I'm sure most of us recall as TBMs reading about the many marvelous miracles found within the scriptures, and wondering why such great works of faith were no longer performed in the church. After all, we had the priesthood, the authority to act in god's name, the same priesthood held by the prophets in the bible and the BOM. We were told stories of miraculous healings by early church leaders,
Forum: Recovery Board

True believers are apparently having a collective Morgasm over the COVID pandemic and, now, the SLC quake, sure that these are signs of the last days and that the return of Jesus is imminent. If you know any mormons like this, giddy with excitement over the prospect of being at long last vindicated and crowned with millennial glory, please let them know that they are in grave apostasy; that th
Forum: Recovery Board

Congrats and kudos, you've made it to the top at last! You've done the handshakes, now you're blazing away like the noonday sun and ready to create your own whatever! Where can you get some good ideas? How do you stay current with all the latest trends in heavendom? You read magazines of course, just like you did back in the day. Not about cars or sports or thoracic surgery; that's old news,
Forum: Recovery Board

Two years in the Canada Montreal Mission. Coldest day was, IIRC, -65° with windchill. One December wasted in Val-d'Or, up in the Abitibi region. We were about 280 miles away from any other missionaries, meaning we were on our own with no chance of help from anyone else. At least we had a car. It was Arctic frigid the entire month, and I doubt the temp ever got above -30° *excluding* windc
Forum: Recovery Board

No surprise that this is a play on Gordon Lightfoot's 1976 "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald." If you haven't yet listened to it, this is your chance. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vST6hVRj2A "The Wreck of the Mormon Ship Zion" The leaders are senile and deep in denial in their fantasy church that is growing. Enfeebled and old, they could not have foretol
Forum: Recovery Board

First off, please stop telling yourself that you aren't brave, because you most certainly are. For one, you've already decided that you can't live a lie for the sake of your future family, and also that you're willing to make the necessary sacrifices now to ensure their happiness later. That takes serious courage and integrity, and not many people could commit to that. Second, you posted your fea
Forum: Recovery Board

As I understand it, you've already resigned via email and are meeting with the BP merely as a courtesy. The resignation is a done deal, a fait accompli. You are *already out and free*, and I recommend you approach it this way. Since you're nervous and Hubs is calm, let him take the lead. It sounds like he's got this. The BP is not likely to attempt to bully him outright, but he may throw down
Forum: Recovery Board

Those of you attending to keep the peace will never have to sing the hymnbook version again, and you won't be able to hear it played without being reminded of this and restraining your loud laughter. Your TBM spouses will wonder what you're up to. It might be even funnier when imagined in typical Mormon congregation tempo (bored lackluster funeral dirge). Sing along everyone! Sung to the tune
Forum: Recovery Board

Just wanted to post a brief reminder that Ann Eliza Webb, "Wife No. 19" of Brigham Young, passed away 100 years ago today in Sparks, Nevada. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/74547270/ann-eliza-denning_young_dee Her book and lectures helped to raise public awareness of Young's frontier theocracy in Utah, and of the horrors of polygamy. Without her work, the country might have be
Forum: Recovery Board

Checked email this morning, thinking I might be met with howls of TBM protest. No such luck. There were only two replies, both from guys who were also fed up and trying to get off the list. But then I visited the YT site for the linked Holland video clip, and saw that the number of views had jumped by 24 just between yesterday and today. More than a few EQ members were evidently getting an edu
Forum: Recovery Board

Well, that didn't take long! Just received a call from the new bishop, apologizing for the emails, expressing his understanding of my frustration, and promising to take my name off the lists. I explained that I was trying to get their attention, and he reiterated his regret for the entire incident. Now he knows who I am, and what not to do.
Forum: Recovery Board

…and I don't particularly like calamari. Even though I've been on this board for a few years, I've never disclosed whether or not I've resigned. Well, I haven't, simply because IMO the church isn't worth even that minimal degree of attention. The locals (L.A. suburb) have been fairly good about leaving me alone, limiting their feeble attempts to the annual ward Smithmas message and a missio
Forum: Recovery Board

Thanks to everyone who weighed in with their thoughts – but I made the decison to let it lapse two and a half years ago. It's funny when naïve TBMs (looking at you, Claude Smith! and you, Myrnalee!), using the evil Internet, search for a phrase like "renew ensign" and stumble onto this thread. In a panic, with their very soul in the gravest jeopardy, they hit "Post Message&qu
Forum: Recovery Board

"We were not planning to sue him because he could not do much about it. There are rules for the mission presidents that are forced upon them no matter what." That's simply not true. MPs have **very** wide latitude regarding how their mission is run. In fact, you can reasonably argue that they can pretty much order the mission any way they want. Some missions are more lenient, while o
Forum: Recovery Board

"I feel like we are getting punished for being honest." Yes. That is exactly what is happening. "As if the only way to succeed in the church is to lie." Congratulations. You've hit it precisely. The Mormon church, by its very nature, breeds a culture of liars. The pursuit of an unattainable perfection, combined with the harsh judgmentalism of Mormonism, creates a cu
Forum: Recovery Board

