Did any of you post here as a believer? Did you pretend to be an ex-Mormon? Did you troll? Did you get kicked off? Were you sincerely trying to understand the truth or were you just having fun? What were some of the things you posted?

I guess a proper answer to your question would
depend upon how we choose to define "believer."

Never in my life was a a 100% supporter of everything
that Joseph Smith did and taught -- but I did support
some of the developments of "restorationism," and I
did some posting here before finally having my name
removed from the Reorgnized LDS membership rolls.

Mormonism tends to make its adherents think in terms
of an "all or nothing" view of the world. I sometimes
see this same tendency cropping up in the conversations
of ex-Mormons. They may renounce the Church and all it
stands for, but then again they may unconsciously exhibit
some of its mindset, even after leaving.

I have no regrets concerning my on-line contributions
prior to making an official break with Mormonism. It was
a life-long learning experience and I tried very much
to be honest and forthright, at every step along the way.

Uncle Dale

The ways we effectively accomplish [whatever] in life are the same, whether we're talking about being a Mormon, being an ex-Mormon, or being a Nevermo.

One of the practical things the more fortunate of us learn early is that, to begin ANYTHING, we need to take that "first step."

We may not be consciously aware that we are trying to "begin" or "accomplish" something to, nevertheless (and in hindsight), be doing exactly that. (In other words, a lot of the things we wind up "accomplishing" were things we didn't consciously know we were embarked upon until we were able to look back at how we were thinking, feeling, or behaving...sometimes long after the fact.)

And that "first step" may--on the outside--appear to have NOTHING to do with the "task" or "goal" or "dream" at hand.

Doing your taxes, for example, may begin with taking out the trash, or taking a shower, or cleaning out your refrigerator or the bathroom sink. On the surface, absolutely nothing to do with "doing taxes," but internally, it turns out (in retrospect) to HAVE been "the first step." Once THAT was done, the next step "appears," and step-by-step, the taxes get done.

I know from experience (I've lived this) that visiting here, lurking here, or making that first post here, can be an essential "first step" to all of the rest of your (vastly improved, down the line) life. It was for me. I am sure it is for many (literally) thousands of others, in the ways essential in THEIR lives.

Trolls may most certainly be irritating (and often, of course, this is their intent), but the joker in life is that, in whatever way they are "here" and "interacting" on RfM, and REGARDLESS of their conscious intentions, they may be taking that essential "first step" towards their eventual exit from ChurchCorp.

They may not know this. They may not realize this for many years (or ever). Regardless: for many people, it (the effort to bring up RfM on a screen) is pivotal in their eventual exit.

And for Nevermos, RfM can be the "first step" in what will eventually prove to be a brand new, vastly expanded, wondrously better "new life."

Even if all they consciously came for, that "first time," was a quick answer to a totally factual question.

Trolls are momentarily irritating, but they (and we) can be playing out our optimum life roles magnificently...even if we are absolutely totally NOT aware of it at the time. :-)



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/13/2013 03:38PM by tevai.