It was most of the above i just didnt believe that the 15 leaders were actual prophets. I didnt like the weirdness of it all especially the temple stuff thats a big one. I didnt like how my money didnt really go to help the poor but just kept people rich at the top and people poor on the bottom. Didnt like the repitition it felt like insanity. It didnt feel like a church that christ would create. Didnt like how i was abused physically by leaders as a teenager. There is a whole bunch of reasons i could go on and on. The women would only marry return missionaries because of their programming.
The blind faith in the prophet, the anti-LGBT, sex-negative, anti-porn, anti-masturbation, backward social views. Everything about the temple and problems in LDS doctrine and scripture. The word of wisdom is quite silly, no tea or coffee because it's evil not for the belly? okay.........
The lies the cult covered up about JS and his 40 wives. The CES Letter. The abuse, exploitation and codependency culture keep my PTSD triggered daily. My life was a mess. When I left I suffered from major depression and panic attacks. That is how severe my PTSD descended. Discovering the scam the cult has going on just shattered me. I lost 36 years, thousands of dollars and missed opportunities for real happiness. I will never return. I want the cult to stop counting me as a member. I resigned officially. I'm done, gone, finished. If they come near me, I will call the police anda lawyer.
I like badassadams comments and especially the one about all the money going toward investments instead of providing opportunity for the disenfranchised. I agree that most of the things listed above is reason to leave but especially the deception. The deception and hypocrisy of Joseph Smith was the worst but also some of the leaders that followed his example were deplorable too. Joseph broke most of the laws he identified as Gods commandments.
When I didn't want to go to a mission I see the lack of freedom of choice (The mission was optional but then became "a commandment"), so I stopped going to TSCC then four months after that I started reading stuff to find out if the church was true or not (TSCC's last chance). And of course I found the church is false and isn't even a church, it's a cult.
It was the lies and the gaslighting. These guys at the top being super special for running lives into the ground. They know it's not true. They have to know, or they're damn fools who have no business running a church.
I can understand lying on an individual level. But to have an institution that's built on whopper after whopper while professing truth and honesty is disgusting. I hate their filthy stinking lies, their underhanded manipulation, and the perverted projections they place on the world to build themselves up by belittling others. It's harmful to the psyche. It makes people either a neurotic mess, a narcissist, or a numb robot.
So, maybe I left because I was offended. When I see innocent people get hurt, and be used and abused, and have their lives ripped apart to benefit a dynastic scam, I get offended.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints promotes itself as the true church of Jesus Christ on Earth and as the only true church. Such claims are either true or they are not. A church making such lofty claims cannot fall a bit short of its assertions yet remain a good, noble, and worthwhile organization. Either it's right and every other point of view regarding religion is wrong, or it's hogwash.
I believe it's hogwash.
For some, the good can outweigh the bad. It's always been that way and always will be. Mold can be turned into penicillin, but that doesn't mean I'm going to allow mold to grow unchecked all over my house. Some people find more good than bad in the LDS church. If it works for them, so be it, but I cannot give up my time, my money, and my freedom to live my life as I see fit to an organization built upon repeatedly perpetuated yet totally false claims.
Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 08/27/2017 02:48AM by scmd.
The Book of Ether, in the Book of Mormon, requires some ether to believe it. Funny, the story is so absurd Mormon apologists seem to avoid discussing it. Living 300+ days in a wooden semi-submersible vessel shaped like a dish that is nearly airtight, (it has a hole at the top and the the bottom is case if flips over) with magically glowing rocks with domesticated animals and bees is truly a plausible historical event.
Don't forget that they also brought FISH with them. Try to imagine the boat/submarine tossing about with barrels of fish. And why bring fish?
Also, the hole in the top would have needed to be large enough to get the animals in and out. Imagine the engineering required to make a hole in a ship that would also be water tight when closed.
Also, how much fresh water would be needed to keep people and flocks of animals alive for 300 days? The story is ridiculous.
C2NR Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Imagine the engineering required to make a hole in > a ship that would also be water tight when > closed.
Right there is all the proof you need to know that the Book of Mormon and the church are true. No shipbuilder of the time could have performed such engineering feats without God's help; therefore, all the stories, as fantastical as they are, are accurate narratives of God's intervention.
