Where can I turn for info?

Here are some of my favorite sites for information about the LDS church (that aren't church-sponsored):

Mormon Coffee blog
http://blog.mrm.org

Mormonthink, with a comparison of LDS vs critics' views
http://www.mormonthink.com

Mark Cares, a pastor in Idaho who started a ministry especially to help Mormons
http://markcares.net

Mormonism Investigated, UK: Yes, there are people working to educate Mormons overseas too
http://mormonisminvestigated.co.uk

One Way to Rethink that Guilt Trip for Leaving the Church

Sadly, it seems that when someone chooses to leave the church, not only are they are blamed for being weak or deceived, but those people important to them also blame themselves for not doing enough to keep that person in the church. This goes right back to the root teaching of Mormonism that works are necessary. If enough isn't done, then people aren't saved.

I have a new perspective now. I believe God works in each person individually to bring them around. We are not responsible to save anyone else--that's God's job and that's why we have Jesus. God also works in us to help others. 

I'm personally relieved and very grateful to lay down my guilt and let God do the work and take the credit.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.

Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him."

John 3:16-17, NRSV

Are We All a "Royal Priesthood"?

Image from Wikimedia Commons, user Ariely, CC 3.0 unported

Women in the LDS church can heave a sigh of relief: they will probably never have to conduct a sacrament meeting or preside at a stake conference. They don't have to ask a blessing on the bread and water served as communion, or pass it around to the members. They won't have to baptize anyone, perform a marriage, or direct a funeral. They don't have to lead a prayer in the temple prayer circle or pretend to be Jesus at the veil. I know several LDS women that are content to be left out of these things: they don't want the responsibility of holding the priesthood and doing what is expected of the men who do.

There are some male members that for one reason or another never obtained the priesthood or never progressed to a higher level of priesthood. These male members are looked down upon as though something is wrong with them.

Would either of these two groups, women and men with less priesthood, be astonished to know that they actually are priests of God after all?

No need for approval of earthly church leaders or laying on of hands or finishing any checklist of rules...if only Mormons would consult and believe their Bibles they would see this:

1 Peter 2

King James Version (KJV)

⁵ Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

⁹ But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light;

Revelation 1:5-6

King James Version (KJV)

⁵ And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,

⁶ And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

And our great High Priest is Jesus:

Hebrews 4:14

King James Version (KJV)

¹⁴ Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.

Whither was I to go?

So there I was last year, a short time after realizing the LDS church was not all it claimed to be, wondering if there could even be a God if such a profound deception was allowed to exist. I sat in my car and talked out loud to myself. I reasoned the following: if the atheists were right and this life was all there was to existence, then when I died, I would blink out and nothing more would matter. If the Hindus and Buddhists were right, then I would be reborn and have another chance to get it right in the next life. If the Christians were right, then if I turned my back on God, then the next life might be hell. I figured I'd better stick with Christianity since the potential for reward was great (heaven) and the risks low--if I was wrong about Christianity I either wouldn't exist to regret it or would have another shot at life, even if were only as an insect.

I am very happy to report that the further along I go on the path of Christianity, the closer I feel to God and the more peace and change for the good I sense in me.

13 things I didn't know when I was a Mormon

These things weren't part of the Sunday School curriculum. Heck, they might not be on a Christian church's curriculum either.

• There weren't necessarily three Magi that came to see the baby Jesus. There might have been more or less than three. Take a look and see if the Gospels actually name how many came.
• The New Testament was written in a form of Greek called koine and yet Jesus may have originally spoken Aramaic, so even the earliest manuscripts may have been translations of what he said.
• The Septuagint was a Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible created by Jews. The Greek Orthodox church's Old Testament is based on the Septuagint translation. When the early Christians quoted the Bible, they were often quoting from the Septuagint.
• Speaking of translations, I had absolutely no idea how many English translations of the Bible exist. Wikipedia has a big list. 
• Some of the translation errors found in the King James Version are copied in the Book of Mormon. Now why would God perpetuate those errors in the "most correct book"?
• Some women were leaders of churches in the New Testament. Check out Phoebe, a deacon in Cenchreae.
• And speaking of deacons, I haven't yet seen how the LDS church can say their "priesthoods" are a restoration of anything Biblical. If so, wouldn't Aaronic priesthood holders have to sacrifice animals at the temples?
• And there's Deborah, a prophet in the book of Judges.
•  I found out that Mormons aren't the only church that say their way is the only way to salvation. 
• God didn't "give" multiple wives to Old Testament men like Abraham and Solomon. They chose to have more than one woman and they and their wives usually suffered for it.
• A lot of the scary, ugly, nasty stories in the Old Testament aren't there because God was condoning the bad things that happened. The stories highlight the mistakes people made and how God works with imperfect humans anyway.
• Having a liturgical calendar sure adds variety to worship.
• And I'll stop with my new understanding of grace as compared to how I used to think about it. In the past, I was a fan of a book called "Believing Christ" by LDS author Stephen Robinson. He told a "parable" where a little girl really wanted a bicycle so she gave all her money, a pittance, to her father, who then made up the difference and bought her the bike. I thought that was great--I do my very best, which amounts to very little, then God makes up the rest. I just had to hope that my very best would be enough to stretch up to God's hands. Now I know that's NOT grace. Grace is a free gift. God did it ALL. I can choose to accept it or not. It's about what God did, not about how much genealogy I did or if I gave the neighbors a Book of Mormon. I can't save myself. And actually, I'm relieved.

