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Mass Exodus From the LDS Church

Moot

Moot

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This doesn't happen very often here in the heart of Mormondom, which is why it's kind of awesome to see a group of Mormons do something so defiant and so public against the LDS church. After a large group of Mormons showed up at the Gay Pride Parade a month or so ago with signs saying they supported Gays, the LDS church leadership suddenly did an about face and softened it's tone against LGTBs and told the faithful followers to be nicer to them. So this mass resignation must really be making their heads spin.


"(Reuters) - A group of about 150 Mormons quit their church in a mass resignation ceremony in Salt Lake City on Saturday in a rare display of defiance ending decades of disagreement for some over issues ranging from polygamy to gay marriage.

Participants from Utah, Arizona, Idaho and elsewhere gathered in a public park to sign a "Declaration of Independence from Mormonism."....<read>

The Utah-based Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is known for its culture of obedience, and the mass ceremony was a seldom-seen act of collective revolt....<snip>
Mormons quit church in mass resignation ceremony | Reuters


"..Still, the church knows it has a problem as some members encounter crises of faith while researching their religion’s past. Last year, Deseret Book published No Weapon Shall Prosper: New Light on Sensitive Issues to tackle some of the Mormon history and doctrine cited by people who have resigned — such as the veracity of Smith’s visions and his multiple marriages, including to women who already had husbands....."
Mormon group quits LDS Church en masse | The Salt Lake Tribune



A crisis of faith...or a revelation? The sudden realization that the church has been manipulating and lying to them their entire lives must be a very powerful emotion to bear. They must feel like their hearts have been ripped out, especially knowing that if they leave the church that most of their family and friends will disown them and they will literally become exiles in their own communities. I wish all the ex-Mormons well and may they fill the hole left in their hearts with the blessings of true freedom.
 
Moot said:
This doesn't happen very often here in the heart of Mormondom, which is why it's kind of awesome to see a group of Mormons do something so defiant and so public against the LDS church. After a large group of Mormons showed up at the Gay Pride Parade a month or so ago with signs saying they supported Gays, the LDS church leadership suddenly did an about face and softened it's tone against LGTBs and told the faithful followers to be nicer to them. So this mass resignation must really be making their heads spin.


"(Reuters) - A group of about 150 Mormons quit their church in a mass resignation ceremony in Salt Lake City on Saturday in a rare display of defiance ending decades of disagreement for some over issues ranging from polygamy to gay marriage.

Participants from Utah, Arizona, Idaho and elsewhere gathered in a public park to sign a "Declaration of Independence from Mormonism."....<read>

The Utah-based Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is known for its culture of obedience, and the mass ceremony was a seldom-seen act of collective revolt....<snip>
Mormons quit church in mass resignation ceremony | Reuters


"..Still, the church knows it has a problem as some members encounter crises of faith while researching their religion’s past. Last year, Deseret Book published No Weapon Shall Prosper: New Light on Sensitive Issues to tackle some of the Mormon history and doctrine cited by people who have resigned — such as the veracity of Smith’s visions and his multiple marriages, including to women who already had husbands....."
Mormon group quits LDS Church en masse | The Salt Lake Tribune



A crisis of faith...or a revelation? The sudden realization that the church has been manipulating and lying to them their entire lives must be a very powerful emotion to bear. They must feel like their hearts have been ripped out, especially knowing that if they leave the church that most of their family and friends will disown them and they will literally become exiles in their own communities. I wish all the ex-Mormons well and may they fill the hole left in their hearts with the blessings of true freedom.
Click to expand...

Big deal? not really....lots of people leave the LDS church, lots of people leave the other christian churches.
as for the part about their family and friends disowning them? I doubt it.... Some will, I have seen it, but most won't.
OTOH, if the disaffected show up at family gatherings and act in a way that is insulting and/or disrespectful, it could happen.
Believe it or not, Mormons are not a hate group, no more than most organized religions. I used to work with a catholic man whose large family left their church AND the family because he was such a prick about religion.
BTW, true freedom? it doesn't exist within any church.
and there isn't a christian church in existence that hasn't had SOME sordid history....
 
6 million Mormons. 150 rebels. They should survive this moment.

With Mormonism, you either like it or you don't. They are a busy-body religion and they get into you life a lot. Not for everyone.
 
specklebang said:
6 million Mormons. 150 rebels. They should survive this moment.

