Lately, I have noticed that there are a lot of words I don't use at all, or use rarely since leaving the LDS Church.
Mormonism has a vocabulary specific to the religion. Some words were made up by Joseph Smith Jr, and some found their way into the culture through the generations of members and the remnants of their language, especially from the Mid-West as they made their trek across the US.

I was wracking my brain today for the word: discernment. That got me thinking about words I don't use much anymore like: Sister____, Brother____, inspiration, Bishop, meetings, Sacrament, hymns, worthy, obedience, laws, commandments, missions, Elder, President, Fireside, speakers, talks, callings, blessings, special, sweet, modesty, jello, funeral potatoes, confession, tithing, temple, recommend, .....

That's just flowed off the top of my head.

What is on your list?



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 06/10/2017 05:08PM by SusieQ#1.

Words I avoid due to Mormon usage--

Choice
Free agency
Heavenly Father
Edifying
Succor
Stewardship
Ponder
Obedience
Sacrifice
Millennium
Witness
Inspired

Words that I added to my vocabulary--
(insert preferred cuss word here)

Moisture.

Oh, how could I have left THAT one out? The Embarrassed Boner.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/16/2017 12:10AM by BYU Boner.

I don't think I've said thee/thine since leaving the church.

"Taking the name of the Lord in vain", not only do I not use that phrase anymore, but I've actually become quite adept at doing that very thing.

Strength in the Loins Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I don't think I've said thee/thine since leaving
> the church.

Me either! Done with that!
>
> "Taking the name of the Lord in vain", not only do
> I not use that phrase anymore, but I've actually
> become quite adept at doing that very thing.

Funny story about that .. taking the Lord's name in vain...thing. I was trying to not offend anyone and said,put of frustration: "cheese and crackers" in stead of Jesus Christ and one of my grandsons heard me and asked why I said" cheese and crackers"!! :-)

I never ever said the word God as a curse word until I left the church, but I sure do now.

I was at work last night, trying to get things done so I could close the parking booth and leave.

There are gates that go up and down as people go in and out and the gates are old and don't work always the way they're supposed to.

Long story short, one wasn't going down like it's supposed to and after several tries, I said "Goddammit, Goddammit, Goddammit" and what to you know, it started working!

Really, the ability to use Early Modern English grammar has been my only compensation for all those early hours suffering in seminary!

I would say my language has gotten a whole lot more DIVERSE since I allow myself to read whatever I like.

Both my parents cussed like sailors even when they were active TR holders.

Their favorite cuss word was the Lord's name. I have a tendency to avoid using that to this day, maybe because of their overuse of it during my formative years, I hated hearing them use it over and over again.

My fave word in my teens was the eff bomb.

My dad never forgot the one time I said that in his presence, during one of our disagreements when I was all of 19 or 20. He could swear like a sailor, but not once did he ever use the eff bomb. I used it once and it might as well been a thousand times as far as he was concerned.

Cussing lightly is a form of venting for me now, and I tend not to guilt over it. I reserve the Lord's name for special occasions, and when I use it is almost like saying a prayer (seriously.) I figure by saying OMG, or Jesus, I'm invoking their names to implore their help, not to use them in vain.

I figure if the last words I ever utter are "Oh God," or "heavenly father," etc, I'm committing my spirit to his care.

I still use the word "recommend", but only as a verb.

I never "did"...Mormonspeak. I also never used a made up cuss words either.

Reminds me of my classmates as a kid. When I would say "jeez" or "Gee whiz," some inevitably would say that was swearing as it was a nickname for Jesus. :)

So apparently even when we weren't trying to cuss, we were.

There are perfectly good English words Mormonism has given different meanings. Like witness, testimony, true and garment. I use those words, but with their actual meaning.

No "tender mercies" come outta this mouth.

And, I no longer pronounce the word "ensign" as "en-SINE."
That dove me nuts!!!

I had real problems with "En-sign." It just sounded wrong.

And overall, my vocabulary has gone to Hades in a handbasket. My oldest son, who was a young teenager when I joined the church, could not believe how I cleaned up my language.

Then, one evening, when I was taking him out to Taco Bell or someplace as a treat (our budget was pretty lean in those days), some idiot other driver came within a cat's whisker of taking out the front end of my car. If I hadn't leaned on both the horn and the brakes, he would have hit me.

After about a year without swearing, I called the other driver a very bad word. My son burst out laughing, and said, "There! Doesn't that feel better??" Sure enough, it did.

Sorry, as I can't hear you ;-), do you mean they stress the second syllable?

If so, that IS unusual ;-)

LDS usage is often ambiguous & imprecise....filled with Code Words for other Mormons to understand-decipher.

LDS engineers I've known sometimes 'slip'
a comment on this phenom...



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 06/11/2017 12:12AM by GNPE.

