Former Mormon "de-conversion" stories

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why_me said:
So, you are actively trying to convert the lds to the catholic faith in Utah? Strange, because on this forum the lds church is often accused of leading catholics to the lds through their missionary effort. It just goes to show that all churches are trying to recruit new members.

Although the crucifx does show Christ’s love for us since he did die for our sins, it is also a sign of his death. For mormons, the resurection is important. Many protestant churches do not use the crucified Christ on the cross.
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I would say going door to door is actively trying to convert people. If LDS people voluntarily come to a Catholic Church for a tour they are saying they are interested in learning more about the Catholic Church. I wouldn’t call that “actively” trying to convert the LDS. God is planting the seed in the hearts of LDS to move them to hear more about the Catholic Church.
 
why_me said:
Many protestant churches do not use the crucified Christ on the cross.
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Good arguments can be advanced for both representations of our Lord–there is much we can learn from meditatiing on His terrible suffering for our sins, as well as on His glorious resurrection that foreshadows our resurrection at the end of the world. But the crucified Christ might be more appropriate today in a world that has lost its sense of sin. The body of our crucified Lord is as stark a reminder as one could imagine of the horror of sin.
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–Catholic Replies, James Drummey

BTW there can’t be a resurrection without first the crucifixion.

And about your noting that “many Protestant churches do not use the crucified Christ”, are you admitting your once Protestant roots–Joseph Smith carried many of the Protestant beliefs into his Mormon church?
 
Just a reminder of why I started this thread (see quote below). My intent was FOR ONCE to try and have a thread where people aren’t bashing the LDS (or Catholics for that matter).
sablouwho said:
I am interested in hearing from former members of the Mormon faith – why did you leave the Latter-day Saints? What was it like to leave? Etc…

I am NOT wanting to encourage LDS-bashing here, rather I am hoping to hear heartfelt and earnest stories of what it was like to leave the LDS Church, and what your thought process was like.

Also–for those of you who felt like you really did have a “burning in the bosom”, or spiritual experiences (giving/receiving priesthood blessing, patriarchal blessing, doing proxy work, etc) – in retrospect, do you feel that any of your spiritual experiences were genuine? Why or why not?
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Casslanpepci said:
He was speaking against the very people who had beaten, tarred, feathered, spit upon, and would ultimately kill him.
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Jesus loved those who beat Him, who spit on Him, who scourged Him, who nailed Him to the Cross in order for Him to take on their sins and die with them in Him, putting them to death once for all. Its not about those people over there, its about “us”

Even though the LDS have been taught that the Catholic Church is evil, that Jesus’ Church did not survive the 2nd Century. I see myself as an LDS, I see myself as a catholic. One in sin of self, the other forgiven from it. I see myself as driving the nails through Jesus every time I gossip or tell a lie, every time I think of my self as important in the world’s eyes, when I am flattered by another. It was us Casslanpepci that did this to Jesus, we do it over and over again with no hope of ever making it to heaven. Jesus understands this; He takes the hit for us. In this, facing our sins daily helps us to be loved by Jesus, the way love really is. He loves us in spite of ourselves. He comes to us as we are, not as we think we should be. When we accept Him into our sinful lives He transforms us through His Sprit, His word, through His Mass, through Confession and truth. It’s not at all about us, its all about Him and His gift of life to us. Joseph Smith did not understand these truths of faith in Christ. In the light of the Holy Trinity. He was lost as many of us are, I pray that he was found. In heaven it won’t be about who was right or wrong, this is human. It will be about God and His Son, that we have been gifted to Him. It will be finished as it is here, life will begin as it should have many years ago in the Garden of Eden. This time we won’t set out to be god, we will know what that brings and therefore choose God for eternity.
 
catholic-rcia said:
I see myself as an LDS, I see myself as a catholic. One in sin of self, the other forgiven from it.
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Perhaps you could share with us more about how you see yourself in this dual way? I had been under the impression from your one of your posts up-thread that your grandmother was LDS–and I was unclear about your grandfather and your parents.

But I am guessing that you might have been raised “culturally” LDS – in that culture, though never baptized? Am I understanding you correctly?