With Mormonism, you either like it or you don't. They are a busy-body religion and they get into you life a lot. Not for everyone.
Click to expand...
Some of these people will never find the religion they want, perhaps they should start their own. It's legal to do so.
Some call the LDS busy-body, we call it looking out for each other....
the LDS practice of home teaching, and visiting teaching, is being adopted by other churches. My elderly Baptist sister, who lives alone in TX, has such visitors, but they call it something different. She is 70, has several illnesses that make it hard to get around, and members of her sunday school class are assigned to keep in touch with her and help her as needed, and to keep the Ministers aware of her needs.
That's what christianity is really about, says so in Matt. chap. 25.....in as much you do it unto the least of these my brethern, ye do it unto me.

But, other's interpretation of what is christianity might be different, they are free to think whatever they want, and so are we.
If others don't like the theology/history of their church, they shouldn't let the door bang their butts on the way out. They can even alert the media in order to garner some sympathy if they want, but it won't change things.
It is called freedom of religion.
 
here's another approach to act on one's opposition to the church's formal stance:

Nuns on the Bus

these gals are great
the vatican criticizes their views and they go on tour
no need to leave their church
no need to compromise their beliefs
 
as homosexuality is no more of a sin than drinking, smoking, dishonesty, greed, etc etc...its good to see folks put this all into perspective..and give gays a break.
 
Thunder said:
as homosexuality is no more of a sin than drinking, smoking, dishonesty, greed, etc etc...its good to see folks put this all into perspective..and give gays a break.
Click to expand...

It is asinine for anybody to expect a religion to change to suit them. The way it works is you find a religion that makes you happy, not join a church and insist they accomodate your beliefs, whether they be sexual issues, or criminal activity.
Anybody ever hear of a church that tolerates theft from the church? It is far easier to find a christian church that accepts gays and lesbians that to find one that accepts known practicing criminals.. Well, they may get to attend services, but they won't get to be involved in church finances.
My religious preferences would see dishonesty and greed garnering excommunication until there is a change of heart, and restitution is made.... smoking and drinking are minor issues. Never seen anyone kicked out for that, or for most sexual issues among and between the young and single adults..
Adultery, physical or sexual abuse to spouse or children, criminal activity, etc..... those are the major issues that would get you ex'd.
And stealing funds from the church, that will get you gone in a hurry. But the way the LDS financial system is set up, that is very hard to do. The other churches could learn something from the LDS in that respect. There are no paid ministry, either, unless you are too poor to serve full time and the church asks you to do so. Most of the time, even the very higher ups serve the church on their own dime.
 
justabubba said:
here's another approach to act on one's opposition to the church's formal stance:

Nuns on the Bus

these gals are great
the vatican criticizes their views and they go on tour
no need to leave their church
no need to compromise their beliefs
Click to expand...

from my experience, when protestants don't agree with the church authorities, they break away and start their own church. I used to attend a baptist church that split over some interpretation of a single scripture....
but catholics? they stay and put up a fight...
 
Only reason more haven't left it over the years is it's social suicide to do so. They basically coerce people in those areas into it, though that seems exactly the same as all other religions at various times. Maybe this will give others courage to leave.

LDS recently spent millions from tax deductible donations to oppose what was legalized SSM in CA. It's going to take a lot more than this really small schism to change my opinion of it, though to answer what will those 150 do now? Maybe they could try being independent from organized religion altogether and continue to arrive at their own conclusions.
 
UtahBill said:
Some of these people will never find the religion they want, perhaps they should start their own. It's legal to do so.

Some call the LDS busy-body, we call it looking out for each other....
the LDS practice of home teaching, and visiting teaching, is being adopted by other churches. My elderly Baptist sister, who lives alone in TX, has such visitors, but they call it something different. She is 70, has several illnesses that make it hard to get around, and members of her sunday school class are assigned to keep in touch with her and help her as needed, and to keep the Ministers aware of her needs.
That's what christianity is really about, says so in Matt. chap. 25.....in as much you do it unto the least of these my brethern, ye do it unto me.

But, other's interpretation of what is christianity might be different, they are free to think whatever they want, and so are we.
If others don't like the theology/history of their church, they shouldn't let the door bang their butts on the way out. They can even alert the media in order to garner some sympathy if they want, but it won't change things.
It is called freedom of religion.
Click to expand...

Perhaps in this case it's called freedom from religion. The ex-Mo's didn't strike me as interested in finding another religion to replace the one they so defiantly left behind. If anything they're likely to be more skeptical of all religions.
 
specklebang said:
6 million Mormons. 150 rebels. They should survive this moment.

With Mormonism, you either like it or you don't. They are a busy-body religion and they get into you life a lot. Not for everyone.
Click to expand...
I think that number might be highly inflated since a lot people just stop going to church and never go through the hassel of getting their names off the church record.