I don't like the word obedience/obedient, so I don't say it. I also don't ever refer to anyone still in the church as brother_____ or sister_____, or anything with a title like bishop, president, etc. My TBM parents and sister cannot speak one sentence without it containing some link to Mormonism. So people that I used to know of that they might bring up in conversation will always be referred to by their first and last name by me. I refuse to say brother or sister. It sounds so effing cultish.
I used to feel really guilty about saying Jesus Christ or goddamnit as swear words, but now it seems I'm making up for lost time. I think it's a phase. Lol

I'll use the F word before i'll utter the O word.

I never used the words Brother___ or Sister___. I felt it was weird. It didn't make sense to use anything, other than the respectful Mr. or Mrs. Whenever I write about bishops, stake presidents, etc., I don't capitalize those so-called "titles of authority." The authority is fake. Mormons are lay people, and have done nothing to earn a real title, such as PhD, MD, etc. It's too stratified. Everyone is Mr. or Mrs. I don't like that one title holds more power than another.

Has my vocabulary changed? Hell yeah!

I have never called anyone "brother" or "sister" in my whole life....and I have told more than one person that I was NOT their brother....and on the rare occasion someone dared refer to my Catholic wife as "Sister Burr"....it did not go well.

I never called anyone brother or sister_____. The stake Pres. once gave me a stern lecture for being disrespectful because I addressed a letter to the dudes in SLC by saying " Dear Sirs" instead of Dear (IDK)whatever he thought.

I've been through college classes on how to write business letters. It's not like I don't know what i'm doing. I told Mr. SP that he was waaaaay out of line on this one and I'd prove it to him if he insisted.

That man really really hates me. I called him out at every turn. How dare I! I don't even have one of those thingy's attached to my crotch.

Remiss! That was a favorite in my stake and I hated it even then. Seemed phony and there was usually a pretentious inflection made with it. "I would be remiss if I did not stand and bear . . ."

Nowadays when I visit Utah I just hunger to hear something described as anything but, "amazing."

Is nothing remarkable, astounding,phenomenal,splendid, or formidable anymore? Does everything have to be amazing? Maybe it's just my home town. I dunno . . .

Desirous

I hate this word. I was looking through some old e-mail, and I actually used this several times.... a long time ago.

Yech!

I tend to not use the word "supernal" anymore.

The phrase that sticks in my mind and that I loathe is
"with every fiber of my being." Whenever I see someone on TV using that phrase during an interview (I live in the Midwest)
I highly suspect the speaker is Mormon.

Would make a good Grape-Nuts commercial

^^^^^^^^

Deferance to the leaders & their claimed authority is an essential facet of LDS survival and their linguistics is a tool to reinforce it.

Here's a list of some of the words I used when TBM and words I've replaced them with now that I've resigned.

TBM: Ward
Now: congregation

TBM: Blessing/blessed
Now: Luck, good fortune/ fortunate, grateful

TBM: Shoot
Now: Shit

TBM: Darn
Now: Damn

TBM: Fetch
Now: Fuc_

TBM: Thee/thou
Now: You

TBM: Brother/Sister
Now: Mr./Mrs.

TBM: Bear, as in bear my testimony
Now: share

TBM: calling
Now: job

TBM: Called, as called to serve a mission
Now: Told/ordered

TBM: serve/service
Now: help/free labor

TBM: service project
Now: volunteer work

TBM: garment
Now: underwear

TBM: sabbath
Now: Sunday

TBM: The holy ghost or spirit
Now: premonition, intuition

TBM: procreation
Now: sex

TBM: Lamenite
Now: Native American

Fetch! Oh flip!

Terms/phrases I no longer say
- Prophet
- Apostle(s)
- Sabbath
- Calling
- Eternal Companion
- Investigator
- Strengthen your/my testimony
- Mission Field
- Modest/Modesty
- Ponder

-Righteous
-wicked
-interview
-Family Home Evening
-Baptism
-Sanctify
-Souls
-Partake
-Bishop/Stake President
-Stake
-Ward
-Relief Society
-Mutual
-Counselor
-Home/visiting teaching
-Primary
-Store house, meeting/ward house
-Senior mission/mission
-blessing
-Set apart
-confirmed
-anointed
-sealed
-Kingdom, be it Celestial, Telestial, terrestrial.
-Youth, Single adults, and all the other categories like Primary

God damned auto correct even hates mormon words.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 06/12/2017 01:11PM by janis.

Well, yeah. Maybe a little too much. But I've found out that there are much better words that roll off the tongue much easier, and which can be used in much better ways, with much more command, than the words: fetch, flip, heck, shoot, geez, dang, dadgummit, etc.

I won't say what they are, and they do roll out off my mouth sometimes when they shouldn't. But I have hung on to "freakin," as an occassional substitute when it seems appropriate.