Or, that's the way it was explained to me by my TBM in-laws. Who am I to say different? I'm just a non-believer with a better than passing knowledge of history and engineering
Because it's all a deception. Because trying to figure out the doctrine is like nailing jello to the wall. Because they are not prophets, seers or revelators (see Mark Hoffman). Because it is a for profit organization disguised as a church. Because the leaders are liars. Because it is a cult of personality worship. Because there are a bunch of men who get to cut a fat hog and live like kings using the money of some poor old woman in Kenya who has to drink filthy water while they dine expensively. Because it IS a cult. Period!
I am ashamed that I was ever a part of it 30+years,it all fell apart for me after my last visit to the Temple,came across a young woman who had got married 5 months previously,her new husband was killed in a car crash 3 months later,she was weeping,I went over to comfort her and asked what her biggest fear was,she told me that she would'nt marry again as no priesthood holder would want her,due to her being sealed to her husband she could not be sealed to another,she was distraught,came away thinking about it,would God really leave this lovely young woman in this position for the rest of her life,NO came the answer,along with the prob with BOM and how folk were treated that was me out.
I studied my way out. My standards for how to verify what is true does not align with the Mormon "have faith' model.
Mormonism does not meet my moral standards, especially when it comes to gay rights, women's rights, and civil rights in general. Plus the lying and omission of important information in what they teach is immoral.
I don't like a lot of ritual and repetition in general, but the mindless parroting of scriptures, cherry picking whatever point they decide God wants everyone to be doing is not attractive to me. They should have a sign: Check your brain at the door.
Because my children asked sincere questios I could only answer honestly by going to sources outside of the prescribed Mormon sources. I determined to really research and follow tge logic to where it leads, not to a foregone conclusion. When I did that, there was no denying the MORmON Crutch was NOT what it claimed. The leaders were lying sacks of shit covering up for pedophiles like Joseph Smith and Brigham Young, which enabled them to cover for pedophiles in their own wards. I went to my Bish and asked him my kids questions. He lied and obfuscated. When I called him on it he threatened me with excommunication if I shared my unfaithful answers with my kids. So I resigned, told wife and kids my answers. The rest is history.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/27/2017 10:05AM by koriwhore.
To make a long story short, it would be lots of study, realizing that it was all a lie, with Prop 8 prompting me to officially resign. At that point, I no longer wanted my name associated with them.
As a convert, I never really fit in, and born-Mo members generally treated me as "less than." What got my attention, though, was the cruel way leaders and ward members treated me during and after my divorce. To top it off, my bishop told me that because I had initiated divorce, I would lose my exaltation, period. It didn't matter that I was (and had always been) a tithe-paying, calling-holding, temple-going active member -- I was basically doomed from that moment on, no matter what I did or didn't do.
That's when I started studying the doctrine and history more closely. I found an impossible mess of contradictions, cover-ups, lies, nineteenth-century thinking, and institutionalized racism, sexism, and homophobia.
My conclusion: this can't be how God/the universe works.
The lies and cover ups of the past and present leaders of TSCC. President Monson's infamous statement: "let's go shopping!". The bullying towards my family. Reading "Blood of the Prophets" and the details of the MMM. Brigham Young and his buddy, Bishop Warren Snow. The death oaths and penalties in the temple that my husband and I did before they changed it in 1990.
Jesus christ he actually said " lets go shopping" ok now that totally cements my decisions add that to my list. Im glad i came on here today because i think i needed it because i doubt myself sometimes there may be someone looking out for the badass out in the universe.
Lying is lying is lying--you can't really separate out the culture from the doctrine from the people, because the lies are woven into the basic fabric, from the beginning.
So, I guess it is the basic doctrine.
How can people who hate other religions and races, hate gays, hate smokers and drinkers, feel superior even as potential GODS among us rabble, and believe that Polygamy is God's way--how can people who believe this be "decent human beings"? Well, they can't.
Mine was a slow exit process as I was a deeply brainwashed TBM. My doubts really started in the MTC and progressed from there. I never read anti literature or focused on the historical inaccuracies; my brain just grew weary of trying to believe the unbelievable. Here are the things that started piling on my shelf until it broke.
1. MTC experience: noticed similarities between missionary training and training to sell a product in a big corporation like IBM. It felt like the GAs were giving us pep talks to sell their product.