It's entirely possible that once your husband has resigned, your local ward may make your own decision to exit much easier. The most effective anti-Mormons are often Mormons themselves. For example: – Is your Relief Society generally empathetic to women with unbelieving or inactive husbands, or are they judgmental and prone to gossip? When your husband officially leaves, you'll see what they
Forum: Recovery Board

Believe me, if you can read a cartouche on your own, you are most definitely NOT stupid. You were simply taken advantage of, and used, at a vulnerable time by a pack of predatory cultists. Now they've tricked you into becoming part of their ridiculous little club and are already trying their utmost to control you. Callings? You bet. Tithing? They don't care if you don't have your own money; th
Forum: Recovery Board

Be careful, Calienne. The Mormon church is, quite frankly, a cult – severely authoritarian, highly controlling, and demanding, much like the Jehovah's Witnesses. The church has the conceit that it owns its members, and that it has the god-given right to make any claim on them, whether of time, money, or anything else it may want. Here’s some of what you can look forward to as a Mormon.
Forum: Recovery Board

Not me. Earliest of mine was born in 1907. My maternal grandmother was born in 1909. But *her* father was born in 1839, in Kirtland (not a plyg, just married someone much younger after 1st wife died), and came over the plains in the 1850s. I haven't heard if he sang as he walked and walked and walked and walked… and… walked. Probably not. And his folks (my great-great-grandparents) were
Forum: Recovery Board

Whoa… someone brought this old thread of mine back to life? Who would do that, and more importantly, WHY? Turns out that I did let it go in the end. The pen was poised over the checkbook and I… just… couldn't… bring myself to do it.
Forum: Recovery Board

Congratulations on discovering the truth so early! Ridding yourself of the church's dead weight is going to make your life so much easier in the long run. How much does your non-member dad know of your disbelief? If he doesn't, I'd tell him first. Lean on him for awhile and ask him how best to proceed. He may be thrilled to at last have an ally to confide in. Support each other; it will be eas
Forum: Recovery Board

I served in a heavily Catholic area myself (Quebec) about 35 years ago, so I do have some experience in this. Catholicism is a hard nut for Mormonism to crack, since the religion is often so tightly woven into the culture and fabric of society. I can't count the number of times I heard "Je suis catholique" during my two years, and hearing that meant basically "forget it, no chance,
Forum: Recovery Board

They can't seem to understand because they DON'T understand. They've spent their whole lives in an insular culture – one that indoctrinates them into believing that their church is the greatest and most important organization in the world. They've been taught that their way is the ONLY way to return to god. The basis for Mormonism's very existence is that traditional Christianity has hopeles
Forum: Recovery Board

Faith For the 21st Century by Royal Lee Pistoff The Desperate News SALT LAKE CITY, Oct. 14 — Elder Quentin L. Cook delivered a memorable solo performance at yesterday's late-afternoon Church press conference. In it he revealed the Brethren's latest inspired program to root the youth of the Church ever more deeply in the nourishing soil of The Gospel™. Elder Cook began to read from the
Forum: Recovery Board

We've had it all wrong. It isn't Heavenly Father, it's Heavenly Farmer. The CK is like a giant Farmers Only shindig, where everyone has green Thummim. Pa Elohim is into small-scale agriculture, tooling around on his celestial John Deere that never breaks down and gets infinite miles per gallon. Meanwhile, Ma Elohim #23 milks the resurrected cows, Ma #58 slops the resurrected hogs and Ma #114 toss
Forum: Recovery Board

A big thanks to admin for allowing the word. I've been hoping to post this for months. You all know the tune. Good luck getting it out of your head now. You'll never be able to watch the movie again without thinking of this. R, an "is," a plural "is," E, a comic scream of fear, D, a barely passing grade, D, the first letter of "deer," I, the thing that se
Forum: Recovery Board

Well, there are countless reasons to hate it. For starters, it's an authoritarian organization that possesses many characteristics of a cult. It permits no open disagreement with its doctrines or policies, and allows no criticism of its leaders, "even if the criticism is true." You cannot pick when or where to attend services; you must attend at your assigned building and time. The
Forum: Recovery Board

Summer, I may know someone who can help you. He's a professional genealogist, so it won't be free however. He specializes in Jewish genealogy, but he also does non-Jewish work, and can read Polish & Russian records (I've seen him do it). If you're interested, we can exchange email addresses and PM from there.
Forum: Recovery Board

Ex-Quebec RM checking in. The regular HS-college-MTC French you've been exposed to will be of no use in Quebec as far as understanding the locals. You will have no problem making yourself understood however, since the French Canadians understand Parisian French perfectly well. It takes several months of full immersion before the Quebec dialect begins to make sense. A few differences: The
Forum: Recovery Board

Bishop: "Does (your husband) share in these feelings?" Runaway: "He's a grown man. Why don't you ask him yourself?" Bishop: "What were the specific things you learned about Joseph Smith that led you to this decision?" Runaway: Bishop: "Would you allow me to confide in (stake president)" Runaway: "It sounds like you're going to do that a
Forum: Recovery Board