What is Sin? (part 2)

This is my opinion: Sin is doing the opposite of what love would do.

If we love God, we'll want to do good things, serve God, praise God. If we love other people, we'll want to be there for them, forgive them, cheer them. If we have love in our hearts, we won't be so likely to act out in ways that hurt ourselves, other people, or the world in general.  The kindness and gentleness and courage that comes from love changes everything.

 Jesus could have given us a list of specific "don't"s, but instead he gave us two "do"s that apply to every circumstance and every century:

Matthew 22:34-40

New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

³⁴ When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, ³⁵ and one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. ³⁶ “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?” ³⁷ He said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ ³⁸ This is the greatest and first commandment. ³⁹ And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ ⁴⁰ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”

Mark 12:28-31 (NRSV)

²⁸ One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, “Which commandment is the first of all?” ²⁹ Jesus answered, “The first is, ‘Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; ³⁰ you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ ³¹ The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

 

Luke 10:25-28 (NRSV)

²⁵ Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” ²⁶ He said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you read there?” ²⁷ He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” ²⁸ And he said to him, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.”

John 13:33-35 (NRSV)

³³ Little children, I am with you only a little longer. You will look for me; and as I said to the Jews so now I say to you, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come.’ ³⁴ I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. ³⁵ By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Romans 13:8-10 (NRSV)

⁸ Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. ⁹ The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery; You shall not murder; You shall not steal; You shall not covet”; and any other commandment, are summed up in this word, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” ¹⁰ Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law.
 

1 Peter 4:8 (NRSV)

⁸ Above all, maintain constant love for one another, for love covers a multitude of sins. 
 

1 John 3:23 (NRSV)

²³ And this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us.

What is Sin? (part 1, According to the Latter Day Saints)

As a Mormon, I associated sin with breaking the rules of the church, going against the words of the prophet, or failing to do what was expected of me as a member. For example, I never was a smoker, but I knew an older man who was and he struggled  over continuing to smoke because it was against the Word of Wisdom. He still came to church, and even served in a voluntary position as the ward clerk, but he smoked in secret. I knew this because as a missionary in his ward, I ran into him after church one day in the street. He flipped his cigarette over and somehow put it out in his own hand before my companion and I arrived at his side. My companion and I had heard rumors and then we saw him in the act. But we didn't say anything about it to him because we'd heard his wife was ashamed of it and we didn't want to make it worse and have him go inactive.

As for me, I felt worried if I skipped going to sacrament meeting and taking the sacrament because that was considered to be a necessary "renewal of my baptismal covenant" with God. (One of the LDS apostles, David Bednar, said this: "Through the ordinance of the sacrament we renew our baptismal covenant and can receive and retain a remission of our sins.") I was fearful if I didn't pay my tithing because I didn't want to "burn" when the Lord came again to the Earth. (He that is tithed shall not be burned at his coming: D&C 64:23) Once I refused a calling and felt guilty for that because I'd been taught callings came from God, and refusing a calling was refusing to serve God. Various church leaders and prophets said that members should not watch R-rated movies, so I felt wicked for giving into temptation and seeing "Schindler's List." Not getting visiting teaching done, not going regularly to the temple, not treating garments (underwear for people who have been "endowed" at the temple) with proper respect (seriously--don't drop them on on the floor, don't let people see them, don't roll them up to wear more revealing clothing over top, wear them 24/7) ("How it is worn is an outward expression of an inward commitment to follow the Savior," First Presidency Letter, 10 Oct. 1988)....there are many ways for a Mormon to "sin" besides breaking the Ten Commandments. Now perhaps I missed something in all those 27 years of being a member and am classifying all this as  sin for Mormons when perhaps another member of the church would say sins are only things like being unchaste, lying, murdering. Let me look up how they define it on their official church website.

Sin: See also Abominable, Abomination; Filth, Filthiness; Offend; Rebellion; Ungodly; Unrighteous, Unrighteousness; Wicked, Wickedness

Willful disobedience to God’s commandments.

So now I ask, what do they consider to be God's commandments?

Commandments of God: See also Commandments, the Ten; Law; Obedience, Obedient, Obey; Sin; Word of God

The laws and requirements that God gives to mankind, either individually or collectively. 

Remember the man I saw smoking? Well, the Word of Wisdom is considered to be a commandment currently, although it was originally "given as a principle with a promise." If a person uses tobacco, drinks tea, coffee, or alcohol or uses illegal drugs, they are not allowed to attend the temple.

There's the "law of chastity"--no sexual relations before marriage. Breaking that can get a person as far as excommunicated depending on how much happened and if the person has been "endowed" in the temple.