2. On my mission in Switzerland I was told not to teach the refugee foreigners but to focus on the Swiss. The refugees came from countries where missionaries weren't allowed so I thought it was God's way of reaching them. I didn't think it was very Christlike to not teach them.
3. After the one and only baptism I helped with in Switzerland where baptisms were scarce, all the missionaries, including myself who helped teach the investigator were REALLY depressed. It was a gloomy experience when we should have been happy. I didn't understand why we were all so glum and why the "spirit" wasn't there making us feel warm and fuzzy.
4. After returning home I couldn't sit through church meetings/lessons without questioning lesson content. I was given very disapproving looks for questioning.
5. Noticed that the singles ward was really just a social club and meat market. No one seemed to be there because they had a testimony - they were all there to find a mate.
6. Had an unfortunate experience that made me see first hand how the wealthy Mormon "royalty" were favored above everyone else, and how the priesthood "authority" bullied members to do their bidding. Made me sick.
7. Couldn't stand to be in church anymore and stopped attending but remained honest, chaste, alcohol and caffeine free; leaving had nothing to do with wanting to "sin."
After about 5 years of not attending the internet came along and I found exmormon.org. Couldn't stop reading. Although I was already out, this site gave me the confidence to finally dispose of my garments and say out loud that LDS Inc. was a fraud.
Thank you for your post i too left but didnt want to sin but just wanted to get healthy again strangely enough ive been improving faster the longer i stay away from the religion and people in the religion.
Back in my TBM days I got to go to the Manti temple for a fireside. The speaker was Duffdorf. I was coming up the stairs from the restroom just as he and his body guards passed the top of the stairs. I tried to shake his hand. Not gonna happen. His security team got in my face like the Secret Service would. WTF? I thought , 'this is the temple. He's a prophet. Won't god protect him?' Yeah. God does. Those pearl handled pistols under jackets help a bunch. Pistols in the temple? I'm sure they just forgot to check them at the desk, right?
I had a similar situation with bednar his bodyguard would not let me shake his hand to save his life. That was a big red flag that this church is definitely not what it seems.
I resigned from the LDS Church because their claims are not true. Joseph Smith Jr made it all up. There is no evidence of Book of Mormon peoples, places animals and things. It is all fabricated and plagiarized from other works. The claim of the Nephite Record aka golden plates, urum and thummin are all fabrications. There are no translations, no such language as Reformed Egyptian. The whole thing was a big con job, hoax, scam from the get-go. The claims are, at best, metaphysical, and supernatural that can only be believed by faith.
I know that some of the book of mormon was copied from the bible but what other works was it copied from? Im kind of curious if it was all copied or just partly copied and some of it was just made up.
I committed the crime of study and research. For years I had trusted the church. When the internet was new, there wasn't a lot of readily available information yet. A few years later, things started getting thrown into my face every time I visited any site to do with religion or spirituality. But I was afraid and pushed the information away, blaming the messengers. Finally I got real and started the research. Slowly at first, but it picked up momentum. I left Mormonism forever in March, 2015. I had fun throwing out all the LDS "scriptures" and other materials! I can't even tolerate an LDS edition of the King James Version of the Bible in my house anymore. I have given up the KJV altogether because it reminds me of of LDS-ism.
First testimony crack--BYU religion classes (church still true, instructors' opinions focus on the mysteries, the church really doesn't teach this).
Second crack--I went inactive (church still true, but not being able to stop spanking the monkey made me feel worthless). Got reactivated by a woman I was dating, she was also an inactive convert who has left.
Then, I got temple-married. Hurray for the Boner, he's finally doing what he supposed to. Very happy!
Third crack--Mark Hoffmann starts blowing up people and his duping of the GAs becomes public. (Church isn't quite what it claims to be, and the leaders aren't prophets or seers, I'm confused...)
Bishop to the Boner, "You need to go to the temple, it's a place of revelation, you'll find your answers there."
The shelf falls hard and testimony is no more--Boner sitting in a live Endowment next to a scared-shitless kid trying to get the young man from freaking out. The Bone helps the young man with his baker's cap and says, "Don't worry, they'll whisper in your ear what to say at the veil."
"I have to say all THAT!" He almost screams.
Boner, being a strong TBM has memorized the entire ceremony and goes through the veil quickly. The young man enters the Celestial Room looking terrified. He sees his family who all embrace him. The kid gradually gets glassy-eyed and starts smiling.
