Posted by:
motherwhoknows
(
)
Date: October 07, 2012 07:41PM
I'm still angry, after all these years, but I hope I'm not an Angry Anti stereotype. The thing is, that the Mormons keep on doing more and more things to make me angry. Now, they are after my daughter and TBM husband, and their children, who are getting to be baptizing age. It was a crazy-making roller coaster for me. I would calm down, then the Mormons announced the City Creek Mall project, and I watched Salt Lake City become obliterated, like Downtown Bagdad, and I listened to their lies about the cost, and about how our tithing money would not pay for it. Then there was Proposition 8. Then I found out the Mormon leaders were bullying my children. And all along, there were more cans of worms being opened every time I logged onto RFM.
The only way I could gain self-control, was to take each problem separately, and work on them one at a time. Otherwise, all the lies got to be overwhelming. For example, I took action, whenever I could.
I learned to say "no." Just "no" with no explanation or excuses. I had to say "no" 30 times, sometimes. Each time, it made me angry.
I learned to set boundaries. One at a time, with each Mormon, with each situation. I had to set some of those 30 times, too. Having them cross my boundaries made me angry.
When they refused to release me from my callings, I said, "I prayed about it, and God says I have the right to release myself from a volunteer calling." I stopped going to church altogether, for fear they would rope me into my callings again. I was angry.
When we became inactive, the Mormons harassed me and my children in our own home, our own driveway, our own front yard--and that made me really angry. I had to make it all STOP, and the best way to do that was to formally resign, which we all did. That helped, until my daughter married herself back into Mormonism.
Sane people, like we hope we are, don't just sit in the corner and seethe with anger. We are caused to be angry by outside influences. If you can get rid of as many of those outside influences as possible, you will get rid of the anger they cause. For example, I got upset at all their phone calls, so I got rid of my land line and got a private cell phone. Some Mormons got my new number, but I have caller ID, and I just don't answer. I put a "no solicitors" sign and a peep-hole for my front door, and when Mormons approach, I shout through the door, "I don't open my door to strangers/solicitors (if I know them)." They say, "But we're from the Mormon Church!" I answer, "I don't open my door to strangers/solicitors." It still makes me angry, but less angry than if I had allowed them into my life to threaten me with failure if I don't return to the cult.
It makes me feel a whole lot better to keep them from bothering my children.
To see the Mormons get away with this rude behavior, get away with teaching lies to children, get away with using people for money and labor--that will always make me angry. What do we do about that? If we shut our eyes and overlook unjustices, we don't stop them. Yet, if we dwell on injustices, the anger just builds. So--we do whatever we can do.