Here are a couple more things (found under under the definition for Obedience):

In nothing does man offend God, save those who confess not his hand and obey not his commandments: Doctrine&Covenants 59:21

I the Lord am bound when you do what I say: D&C 82:10

When we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated: D&C 130:21 

People must be chastened until they learn obedience: D&C 105:6

Really?

Can you see why Mormons run around stressed out, doing everything they believe is expected of them? It isn't just the peer pressure they put on each other to conform. They think they have to earn blessings, contribute to their salvation, prove themselves to God. I feel so sorry for them.

A Year Forward into Freedom

I don't know the exact date that I pulled an all-nighter and discovered that the LDS Church was full of lies. It's been about a year now. I have been musing on the changes in my life, the miracles, the challenges, the freedom I grow to love more each passing month and the anger I still feel.

I had a lot of good times as a member of the LDS church, mostly due to my friends and the warm fuzzy feelings from being an included part of the group. Or else due to my own strong desires to be good, to seek God. I learned at least one useful skill--how to speak to groups of people without fainting.

I also still feel very betrayed by the historic and current church leadership. In the age of the Internet it is hard to hide information and yet they still do it the best they can. They still rule over their kingdom that continues to grow in wealth.

I did give away a Bible during this past year. It was The Message, a modern language paraphrase translation by Eugene Peterson. I gave it to my dear friend who was the first member outside of my family that I told about leaving the church. I don't know if she has looked at it yet. It seems one of the side effects of leaving the church is the way I am separated from people I called friends because they are constantly busy with their church callings and activities. I am not so busy anymore, which I have found is a relief. But I am not with my friends in all their meetings anymore so I rarely see them now. I have spoken to my friend and seen her a few times, but it has been me that reaches out to her.

Meanwhile I am happy with my new church home. When I see same sex couples I rejoice that everyone is welcome there. When I sing in the small choir I think about how I am doing it to praise God. When I don't agree with the pastor I am free to discuss it with him. If I give money to the collection plate I do it because I want to keep the church going and growing and meet its needs, not because I'm afraid of what might happen if I don't give. One longtime member of the Christian church I attend has always been a Christian and she is sometimes baffled by her Mormon neighbors' beliefs. We had a talk about my change of church and I told her I would never go back. God has led me out of bondage and fear to where I am free to worship Him of my own free will.

I had a nice surprise the other night. I've been reading The Message at night and using the NIV and NRSV as my primary study Bibles. I really like the NIV translation. I hadn't so much as cracked open a King James Version in a few months. But I purchased a Jefferson Bible, used, out of curiosity. I was shocked to see that the archaic language wasn't such an impediment for me anymore. I choose to believe that my time studying and loving the Bible has paid off by God granting me understanding. Topics like grace are so much clearer now.

A friend who is still LDS told me the Bible was distasteful because of the sex and violence and stories about the dark side of human nature.  She's been reading it though, and sharing with me her questions and thoughts. I have probably been a little too enthusiastic in sharing the new knowledge I am gaining, but I revel in the fact that she is Thinking as she reads. I have told her some of the many questions I had as I read too. I have a notebook where I keep track of some of them, and the research I've done on them. I decided in the beginning to be courageous in my asking and I have found answers. Sometimes I talk out loud to God to ask Him why in the world something was done a certain way.

One of the Christian ministries to Mormons wrote something about God becoming so much bigger for people leaving the LDS church. It's true for me. God is Huge, and I am still getting to know Him. Now that I know He's not the limited being of flesh and bone, one of a succession of many gods, as the Mormons think of him, I know He is with me. I invite Him along with me and I found He is a very patient companion. I love the Christian idea about a relationship with Him. I am further along in understanding His real love for us all here. Instead of a god to fear if I let him down by me not doing enough, I am learning that it's all about what He did. And I am so glad for what He has done!

What Not to Do if You Want to Win Someone Over to Christ

I apologize for the long hiatus. I'm back. I've been suffering through the loss of family and friends dear to me who all passed away within a month. I saw and felt lots of evidence of God's love and care for me all this while. I just didn't have the wherewithal to continue blogging till now.

Today after church one of the members brought a visitor to meet me.  This woman was introduced to me as a member of the LDS church who was worried about her family finding out that she was looking outside the church. The woman was young and had small children with her.  They were all nicely dressed just like many Mormons are on Sundays, and the woman was smiling.  She had been brave enough to write down her contact information for the church.

This is where I wanted to say all the right things when I should have been listening. I told her I used to be LDS and had just transitioned last year. Then I babbled on in my enthusiasm, even mentioning this blog. I gave her my email address. And I think I killed the conversation with my eagerness. She was distracted by her children and then was gone, meeting other people.

I hope the other people were better with her than I was. I assessed my experience once I sat in my car and realized it would have been better to find out what brought her to our church than to overwhelm her with information. The Spirit taught me something important today and I am grateful.

I hope the next time I meet one of these rare people courageous enough to look around I will ask more questions and listen and put myself on the back burner until I am needed.