The Boner watches this, looks around and thinks, "oh my, I'm in a fucking cult!" No more slicing and dicing myself, now where did I put those jockey shorts?
Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 08/27/2017 09:34PM by BYU Boner.
Hahaha i know im not supposed to laugh but " the bone takes off his bakers cap " is funny as hell and "oh my god im in a cult" it gives me so much peace to hear these stories because i never qualified for the temple i couldnt answer the question about the 15 men being prophets. I honestly almost laughed at that question in my head. Maybe god was sparing my ass to get as far away from this church as humanly possible.
The GBH interviews threw the entire church under the bus, yet all the members in my ward were so proud!
"He really did so well. They [press] tried to trick him with unfair questions, but he was so profound. He's a smart prophet."
Another one boasted, "Yeah, Wallace did everything to deceive the prophet, but he came out unscathed. He was smooth as glass because you can't fool the Lord's anointed."
And here I began to wonder if I had watched the same program. I saw Hinkley dodge, stutter and give dishonest answers to very simple questions. I knew he was lying and then I started to question why TSCC demanded 100% honesty from me and here was a so called prophet that wouldn't admit to being one. He even lied about Mormon teachings about becoming gods.
Pathetic!
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 08/28/2017 12:59AM by messygoop.
It was a combination of things, which is part of the reason for my moniker. There was a cumulating snowball of evidence and other factors that eventually led to my resignation from the LDS Church.
1. Feeling Uncomfortable: There were some things about the LDS Church that always made me uncomfortable, but because it was "true" I just had to put up with. Worthiness interview were always an awkward experience, which I felt were sometimes unnecessarily intrusive and obsessed with trivial matters--like masturbation. The salesman like demeanor one is expected to have as a Mormon was often difficult. That's not my personality type. Finally, the temple experience was very discomforting. I suppose, that after awhile I got used to it, but the washing and anointing ritual was particularly disturbing. On top of that, I don't feel like I learned very much.
2. History and Related Issues: Eventually, while preparing a lesson for gospel doctrine class in a BYU ward--I happened upon a sponsored link for website for "Mormons in Transition." This was an evangelical oriented website, but they brought up issues about the Church that were not the typical concerns for such groups. (I guess eventually met them halfway and joined a liberal mainline church) However, I didn't believe everything they alleged, but it was enough to get me to the library to investigate. That led to a spree of reading. The most important books were In Sacred Loneliness by Todd Compton; An Insider's View of Mormon Origins by Grant Palmer; Journey of Man by Spencer Wells (Science book about DNA--nothing about Mormonism); and Losing a Lost Tribe by Simon Southerton.
3. Free Speech and Contemporary Issues: Around the time I left the LDS Church had disciplined (fired) a couple BYU faculty members for their writings about homosexuality and race issues. Grant Palmer was facing church discipline for writing his book. It just seemed that the LDS leaders were not adult enough to engage the issues these individuals raised, but was attempting to strong-arm them to get them to recant or at least keep quiet going forward. Apart from being mean, it revealed that the LDS leaders were on a very weak foundation. In addition, the non-disclosure with respect to finances was very troubling to me.
4. Opportunity for Discovery: Sometimes I think we focus on the "negative" reasons for leaving the LDS Church i.e. why the LDS Church is so bad (all valid). The stories of ex-Mormons who had successfully reinvented their lives and taken on new challenges in their careers, and their personal and spiritual lives was truly inspiring. I began to see that some things that were not possible within the confines of life as a Mormon were now possible to experience. I've gotten to know some wonderful people, who I would never have considered worthy of may association as a Mormon. Leaving the LDS Church is a life changing experience that can allow a person to get more out of life.
It's been 10 years, and resigning from the LDS Church was one of the best decisions I've ever made. Not easy--but very much worth it.
I didn't know the "anti" stuff. I just got very tired of being told there was something wrong with me that only the Mormon church could fix. I finally realized it was the reverse--there was something wrong with them. Very, very wrong. Poisonously wrong.
My first big doubts came shortly before the 1978 change allowing blacks to hold the priesthood and be full members. Because a ward member who was our scout leader -- and widely liked and admired -- found a black ancestor in his line, and was immediately stripped of his endowments, temple marriage, and "priesthood." Then told a few months later how wonderful it was that now he could do it all over again, and he was no longer "cursed." That was when I was 18.
