had made that no one but ME knew of. I honestly believe the once you are on this path it is a natural thing to turn away from what you once felt or knew was true, easier to walk away instead of fixing things, changing this, making things right again ~ having children & family made the choice a little more plain for me personally. It's HARD being a member of the LDS church - no one can possibly deny that. Much is expected of you in every way. It is a way of life not just a Sunday activity. I think you have to consciously DECIDE you are going to deny what you believe and know in order to LEAVE the church. The truth doesn't change - just your perception of it. You can find a story and version and lie to justify just about ANYTHING for or against the church - just like people find things to justify for or against the existence of God Himself. BUT that doesn't change the TRUTH - it just points towards the falicy and imperfection of mankind.

I love the church. As hard as these past two years have been and continue to be in my life and in the lives of those who love me and have stuck by my side - I can not deny the truth that I feel & know within my heart. THAT truth is where the peace, wholeness and security came & returned to me inspite of the torrents raging within me because of my sins.

I have a great appreciation and awareness of the importance of the Atonement of my Savior Jesus Christ, of His love, mercy & grace and thankfully, of His forgiveness to me.

I realize everyone has their own stories about leaving the church - but I wanted to address THIS side of the story too because I think it's probably a more common one than anyone wants to admit to.

I've spent about forty years in bishoprics, high councils, and clerk positions, and I've seen a number of people leave the Church. I've sat on a number of disciplinary councils. None of them left the Church because of "evidence" against the Church.

There are some who just gradually drift away into inactivity. Sometimes it is because of a loss of faith, brought on by doubts caused by something they've read. One of my brothers was like that, although he has since come back to Church. He didn't want to tell me about his doubts because he had become convinced that there was no answer to his doubts, and he didn't want to burden me with his doubts. It is too bad he didn't talk to me, because there is always an answer. Part of his problem though was that he was looking for a reason not to go on a mission, and "blindly" follow the example of his older brothers. It was partly a pride issue.

I have a theory about those who leave the Church and claim it was because of evidence. They fall into three groups. (1) Some are honestly confused by the arguments of men. (2) Some look for evidence the Church is not true, but deep down they know the real reason was they were offended or they felt guilty about their sins. (3) And others don't understand their own motives.

In a psychology class I once took I heard of an interesting experiment regarding this third group. A person in another psychology class was hypnotized and given a post-hypnotic suggestion. The hypnotized student was told that when the teacher coughed the student would get up from his seat and open the window to the classroom. He wouldn't remember anything he was told when hypnotized. He was then awaken from his hypnotic trance and told to go back to his seat. The student remembered nothing of what he was told while hypnotized.

The teacher after a few minutes coughed, and the student got up and opened the window. Now here is the point of this story. When asked why he opened the window his brain immediately manufactured a reason. He said he was hot, and strangely enough his body proved it by getting red and sweaty.

i stopped going because for an instant i believed my bishop to be a false brother. the words that he said to tell me to stop bearing my testimony was against every D&C verse i could've shouted back at him. i had a testimony of the church so it started out that i would not go to church on fast and testimony day. but then it became every sunday, and i became homeless 2 or 3 times and the church didn't help me. they still do not. well, i never actually went back to ask for help until ten years later. i never lost faith in the church and the Lord took everything away that could possibly called a home and left me in a mission/shelter with the enemies of the gospel. i still have my testimony.and i think its stronger even though my worthiness is less than what it was. even when i thought i was not worthy, i am less than that.

maybe it takes a moment of spiritual leprosy like miriam and to be cast out of the spiritual tribe to see the greater light from outside in the darkness. but i saw it all the time. i was in greater darkness before i was saved and born again, and i see the light greater than i ever did before.

as far as anti mormon literature its either personal sins that kick people out or is something that a false bishop will do, not in the case of my bishop, he just said something that insulted my own beliefs. As far as pamphlets are concerned i never once found a truly honest anti mormon thought written down on paper.

