If honest about your doubts you can't go to Temple. If can't go to temple, can't be with family in heaven. No one wants to be second class, be shunned or be alone in heaven. Everyone lies and hides thier questions and concerns as a result Everyone does until their minds confirm.

Because everyone pretends like they know, they become better at pretending in all aspects of life.

Compassion and relationships become tainted by the deceit.

Even parents ignore the honest questions of their own children in an attempt to keep the facade alive.

Once you've gained enough maturity to point out the emporerers nudity, you are cast out emotionally if not literally.

Michael nailed it.

me: not offended, not anything, just am certain based on facts that the book of mormon and the book of abraham are modern documents killing the idea that any gospel was "restored"

bishop: you never had a testimony


me: just as much of a testimony as anyone - felt the "spirit" many times


bishop: if you ever had a testimony then wouldn't be questioning now

me: so everyone who studies the book of mormon and abraham deeply and comes to conclusion that they are modern has never had a testimony

bishop: either sinned/became heart hearted and lost testimony or never had one to begin with, these are the only two options

Don't sweat it, rr.
A "testimony" is useless anyway. It's not an indicator of "truth" or fact or reality in any way, it's an irrational belief based on wishes, fears, and indoctrination.

Mormonism's lonely heaven is one of the dumbest among their many dumb beliefs. And their solution to the problem they invented? Pay them for temple access, or the family gets the business, see?

Extortion goes by as many names as there are victims.

Nailed it.

This screams cult

Who is the bigger fool? The fool or the fool that follows the fool (many times blindly)?

I was surprised to learn how naive I was. I was eaten up with guilt over my M issue, especially as a female, feeling that I was some kind of freak. I regularly met with the bishop (a series of bishops!) from the time I was 13 to 21 about it, and refrained from taking the sacrament in front of my family (what kind of slut did they think I was, I wonder?) because I was never "clean" for any length of time until I was 20 and I was just tired of breaking in new bishops. Much later, in talking to honest ex-mo friends, they just said they all lied about it, and was surprised I didn't too. I'm convinced this is why the US government recruits Mormons to the CIA and FBI, not because they are squeaky clean and can't be blackmailed, but because they can look you right in the eye and LIE!

ugh, how awful you had to go through that, that is so WRONG that you were made to feel that way!! I didn't even know that girls could do that, I was so naive. But I actually had organisms in high school from romantic dreams and didn't really know what was happening. Just felt really good! LOL.. So I actually didn't know I was bad. The funny thing is not much happened in those dreams that I remember.. funny how little it took back then, wow! :)

"You were Offended": What exactly is wrong with taking offense to that which is offensive? If the shoe fits....

Mormon shit by definition doesn't stink. If you smell it, must be you.