But yeah, you're absolutely right about it being busy body religion and definitely not for everyone.
 
I have friends and neighbors who are not LDS, they don't seem to mind living here. Only a very few LDS are the type to ignore the non-LDS in the community. Lived next to one woman in Idaho, long time ago, she wouldn't talk to another neighbor because we was non-LDS, and smoked. His wife was a member but rarely attended. IMO, he was as nice a guy as there is, even paid for his son to go on mission.
Yeah, the church will survive this.
 
UtahBill said:
I have friends and neighbors who are not LDS, they don't seem to mind living here. Only a very few LDS are the type to ignore the non-LDS in the community. Lived next to one woman in Idaho, long time ago, she wouldn't talk to another neighbor because we was non-LDS, and smoked. His wife was a member but rarely attended. IMO, he was as nice a guy as there is, even paid for his son to go on mission.
Yeah, the church will survive this.
Click to expand...

All my neighbors are Mormon and they definitely mind that I am not. But I don't mind them as long as I can have a glass of wine in a restaurant and they don't take tithing out of my paychecks. One of the perks of living in Utah is that on Sundays the stores, theaters and concerts are less crowded because all the Mormons are in church. lol
 
Moot said:
All my neighbors are Mormon and they definitely mind that I am not. But I don't mind them as long as I can have a glass of wine in a restaurant and they don't take tithing out of my paychecks. One of the perks of living in Utah is that on Sundays the stores, theaters and concerts are less crowded because all the Mormons are in church. lol
Click to expand...

using the word "all" adds untruth to your post....
 
UtahBill said:
using the word "all" adds untruth to your post....
Click to expand...
Well, I'm sitting here looking out my window....and yup, all my neighbors are Mormons. They made sure I knew that when I first moved in by coming over and introducing themselves and to see if I was a Mormon. I could tell by the looks on their faces that they very disappointed.
 
Moot said:
Well, I'm sitting here looking out my window....and yup, all my neighbors are Mormons. They made sure I knew that when I first moved in by coming over and introducing themselves and to see if I was a Mormon. I could tell by the looks on their faces that they very disappointed.
Click to expand...

perhaps all your immediate neighbors...but as for all of them in your community in church every sunday, don't bet on it....:2razz:
 
UtahBill said:
perhaps all your immediate neighbors...but as for all of them in your community in church every sunday, don't bet on it....:2razz:
Click to expand...
You really have no idea, do you? Yes, perhaps all my immediate neighbors and 2/3 of the community, in church, every Sunday. The town used to literally shut down on Sundays, couldn't even go to a grocery store. But now there are malls and big chain stores that stay open....except for the new Mormon City Creek mall. The Mormons are insisting that all the retailers close on Sundays including the national retailers like Nordstroms. Guess I won't be going to that mall since I like to shop on Sunday. The new City Creek Mall has caused some Mormons to rethink the church because of what it cost the faithful through their tithings and they won't get any benefit from it. That money could have been better spent to help the needy especially Mormons that are living at poverty level because of all the kids they have and 10% of their income going to the church. Whats even more absurd is the more children they have, the less they pay in taxes which means less funding for schools to teach their kids.
 
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UtahBill said:
It is asinine for anybody to expect a religion to change to suit them. The way it works is you find a religion that makes you happy, not join a church and insist they accomodate your beliefs, whether they be sexual issues, or criminal activity.
Click to expand...

Social pressure forced the LDS to change its policies towards blacks, who were not allowed to be ordained until 1978 (oh excuse me, God changed his policies towards blacks in 1978 and then simply "revealed" it to the LDS). Was that asinine?
 
Moot said:
You really have no idea, do you? Yes, perhaps all my immediate neighbors and 2/3 of the community, in church, every Sunday. The town used to literally shut down on Sundays, couldn't even go to a grocery store. But now there are malls and big chain stores that stay open....except for the new Mormon City Creek mall. The Mormons are insisting that all the retailers close on Sundays including the national retailers like Nordstroms. Guess I won't be going to that mall since I like to shop on Sunday. The new City Creek Mall has caused some Mormons to rethink the church because of what it cost the faithful through their tithings and they won't get any benefit from it. That money could have been better spent to help the needy especially Mormons that are living at poverty level because of all the kids they have and 10% of their income going to the church. Whats even more absurd is the more children they have, the less they pay in taxes which means less funding for schools to teach their kids.
Click to expand...