Yes, I never use the word bishop.

When encountered, I just call him by his first name (he is younger than me by a few decades).
My TBM husband always calls him bishop of course, and I even called the stake president by his first name as well. He is also decades younger than myself.

I say it is a sign of respect for me to simply call them by their given names. I respect their parents' choice of names.
Aside from them NOT being my 'leaders' I don't see the titles as relevant.

Judges in Zion?
Give me a break!
They can't even judge their own doctrine.

I do occasionally use the word bishop, but it's describing the head of a Catholic or Episcopal diocese. In the case of the Episcopal church, there's a chance that particular bishop could be a woman.

Mr. or Mrs, instead of Brother/Sister formally, but mostly first names with people.

I also use real swear words.

To me, a church building is a chapel, not a meetinghouse.

Hell ya

I had a recent inaction with a guy who I believe is a Bishop of a Ward. I needed to drop off something to him and he asked that I leave it with his wife at his home. Not a problem, but I didn't know his wife's first name and I really didn't want to call her "Sister". I ended up addressing her as Mrs. and left it at that.

My first thought at your question? I swear more than when I was a member. I don't do it a lot but I don't feel guilty when I do, and I'm not offended when others around me swear.

nevermo here: this is giving me food for thought. We have a very nice home teacher; between me and DH I call him by his first name. When he's here, I don't call him anything.

When we have had the missionaries over for dinner---after reading all the stuff on this rfm aobut how little money for food they have, it seemed like a kind thing to do----I also avoid calling them by their names.

First time we had missionaries over, I said, what are your names? The young man kindly explained that they were encouraged to use elder__________ to remind themselves and others what they were about. Ugh.

I think if and when we have them over again, I'll stick out my hand for the requisite shake and say, "you can call me *my first name*. Sister _______ really bugs me; like, I'm an appendage, not a person? hmph.

For some reason the word 'nourish' sounds so yucky to me now. I also don't say blessings or so blessed. And one of my least favorites is modest/modesty. Mormons use it so condescendingly.

I say "fuck" more often than one should. Even let go of it once in front of my grand kids.

Funny story. My daughter and I have both been trying to clean up our language around her 2 year old. Our biggest problem has been the "F" word.

Granddaughter was out in the back yard with me the other day and there was a little green tree frog in the yard that we were watching. She's just learning to talk so I was telling her it was a "frog". She said fuck every time. Oh oh.

Daddy came home from work. She was telling him all about the fuck we saw in the back yard.

We got a problem.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/17/2017 09:39PM by janis.

"Praise be."
"May the Lord open."
"Under his eye."


...oh wait. I'm thinking of something else.

fuck yeah, it's fucking changed! LOL.

But really I swear like a drunken sailor sometimes. But I blame it on the irish (spent a lot of time over there)..

But I also think it's from the years of repression and not being allowed to even say 'darn' in our household, or 'shut up' (I got punished badly for that one!).

I only censor myself in 'polite' society (around new people) and around kids and of course around my family. But then I have slipped a couple of times and let out a 'shit' and almost the F- bomb. Nearly shocked my sisters to death I think.

Which brought me back to their reality, my old one. And I could see how horrific it was. That level of control. I immediately felt the SHAME of saying BAD, oh so very BAD words. When they are just words. Crass maybe, crude maybe, but they are not SINS, I am not a bad person for venting my frustration with expletives! I mainly do when stubbing my toe, that kind of thing. But sometimes I use 'curse words' descriptively (while not in a rage). But I don't feel I go overboard. I feel more like I am normal human now.

I also do BLASPHEME quite a lot. OMG OMG!! But doesn't most of the world. I do forget that one is very BAD according to Mormons. Something they tolerate from 'heathens' and 'gentiles' nonetheless. But that is one that I forget to sensor sometimes around my family. But I don't see them often so that's good.

BUT I did have an old Mormon friend come by yesterday and I found myself more aware of my language esp. when I said 'Oh my GOD'.. I started to change it to 'Oh my gosh or goodness' because I got nervous I'd be offending her. Or worse feel judged by her!

OMG!! So annoying to see myself modify my behavior like that for them. I shouldn't have to! but you can always FEEL the judgment even if they never SAY anything! I don't think it was bad in this case. I am not sure her level of involvement. She knew be back in the BYU days and knows I left a long time ago. So she doesn't expect anything else from me. But that's just it. I think that she sees me as someone who couldn't be 'good' enough.. couldn't just BEHAVE! Too Wild! :) I don't know. Maybe I am guessing she's thinking that, but it's what I am used to with the TBMs.. so,..

But YES big changes..