I know this doesn't answer your question, but I just wanted to let you know that I think there is a difference between "anti-Mormons" and "ex-Mormons". My sister, for example, is an ex-Mormon. She doesn't want anything to do with Mormonism, but she will go to church when invited for something like a baby blessing or baptism. She doesn't spend her time pointing out faults and telling the rest of our family how we are wrong. Anti-Mormons do just that--point out the faults and they seem to go out of their way to try to save our souls.

There are many reasons why people leave the church. I had a friend leave because of the hypocrisy. Although it exists everywhere, she had a hard time sitting in church hearing people say one thing and do another the other six days of the week. I think people get into this mindset that if these really are the people of God, they should cease to be human (meaning they should be perfect and sinless). We are all entitled to our opinion and this is mine!

Any number of reasons can cause someone to leave a religion, not just the Mormon Faith. Doubt, hypocrisy in some members, a desire to believe something else. Some religions and philisophical paths are considered too strict for the person to feel like they can continue. People often argue more with Culture than Doctrine though.

I once fully believed in the church, prayed about it and felt a strong feeling in my heart that it was true. I left on my mission fully dedicated to the church. But, I guess what took me out of that position of faith was learning how much more to the story there was. I completely believed in the first vision, until I read the 1832 version. I've also read several apologists ideas about the differences between the two, but their arguments really aren't good enough. The truth, as I see it, is that Joseph Smith made it up. All of it. The book of mormon, his visions. It's all made up. Read the first edition of the Book of Mormon and you'll see that the book really wasn't beyond his capacity at all.

So, where did that feeling come from? Why did I feel so good about it? It's mythology. People have always wondered about why we're here and how did we get here. When there are answers to those questions, it makes us feel good.

Did that feeling make me KNOW that it was true. NO. I didnt know. And neither do you. You have faith that it's true. And the good feelings confirm your faith. But, those good feelings are based on the fluffed up version of church history. And you won't ever read about actual church history because the church doesn't support the true story. They don't want you to know it, so they'll tell you not to read it, and you won't. Or you'll read the "faith promoting" version of the story, which really isn't the whole story at all.

I'm sorry to say that Joseph Smith was a snake oil salesman. He put on shows for the people around him and told an exciting story. I wish it wasnt the case. The church is a force for good in the world. Or it might be. Depression in Utah is out of control. I wish the church was true, but it's not. But you should still go and help out with all the service projects. Just don't take it too seriously, cuz it's not true.

EDIT: There are very legitimate problems with the church. I really hate the idea that people leave the church because of sin. That to me is just a way to keep people in the religion. If you don't believe it, it's because you are sinning. And if you are doubting, you aren't living right. People sometimes leave for selfish reasons, but I would say the majority leave because of the ideas, like polygamy or Kolob or anything else in the Book of Abraham, that have been taught in the church.

Andy R. I never prayed to find out if the Book of Mormon was true, the idea that God would tell me anything about it never entered my mind, I just read it on my own, in secret.

I didn't pray at all while I read, but I still had a powerful experience that changed my life.

uh. Because its more fun to pick on Mormons?! Ive noticed that too. Everyone has a story.... oh i knew a Mormon who beat his wife. No one ever mentions a wife beater 's religion if they were Lutheran or crocodile worshipers. They just hold lds people to a higher standard i geuss.

When I was younger (I'm all of 18 now :p) I was constantly looking to find fault with the Church..

Was it because I earnestly felt the Church was a scam?

No.. I knew it was true.

It was because I wanted to rationalize my desires to be free of the responsibilities that come along with being a member.

I'm not saying that all those who leave the Church have the same intentions I did..

I just thought I'd throw that out there..

I think it is all about faith, or trust. Who or what do we trust to define our reality, and shape our world-view? Do we only trust what we understand? Should we trust all of our senses, or any of them? Should we trust the written accounts of people long dead? Should we trust our own spiritual experiences? Should we trust science? Should we trust our peers, or majority opinion? Should we trust Joseph Smith, or should we trust his enemies? Should we trust our parents, or should we only trust ourselves?

When something is obvious, faith isn't needed. Those things that we see with our own eyes are obvious. Since few of us ever see God with our own eyes, his existance to us is never obvious. The question then becomes "Can we have a reasonable assurance of his existance?" Some people require much more evidence than others to believe in God, so the answer to this question is very personal.