My wife and I were talking today about a subject I raised. I asked if she thought so many exMos become unchurched after leaving because of damaged trust and a sense of betrayal they have suffered at the hands of TSCC? She thinks maybe so and that those raised in church having been told that the LDS church is the only true church may conclude there is no God if the Mormon church is indeed false. As for she and I, we were both converts. After we left we were unchurched for a period of time. I eventually returned to the faith I had been prior to my conversion. She has returned to her doubts of God's existence just as she was prior to her joining the LDS. We have gone full circle. I next asked if this means we will then next be reconverted and return to the Mormon madness. This is where we have finally broken the "circle of life." We are never going back.

Good, I hope you don't complete that circle!

I certainly can't speak for all ex-mormon "unchurched," michael -- but that's not why I'm "unchurched." I don't believe because I see no good reason to believe. It was comparing claims to evidence that got me out of mormonism, and keeps me out of any religion. It's not damaged trust or betrayal.

Best.

I believe, I've always believed, in love.

+ 1 . I believe that you believe. I really really do.

Very sweet :)

That's what I've read about many ex-Mormons, that they become New Age, Agnostic, or Atheist. Very few actually go on to remain Christian or convert to other religion after leaving Mormonism. The explanation I've read is because Mormons got so burnt out from the one true church after learning what a massive fraud and deception it was/is, how can they trust anything else? So they just don't.

Faith doesn't exist in a vacuum. For me that was an early warning sign when I was LDS that something was amiss. Was the vacuum "effect." Going through all the motions of a Mormon still left me empty on the inside. And I felt like there was a vacuum where there was supposed to be all that lovey dovey Jesus feeling and the holy ghost in place of a hole of nothingness at the center of my soul - in the still quiet hours at my most aloneness. My spirit was longing for more, and it was starving.

So even if there were no other church or religion on the face of the earth for me to join, I doubt very much I'd return to Mormon Inc.

I didn't/couldn't stop my faith walk however. I need faith like I need air and water. That's something I have independent of any church I have found. I still worship though, because it helps to strengthen the faith I have. Which sometimes is weak, and needs encouragement. And my faith gives me joy.

Mormonism was a cheap substitute for faith or joy. And I don't consider it to have been for me in my life ever *true religion.*

I've experienced great sorrow and affliction in my family because of Mormonism. How can I be thankful for that? It has caused great divisiveness between my parents, my siblings, and has come between at least two of my children and me. For a church, no cult, that preaches forever families, that has wrought so much destruction on my own, even as I'm a 6th generation Mormon on my dad's side, it has left me with a proud heritage of Mormon pioneers on one hand, and nothing but scars and heartache on the other.

I don't blame God. It does make me wonder about the purpose of our lives, when we're born into the families and religions that we are, and why we go through the lessons we endure? I'm just glad I was given a good enough mind to be able to question and find my way out of there in due time.

Only wish I'd have done it much sooner, because it may have saved me more grief, than leaving when I did mid-life. Glad we live in a country where we have the freedom of religion. Not everyone in the world is so privileged as we are to be able to say enough, when they need to break away from one like the one we left (or worse.)

so no reason to subject myself to going now. Once I knew I didn't believe in mormonism, I was FREEEEE. Like I said yesterday on another thread. I really don't know what I believe and I don't worry about it.

But I always think as I drive by other churches (baptist and catholic close to my home) "why would anyone choose to go?"

Before my conversion to Mormonism I had been raised in the Congregational Church. My mother was raised a Presbyterian and my father an Episcopalian. My father, however, was really an agnostic and supported the protestant church my mother chose each time we moved. He drew the line at Mormonism and went back to the Episcopal church when we all joined Mormonism. He only aligned with that church to be a good community member. His inner belief was agnosticism.

I never believed or disbelieved the Congregational Church. We were simply Christian and that was the church our family attended. I guess my only true belief before Mormonism was a belief in the existence of God and a belief that God spoke to us through the Bible.

So when I left Mormonism there wasn't any real belief to return to other than Christianity. I tried different churches but I think Mormonism tries to answer so many questions that other churches don't mess with, like pre-existence and a detailed description of the afterlife. I think the real reason I never found any other church after Mormonism is that I expected too much. Other churches just ask you to have faith and join them in being charitable. I started going to science for truth and answers about time and space. Nobody asked me for money in exchange for scientific answers. I liked that. And opportunities to do charity abounded outside of religion. I liked that too. I prefer giving charity without requiring the recipient to attend any services or listen to my opinions. I give just to be of help.

So, I guess you could say I tried my mother's way. Then I tried my father's way. I like Dad's way better but ultimately went my own way.