In any case, I’d be curious to hear more on why you didn’t ever want to get baptized. I read the link you provided and the part of why you didn’t ever become LDS wasn’t really clear to me.
 
why_me said:
So, you are actively trying to convert the lds to the catholic faith in Utah? Strange, because on this forum the lds church is often accused of leading catholics to the lds through their missionary effort. It just goes to show that all churches are trying to recruit new members.
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I came to Utah 11 years ago to sell businesses with my LDS brother in law. I was baptized Catholic 11 years ago. As soon as I came out of the water I wanted to tell everyone about Jesus. Why? Because when you know how much you are loved by Him, that His love is not measured the way we measure it, that He is with us always you want to speak about Him to others. So yes, yes and yes I am actively helping Mormons who want to know more about Jesus, His Church find out about it. And I have to say this: Its nothing what they have been told about it.

I want to make a very strong point here. I work with Mormons who are called by the spirit, not by me. I do not actively Convert Mormons to Christ. Its always Jesus that does this and yes I serve Him. I keep my ears and eyes open for Him. It has nothing to do with recruiting new members and has everything to do with them finding Jesus in their lives. That He truly is one on being with His Father, that we were created by His father through Him. That God breathes us, we do not breath God. So once they get it, it becomes all about others, nothing to do with themselves accept being immersed into the joy that comes when one serves Jesus. The gift of the Holy Trinity to creation in our relationships with each other, that it all begins with God. . Its like a magic carpet ride. you want everyone to experience it . Its very authentic, its living, its life itself. Confession and Eucharist make this life worth living beyond anything I could have ever asked for before I became Catholic. I just hang in the shadow next to Christ; I know that God sees Him clearly, if I remain in Him I will be risen in Him, With Him, and for Him. Again the gift of life, the fountain of life…Jesus
 
sablouwho said:
Perhaps you could share with us more about how you see yourself in this dual way? I had been under the impression from your one of your posts up-thread that your grandmother was LDS–and I was unclear about your grandfather and your parents.

My Grandmother was LDS, my grandfather had no religion. Yet he was the one who brought Christ to me, he did not know this, I did not know this then. Christ was able to work through Him like a man uses a tool. My grandfather had heart, God used it well. If my grandfather is not in heaven I will not be saddened because everything he gave came from God any way. When I think of my grandfather I see Him pointing to Jesus telling me “it was Him!”

But I am guessing that you might have been raised “culturally” LDS – in that culture, though never baptized? Am I understanding you correctly?

Yes you are so right!!! I got caught up in the stories about Joseph Smith, Moroni, the awesome pictures in the enzines, etc… “AMERICA” Don’t get me wrong, I am conservative and I love my country dearly. The LDS faith is very American in so many ways.

In any case, I’d be curious to hear more on why you didn’t ever want to get baptized. I read the link you provided and the part of why you didn’t ever become LDS wasn’t really clear to me.

Me either, all I can say is God had other plans for me as he does with you. I made a deal with the devil when I came to Utah. My wife who is Catholic said this “I will move to Utah if you learn about the Catholic faith” Because I wanted to come here and make more money I said yes of course.
Then I learned, was blown away, found Jesus and his church and have been excited ever since. Its like winning the lottery then giving the money all ways to remain poor, close to Jesus.
Rich
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catholic-rcia:
I have a couple of questions for you about your “de-conversion” if you don’t mind.
  1. Is it fair to say that you “studied” your way out of/ away from momonism?
  2. Being in Utah, have you heard of, or listened to Shawn McCraney? If you have, was his information instrumental at all in your “de-conversion”?
  3. From what I understand, you don’t 'actively" seek out mormons to convert, but when you do witness/share with mormons, would your story is well received? Not so well? Not at all?
Thanks for all of your great posts.
 