....everybody who has kids gets the same income tax break, and the more kids you have, the bigger the tax break, that isn't a mormon thing. the stores in Logan are open on Sunday, those that want to be. It figures that in Utah there is less shoppers on Sunday, so some shut down, but they aren't required to....
My sister is a baptist, she pays tithing. Lots of churches have tithing, not just the LDS. Tithing is voluntary, unless you want a temple recommend. The LDS welfare program (mostly funded by fast offerings, not tithing) takes care of the needy in the community, not just the church, AND provides tons of aid supplies when there are disasters, even during the Tsunami. THey partner with the catholics in humanitarian efforts as the catholics have a better distribution program while the LDS have more stuff to distribute.
But if you only want to criticize them, there will always be fuel for your fire...
If you are looking for perfection, tho, look elsewhere. I doubt you will find it anywhere.
 
the_recruit said:
Social pressure forced the LDS to change its policies towards blacks, who were not allowed to be ordained until 1978 (oh excuse me, God changed his policies towards blacks in 1978 and then simply "revealed" it to the LDS). Was that asinine?
Click to expand...

and the SBC waited til the mid 90's to apologize for their stance on slavery.....
what perfect religion are you?:roll:
 
UtahBill said:
and the SBC waited til the mid 90's to apologize for their stance on slavery.....
Click to expand...

Terrible, I'm sure. But I wasn't talking about the SBC. I was talking about the LDS. And their policy change towards blacks in 1978.

UtahBill said:
what perfect religion are you?:roll:
Click to expand...

No such thing as far as I'm aware. But this thread is about LDS. If you wanna start threads criticizing other religions, be my guest. I'll chime right in. Until then do you have any comment regarding the LDS and their policy change towards blacks or would you rather just continue deflecting?
 
Why do so many of the non-religious seem to spend so much of their time worrying about what the religious do, to the point that they feel compelled to go out and change people's religion by force or other means?
 
Moot said:
This doesn't happen very often here in the heart of Mormondom, which is why it's kind of awesome to see a group of Mormons do something so defiant and so public against the LDS church. After a large group of Mormons showed up at the Gay Pride Parade a month or so ago with signs saying they supported Gays, the LDS church leadership suddenly did an about face and softened it's tone against LGTBs and told the faithful followers to be nicer to them. So this mass resignation must really be making their heads spin.


"(Reuters) - A group of about 150 Mormons quit their church in a mass resignation ceremony in Salt Lake City on Saturday in a rare display of defiance ending decades of disagreement for some over issues ranging from polygamy to gay marriage.

Participants from Utah, Arizona, Idaho and elsewhere gathered in a public park to sign a "Declaration of Independence from Mormonism."....<read>

The Utah-based Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is known for its culture of obedience, and the mass ceremony was a seldom-seen act of collective revolt....<snip>
Mormons quit church in mass resignation ceremony | Reuters


"..Still, the church knows it has a problem as some members encounter crises of faith while researching their religion’s past. Last year, Deseret Book published No Weapon Shall Prosper: New Light on Sensitive Issues to tackle some of the Mormon history and doctrine cited by people who have resigned — such as the veracity of Smith’s visions and his multiple marriages, including to women who already had husbands....."
Mormon group quits LDS Church en masse | The Salt Lake Tribune



A crisis of faith...or a revelation? The sudden realization that the church has been manipulating and lying to them their entire lives must be a very powerful emotion to bear. They must feel like their hearts have been ripped out, especially knowing that if they leave the church that most of their family and friends will disown them and they will literally become exiles in their own communities. I wish all the ex-Mormons well and may they fill the hole left in their hearts with the blessings of true freedom.
Click to expand...

It is unclear to me whether these people are resigning because the Mormons are, in their minds, too crazy, or because they aren't crazy enough.
 
Moot said:
Well, I'm sitting here looking out my window....and yup, all my neighbors are Mormons. They made sure I knew that when I first moved in by coming over and introducing themselves and to see if I was a Mormon. I could tell by the looks on their faces that they very disappointed.
Click to expand...

very disappointed? your perception, I am sure. most of my friends are non-mormon....
(gotta admit, a lot of the LDS are boring)
 
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the_recruit said:
Terrible, I'm sure. But I wasn't talking about the SBC. I was talking about the LDS. And their policy change towards blacks in 1978.



No such thing as far as I'm aware. But this thread is about LDS. If you wanna start threads criticizing other religions, be my guest. I'll chime right in. Until then do you have any comment regarding the LDS and their policy change towards blacks or would you rather just continue deflecting?
Click to expand...

then you should start a thread about it, instead of going off on a tangent....
 
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