Oh and I love to say, like the Irish, 'Jesus, Mary, and Joseph!' and I 'blaspheme' by saying JESUS a lot! And JESUS CHRIST! And my recent favorite 'Thank you BABY JESUS' My partner and I like to joke about praying to Baby Jesus. We like to be irreverent. I think that's been the most liberating part for me, only really embraced in recent years (after many years as an ExMo) being truly irreverent.

Man back in the day (Joe Smith, or Brigham Young or the Spanish Inquisition or the Salem witch trials) i would have been Blood Atoned, Tortured, Stoned, Burned Alive!

So I feel it a very important part of my liberation (free speech) and am grateful to have it back! (Of course there are many places in the world I could still be imprisoned or killed for irreverence and blasphemy)

I was just reading how the Mormons in early Utah days under Brigham actually imposed FINES on the 'gentiles' passing through Utah who swore or took the lord's name in vain! Can you imagine! Insanity!

I used to have a Mynah bird that would sing the first few words to' Jesus Christ Superstar' when he got annoyed.

I took up his habit. Sometimes I will softly whistle the first few notes.

At least I don't scream "Go away Fucker!" when the doorbell rings.

I hate all those words.

I
You's
Wons
Like

Free
Love
Now
Stuff like that, and
Thank you
No thank You
Yes Ma'am/ Sir
NO Sir/ Ma'am
Oh no
Oh YES
And

Poetry and Palindrome and Pretty
DiffiCULT and dANGERous words, and CURSE words, like

Where are we GOING and what are we doing in this handbasket?

No, I was always cursing it, at least as a matter of speaking (not really cursing, but mostly like avoiding, seeking air/ light/ wisdom/ excitement/ opportunity/ love/ respect/ appreciation/ thanks/ friends/ fun/ freedom [(once) Free Agency]/ choice/ chance), though I'm sure under my breath, things might happen I don't always hear about, and my mind does It's own thing so I may have thought many things. At any rate... the LDS church is (can be) [like] a curse, so, if I was - or am - cursing it, it may be/ have been defensive, in nature, really.

I use words like FTC - to paraphrase, flunk/ forget the church - is that bad?

M@t

I still know 67 words.

I was repressed linguistically for so long to have a TR, I wanted to cuss, but people around me held me to a standard of sorts. I only knew this due to their surprise when I cussed out loud this past summer.

The special needs guy, I've driven around over 10 years, recently made a comment He "noticed" I was cussing a lot. HA!
I quite enjoy finding the right cuss word for the occasion. I love to cuss when we get stopped for a train. I lose my mind. Especially if the train stops!

BTW I ran into another ex-mo in my area!!! She said she is going to tye-dye her garments to make PJ's. HA!!!

All I say is "nope" when people ask me if I still go to church. Sunday rides weren't available until after 12:30pm (after church.)
Now I am available anytime, within reason.

my vocabulary changed the most while I was still in the church, due to may utter frustration with a variety of MORmONISM related plights, I begin swearing and using vulgarity to make sure that people understood that I really was upset about the CRAP that was happening to me that I did not like.

More currently when my mother tells me how upsetting that my "Bad" language is to her, I respond by saying "Good, now you know how I feel when you refer to deplorable asses in your church as
"apostles" or "prophets" , and you keep perpetrating their damn MORmON based lies.

I'm another one who never called anyone "Brother" or "Sister" when in the cult, which probably drove them crazy. When I resigned, I let the person who claimed to be a bishop know that I didn't recognize that title was to address him as "Mr." in the letter saying that I wanted to be left alone as I was not a member.

Reading this thread made me realize how much mormonspeak was integrated into our lives. Jeez, it really is a cult. I definitely cuss more, but since leaving I really have no reason to use mormonspeak anymore. Nor do I want to.

I know these are not commonly used anyway, but how about all the made-up bull shit words in the Book of Mormon (Curloms, Liahona etc), and of course everyone's favorite word - Kolob.

Nourish and Strengthen (throw up in the bathtub, no, don't; move on].

"Leaders" - NOT MINE!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/22/2017 11:17PM by moremany.

no, but I was never a tbm, I saw as toddler my parents wearing Mormon underwear and knew from that age, that it was wrong and I never allowed myself to get the deep into the cult. I literally hated the cult since the day I was born. LUCKY ME. I saved myself from so much trauma

It behooveth me...
fireside
blessed
special spirit
chasity
modesty
blessed
may this food nourish and sustain our bodies
mia maid
service project
less active
missionary work
gold and green all
efy
seminary
worthy

My TBM family members use "intristin" whenever any degree of cogntive dissonance occurs inbetween their ears. As soon as I hear them use that word, which is often, I know their brain cells are "pretzlizing" as they force themselves to fit reality into their fantasy of faith.

I go out of my way to never use "interesting" in my daily vocabulary.

"Special spirit"
"Sweet spirit"
"Special" these terms just make me want to grow claws and fangs. Ugh