Ask yourself this simple question. Of all the Mormons you know, how many would still be members if they hadn't been indoctrinated as children, but instead had been presented with it as an adult?

I say less than 1%



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/14/2016 11:18PM by newlifenow.

How many college educated, middle class all-American families (mom, dad, at least 3 kids) have you witnessed join the church. I can say in all 36 years of my adult life, in all the wards I've been in, it's been a grand total of ZERO. The only people who join are single, lonely, crazy, on welfare, or a combination of these. IOW - they perceive the church offers them a place that will accept them and help them out. Sometimes that might be true and it turns out to be a good thing.

Many years ago I was acquainted with a family who joined up expressly to avail themselves of the fast offering free food and lodging. When the bishop insisted that they get jobs they quit coming and went somewhere else to freeload.

Unfortunately, I know of two families that fit the college-educated etc. profile that joined the lds church.

In both cases, I think it had to do with their kids. Health crises for one family (and possibly business/social ties) and adoption, coming into teen years with the other.

Definitely not what I would want for mine!

My birth family refuses to recognize anyone who doesn't believe and bend a knee for Monson.

What happened was the brainwashing didn't take, and I caught hell for it. They can't even admit to their screw ups. It didn't work on me, that's all.

If you aren't born a mormon, it's unlikely you'll join unless you were disillusioned with your own faith journey and religion and bought into what the missionaries promised. Most, after investigation and just observation drop this church like a bitch with scabies.

"People most often follow a religion not because of personal
revelation or transcendent truths, but because the religion is culturally familiar, taught at an early age, and linked to where and by whom one is raised."

-David G. McAfee

I know a few. But they were spread out, it seems like I only meet 1 or 2 cases per decade.

I had 3 instances of bishops who were converts with their wife and children, sort of, all of them had children who were "lukewarm" in the church.

But also part of my own post-Mormonism is rethinking my old status-consciousness and class-consciousness I had.

These individuals and families were regarded as disproportionately brilliant, gifted, special, elite, whatever. They were fast-tracked to bishop because of their professions and affluence.

2 of the 3 had family crises anyway, that I know of. I don't know about the 3rd.

Looking back from a different perspective, these families had their own codependence issues, their own problems, and didn't have rare talent.

Regardless, I no longer see the "YUPee" type as being special. I think everyone's station in life is mostly happenstance.

I think that while it's true that the church "converts" mostly disadvantaged needy populations, I knew that even as a TBM and it wasn't a factor in whether the church was true or not. Even if they recruited lots of middle-class nuclear families, the church still isn't true.

My ex wife was a golden convert. It just goes to show that for some seemingly normal people, the Church is a step up. You probably don't want to be one of those people.