Then I went through the temple, and came out thinking, 'What the hell was that?'
Then on my mission, I read the "Journal of Discourses." And found out what BY and other early leaders actually taught, and found out that the church had lied to me about their teachings all my life. And when I asked questions about why the church lied about it, I was essentially told to shut up, ignore it, and obey.
So I knew I was in a lying cult. And I left shortly after returning.
Nobody "offended" me, other than being offended that the church had lied to me all my life. I didn't want to "sin," though I did start drinking coffee, having a beer now and then, etc. a year or so after leaving. I left because I found out it was a lying cult.
One of the most beautiful things about having a True Church is to always be certain that the top leadership has always been trying to be super honest and super transparent on everything :) Whether its doctrines, finances, statistics, or history its so comforting to be reassured so unambiguously that the Church is so super honest and transparent, or in other words a true Church :) If it wasn't so super honest about everything then people would say "its not quite a true Church" and then Satan would have room to create Doubts and destroy testimonies.
I think a lot of people who leave the Church may be experiencing anger. Some may go back for dishonest reasons, such as wanting church welfare aid. However the ones being honest and sincere primarily will go back because they take the very simple steps of reading, pondering, and praying about the truthfulness of the Church. As they re-investigate they will undoubtedly have questions. What I think they should do is unload all the questions on the official representatives of the church and then watch the miracle of "continuing revelation" unfold. For example, they could send their questions via email to the Bishop/SP and when all the questions are answered with complete honesty they'll likely think to themselves "gosh what a super honest and transparent Church" and then they'll be ready to start really reading so they can ponder/pray.
Now I suppose that some may think that the Bishops/SPs may decide to not answer the questions honestly. In such case then there would not be the possibility of moving on the ponder/pray because the Church would obviously not be a true Church. But that would be ridiculous as it would only create Doubts and destroy the Church's reputation so in the true Church we can rest assured that the leaders will be honest/transparent :)
My shelf starting overloading when I was around 12 years old. Our stake had a very fine stake choir which my mother sang in. They were really good and I am sure many other churches would love to have them in their church. My mother loved to sing and she loved being in that choir. Well one fine day Spencer W. Kimball who was an apostle at the time (this was around 1970) came to our stake. The choir sang their hearts out for him and really put on a great performance. SWK said that was all very nice but this stake choir of yours is too competitive and you can't do this anymore but you can all have a ward choir. People were shocked and my mother was deeply hurt as were many others. Never did figure out what his rationale was but the ward choir idea flopped. He was such a sex and masturbation obsessed asshole. I can't believe I soldiered on and went through the temple and went on a mission and believed the lies for so many years. Thank goodness I did not convert anyone in Chicago on my mission. I am still a member in name only because my wife and I were married in the temple and I am not sure how she will handle it when I do resign. I despise this "church" and the ones at the top living high on the hog off of the tithing from people who can ill afford to send 10% of their gross income to the cult. I am so angry over the years of lost Sundays that I could have spent out in the mountains with my sons doing fun things like camping and hiking and shooting. Those lost years can never be replaced. What really got me on this path was the Mark Hoffman affair and the fact that multiple church leaders lied about their involvement in the cover up. Hinckley is a total piece of shit and so is Oaks, Packer, Bednar, and the rest. I sincerely hope there is a great judgement because they have a lot to answer for. I am still angry at the Hinckster when he gave Dick Cheney an honorary doctorate degree in public service from BYU. What a slap in the face to all those who earned a PHD the hard way and actually accomplished something in their lives besides being a warmonger. I hate this church and I hate the lies I was force fed when I was young.
I was singing along with the motab on YouTube, in May, 2017. I had clicked on 'all things mormon' signing up for YouTube. The music stops, the next thing I hear is someone talking about being an ex-mo and why????????????? No more sing alongs for me. Everything is serious now.
I listened to and read numerous things I really never knew about TSCC, for days. Very disappointed. Wanted to puke for days. Couldn't eat. Had to stay online, for hours on end, reading and listening to folks with credibility, saying why the church is FAKE!
My whole world I revolved in was/is a sham! I have prayed to a gawd my whole life and now it is nothing???????