I recently made a post on here about how I found out that the Church isn't true, and how I'm afraid to tell my family. I decided that I'm goin to wait until I'm old enough to move out to tell them, but in the meantime I want to gather as much knowledge as I can. Where do I go to find articles about the Church? I feel overwhelmed and just want a good place to start. Any help is appreciated :)

From them.

https://www.exmormon.org/phorum/read.php?2,1180178

You could read whatever interests you on the main page here at RfM. Richard Packham has wonderful material on his site. You might want to check that out.

You're very brave to explore these things and very smart to be working this out so early. It's difficult now, I know. But it will pay off later because you won't have to deal with a mormon spouse, kids, and callings which can be very challenging for a lifetime.

You are very wise to approach your situation this way.

I left the church five decades ago when the information on the church wasn't as readily available. I finally read many years later a book called No Man Knows My History by FaWn Brody who was the niece of Pres. David )McKay and the book is loaded with all the "dirt" on Joseph Smith and the beginnings of the church.

Brody was a professional biographer and is most famous for her book on Thomas Jefferson, but No Man Know's My History blew my mind. To read a book that is backed up with references, newpaper clippings, court records, documents of all kinds, letters, diaries, etc from the time, gave me a great satisfaction and even a peace although I already knew the church was phony. Coming from a large staunch Mormon family I needed that.

You will find that most exMormons know way more about the church than those in it who pick and choose what they want to know.

The book is fascinating. I found it because a non-Mormon reviewer was recommending it as a "fascinating read."

It's good to know all about Mormonism, but Joseph Smith is the key to it all as he is the core and the facts on him are vital.

All the best to you. Keep us in the loop.

I would liks to suggest: "a history of Joseph Smith by his mother."

I'll add the edition later.

Three reasons.

First, it is not an anti mormon book. In fact several apostles and prophets edited it. It was released in parts over the course of a year in the early church magazines. So if your parents find it you can show it is/was church sanctioned.

Second. Who is better at telling embarassing stuff than your mother?

Third. It's an eye opener. You'll learn what Joseph did the night he said he retrieved the plates and who was with him. You'll see where parts of the book of mormon came from and lots more.

Hi bhar, sounds like you are thinking a lot about your situation and how to best proceed. Reaching out for advice is smart of you.
Getting more information is always good. Yes your situation is difficult, but it may help you to know that it was much more difficult to be a questioning member during Brigham Young's reign. Many who expressed doubts during that time were treated very badly and some put to death.

If you are a reader I suggest you read some good books written by some of those early members and the trials they endured. One of my favorites is "Tell it All" by Fanny Stenhouse. You can find the PDF of the book on line so don't have to buy it and risk family members find it laying around. It is very interesting as she was a good writer as well as a very good and honest person. I think you will enjoy it and learn much about the church.

There are many good books I could recommend for you but lets let you check this one out first. Good luck with your journey searching for truth. The truth is most important, even more important than belief. Belief has to be founded in truth and it has to hold up under scrutiny. Good luck

I think that is wise. Until you have a contingency plan, it's sometimes best to maintain the status quo. It may not be ideal, but it is tolerable for the time being.

You may also want to check out mormonthink. The site includes analyses of the Gospel Topics Essays; breaking down how the Essays whitewash Mormon history.

MormonThink is an excellent resource. Be prepared for a long ride.

One more suggestion: I have watched a lot of Mormon Stories interviews and they have helped me. You may already be aware of John Dehlin and his "Mormon Stories" podcast. A few I recommend are the Jeremy Runnells and the Young Family interviews.

There is so much to learn and process. It sounds like your family are real good people. Continue to try to be patient with them. They just want whats best for you. You could continue to attend church and participate and tell them you are working on gaining your own testimony.

If they catch you reading anything other than church approved reading materials it would most likely cause a bit of a problem.

Please check back and let us know how things are going for you.

Read a lot of science fiction, learn a lot of sciencey stuff and laugh all you can.

And religion is a very fecund source of laughter!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrVCvnJk4go

Shocking!!!

Also, if you listen to Dehlin's podcasts, listen to Tom Phillips' about his second anointing.

a huge swathe of the major issues in one spot, you should read the CES Letter.

https://cesletter.org

(At the above-linked site, you can download and read a free pdf version or read it online.)

It's a letter that a questioning member sent to a director at the Church Educational System (hence the title "CES Letter"). Needless to say, the director at the CES had no good answers to the issues raised in the letter.

It's a first-person historical account by Ann Eliza Young (one of Brigham Young's wives) about her life and times in Utah during the time that Brigham Young was in charge of everything. It's written very well and covers a huge swath of early Utah history, with many insights on the real Brigham Young (as opposed to the mythical "Prophet" propaganda).

Ann Eliza divorced Brigham Young when she was still quite young (no pun intended). She reveals how Brigham Young was basically a greedy, self-serving business opportunist who milked his "prophet" status for all it was worth.

She also personally knew "Widow Lewis" (the widow whom Brigham Young married so that he could take control of her land). Widow Lewis was also the mother of Thomas Lewis, the young man who was beaten and castrated by Bishop Snow of Manti because old geezer Bishop Snow wanted to marry Thomas's girlfriend, even though both Thomas and his girlfriend wanted to marry each other.

http://www.ebershoff.com/old/pdfs/Wife_No_19_Ann_Eliza_Young.pdf

Under the banner of heaven is good (lots of polygamy and history). I've always liked John D. Lees Mormonism Unveiled. I don't think Lee was as bad as everyone paints him out to be these days. He's the father of Southern Utah, worked endlessly opening up the South-West, and they've literally mowed him under and completely forgot the guy. It's sad really.

Here are a few books that were meaningful in my exit:

In Sacred Loneliness, by Todd Compton. This is about Joseph Smith's plural wives, but it offers a real window into what kind of person Joseph Smith really was. I started to see a pattern of behavior of someone abusing power.

An Insiders View of Mormon Origins by Grant Palmer is a good primer on the early church history issues (First Vision, "translation", priesthood restoration)

Losing a Lost Tribe by Simon Southerton - a geneticist and former bishops account of population genetics research demonstrating Native Americans are descended from east Asians--not Israelites.

1984 by George Orwell - Not really about Mormonism, but I think you'll see parallels about organizations that try to warp your sense of reality and suppress your humanity and sexuality.

A few online things were big helps for thinking about how to move on:

Former Canadian LDS Bishop Bob McCue has some good stuff about the experience of casting aside Mormonism. That was very helpful in contextualizing my experience and thinking about how to live a good life without Mormonism--yes you really can do that. https://bobmccue.ca/about/

The Mormon Stories podcasts and the ExMormon Foundation Conference speakers have been interesting to see what people do with their lives after moving on.

u can start studying the rosetta stone with family, then correlate to POGP facimilies. ooops!

Bhar,

I was a convert and so I don’t have a lot to add that would be relevant to your situation but I wish you well in your life journey.

I didn’t read much when I was disillusioned, it was more to do with the people and the church behavior than any revelation about Joseph Smith.

But the people here are very knowledgeable and all these recommendations are great, I’m sure. I hope, as Done & Done said, that you will check in from time to time here and let us know how you’re doing. I found the Board members to be invaluable as they shared their thoughts, experiences and support with me.

Good luck Bhar. :)