I was born in the old Dee Memorial Hospital in Ogden Utah and brought up in Layton by folks who were descendants of the Utah (Mormon) Pioneers. I graduated from BYU and served an LDS Mission in Costa Rica and Panama. I started to question things in Panama when one of my companions, reading The Journal of Discourses, asked me (because I was Senior Companion) anout the Adam God Doctrine. I had never heard it before and it really shook me up. We even wrote to the General Authorities about it, but never received a reply. When I came home and settled in Arizona (because my parents had moved here) and married in the Mesa Temple, I became a Stake Missionary and then Stake Sunday School President, but I didn’t stop questioning and studying. By the day of my twenty-ninth birthday I had found so many doctrinal inconsistencies and false revelations that my whole belief system fell apart like a house of cards. Much to my wife’s dismay, I began attending the nearest RCC because I wanted to investigate the oldest Christian denomination. I would have been baptized much earlier, but the RCIA director there refused to “evangelize those of other ‘Christian’ denominations”. Nevertheless, the first time the priest elevated the Host and said “Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world”, I collapsed back into my seat into a sobbing heap of tears of joy.
 
catholic-rcia said:
“AMERICA” Don’t get me wrong, I am conservative and I love my country dearly. The LDS faith is very American in so many ways.
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Indeed. Ironically, though I am American myself and have no desire to
“diss” my country, I admit that the homegrown American status of the LDS Church is something that really turns me off.

Personally I’ve always been fascinated by stuff that is OLD and European. When I was around 13, we took a family trip to England/Wales. The “oldness” of things there was deeply impressive for me. I grew up in New England, where it was a big deal to have historical site/house, that was a few hundred years old. So in England when I was in places that dated from 1000 AD, I was, well thrilled. I saw the shell of a church in the Welsh countryside that was all that was left after Henry the 8th. The image of that shell of the church is seared into my memory. Perhaps because of this, I wound up studying a lot of art and architectural history in college.

So, this is one of the reasons that the CC appeals to me so much. When I first converted I was in a Protestant church. I went there not because of the denomination, but because it had a great preacher and it was a good place for a newbie Christian like me to hear the gospel. But it lacked ritual, and was, well, too plain-Jane for my taste.

That’s one of the things I totally dig about the CC–it is so steeped in history. And intertwined with the greatest art and architecture that has ever been produced.

I used to joke, after my conversion to Christ but before I started checking out Catholicism with any seriousness, that if one was going to pick which church was “truest” based on art/architecture, the CC would win hands down. 😉

Most Protestant and LDS Sunday worship spaces leave me wanting. It seems that the more “Americanized” they are artistically/architecturally (and even musically), the less I like 'em. 🤷
 
Michael_Vernon said:
I was born in the old Dee Memorial Hospital in Ogden Utah and brought up in Layton by folks who were descendants of the Utah (Mormon) Pioneers. I graduated from BYU and served an LDS Mission in Costa Rica and Panama. I started to question things in Panama when one of my companions, reading The Journal of Discourses, asked me (because I was Senior Companion) anout the Adam God Doctrine. I had never heard it before and it really shook me up. We even wrote to the General Authorities about it, but never received a reply. When I came home and settled in Arizona (because my parents had moved here) and married in the Mesa Temple, I became a Stake Missionary and then Stake Sunday School President, but I didn’t stop questioning and studying. By the day of my twenty-ninth birthday I had found so many doctrinal inconsistencies and false revelations that my whole belief system fell apart like a house of cards. Much to my wife’s dismay, I began attending the nearest RCC because I wanted to investigate the oldest Christian denomination. I would have been baptized much earlier, but the RCIA director there refused to “evangelize those of other ‘Christian’ denominations”. Nevertheless, the first time the priest elevated the Host and said “Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world”, I collapsed back into my seat into a sobbing heap of tears of joy.
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Very powerful. Thanks for sharing.

I read a book several years ago, I can’t remember the name right now, about a gentleman that was in a similar situation. He had a very similar experience at the elevation of the Eucharist on his first visit to a RCC Mass. Long story short, he ended up becoming a Benedictine Monk, and still experiences the gift of tears at every Mass.
 
catholic-rcia said:
]Even though the LDS have been taught that the Catholic Church is evil, that Jesus’ Church did not survive the 2nd Century.
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The lds have not been taught that the catholic church is evil. The lds are taught that most christian churches have much good in them. But they don’t have the complete truth.
 
catholic-rcia said:
I want to make a very strong point here. I work with Mormons who are called by the spirit, not by me. I do not actively Convert Mormons to Christ.

Of course, this would be a little offensive to mormons. You are assuming that mormons are not christian by saying that mormons need to be converted to Christ. It would be like a protestant saying that catholics need to be converted to Christ. And that also happens. Much better to say converted to the catholic church.
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why_me said:
Of course, this would be a little offensive to mormons. You are assuming that mormons are not christian by saying that mormons need to be converted to Christ. It would be like a protestant saying that catholics need to be converted to Christ. And that also happens. Much better to say converted to the catholic church.
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This is not an assumption, its truth. Christianity is of the Most Holy Trinity… Christ is the Catholic Church, His body, we being members of His Body. Protestants believe in the same God we do, the same Jesus. It is because of the 2000 year old Mass that they have the same beliefs. They accept the Apostles Creed weather they want to admit that it came out of the Catholic Church or not. I do not have a problem if they don’t…they are still my brothers and sisters in Christ.

On the other hand Mormon theology is not Christian, it’s a completely different. Black and white

Just saying the name of Jesus does not make it Jesus. There is much more to it, Jesus is God to Christians, the One and only God throughout all of eternity. . It was our God that died for us. Our sole Creator, the Alpha and the Omega, Jesus the one and only eternal Son of the Father.

Some Mormons I speak to understand this and accept it, they just believe in a different type of God Head, they know its not Christian in a Christian sense. They know that they do not worship the same Jesus as Christians. They know their beliefs are different.

I come in when they want to know what Christians believe and why. The ones I speak with our searching for something they feel is missing. The Catholic Church provided me with what was missing in my own life. This is Jesus in the Christian sense; He is now at the center of my life. I am a sinner, He is my savior. Without Him I can do nothing of worth.

These are the reasons I converted to Christ, I witnessed the very core of the Catholic Church through the Mass. I see the Core of the faith in others, in the Saints. That they have come to know that they too are nothing at all without Jesus. Anything that is good in them is from Him alone, not them.

I converted because of these things. I see my sin as wanting to be god, when I forget Him, when I see myself as special. This is when I get to go to confession, to lay it all out, to go out of Confession again trying not to forget why I am here, and who should be in charge.

Rich
www.utahmission.com
 
Rich, thank you. Thank you. I have six children that are LDS and I wish I could get them to read what you just posted. Blessed be the Most Holy Name of God. All Glory to the Most Holy Trinity. Amen.
 
Michael, I, too, have had on many occasions, the experience of crying during the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

I find it an overwhelming experience.

The first time I experience the Holy Thrus. Mass of the Last Supper , it struck me powerfully how I have never worshipped like THAT before.

I wasnt received into full Communion that particular Easter Vigil, but was the next year.

Looking back and comparing the two religious journeys I find the contrast of the worship experience intriguing to meditate on.

During the Mass the time span of worship is much longer. The instruction period being more limited to the homily
In the LDS Sacrament meeting it seems to be the reverse; its much more of a time of instruction for the hour with the brief period of time for the blessing and passing of the sacrament.

Also it strikes me the placement during that hour or so. After receiving the Eucharist, the congregation is dismissed to go serve God. For LDS, partaking of the sacrament happens more in the beginning and then you get into the talks…
 
"TheosisM:
You may be interested in this article:
mormontimes.com/studies_d…sion/?id=10632
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zaffiroborant said:
Mike Reed posts frequently on MAD, if I remember correctly he posted a lot of material on this subject (or links to it) there. He has a book coming out titled Banishing the Cross The Emergence of a Mormon Taboo, from Mr. Reed over on MAD “John Whitmer Books plans to have it published as early as May of this year”.
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Thanks for the plug TheosisM and Zaffiroborant.

Here is a *Salt Lake Tribune *article on my research:
wildernesschristianity.net/info/LDS/The-Cross.html

And a podcast interview that I did for Mormon Expression:
mormonexpression.com/?p=274

Here is pic of my forthcoming book’s cover (designed by John Hamer):
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4036/4264292708_cb917c5112.jpg

For those who may live in southern CA, I will participate in a panel discussion about my book (with scholars D. Michael Quinn, Robert Rees, and Newell Bringhurst) at the *Sunstone West Symposium *(Claremont Graduate University) March 26-27.
sunstonemagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/SW10-Claremont-final-11x17-Edits-as-of-3-12-EOB.pdf
I will also a paper at the *Restoration Symposium *in Independence Mo., April 8-9.
jwha.info/meetings/scheduleRSS10.asp
 
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