That's a rough estimate of the time I spent in church. Three hours per Sunday plus two hours (at least) of morning meetings, plus an hour travel plus two hours (at least) hometeaching.

I'm not counting Temple trips, visits to give blessings, service hours and FHE and innumerable time spent in prayer or reading scripture or preparing lessons or spiritual thoughts or meeting minutes or going out with the missionaries, stake priesthood meetings or worldwide leadership training sessions--JESUS, it was like another g_dd_mn job!

I lopped off two Sundays a year not b/c of conference--although conference eats up even more time--but for shortened Sundays like Christmas or being sick.

400 hours divided by 40 hours = 10 weeks or 10 FULL-TIME work weeks. That's practically a summer of full-time work.

Quitting the church gave me not only a 10% raise but two and half months of summer vacation back into my schedule!

If someone had told me before I started investigating the church that the church would finagle its way into taking up this much of my time, time away from my family and things that I enjoy doing, I, as a then Nevermo, would have laughed at any idiot being willing to do that for some BS organization.

WTF was I thinking?!

"LDS--It's not just a job, it's an adventure."

Wow! Thats a lot of time. You were way more dedicated that I was. It has to feel like you have taken your life back.

That was one of the arguments my DW and I had early on in my growing disaffection. She kept saying that church wasn't an all or nothing thing, that I could just dial things back a bit. It was an ironic point b/c the church is so much into black and white thinking, but I didn't see the point of half-a$$ing it.

If it's true, then you do it. If it's not true, then you don't. But she accused me of B/W, all or nothing thinking! And that after Hinkley gave his famous little it's either a fraud or it's the greatest thing that's ever happened speech.

I think if you ask any man who served in a bishopric or a woman who was a YW pres. or RS pres (I'm guessing), that you'd get a similar accounting of time spent.

I didn't even count when we would stay after to count tithes or get the paperwork set for tithing settlement.

24 hrs/day X 365 = 8,760 hours per year

- sleep (assumed 8 hrs/day) x 365 = 2,920 hrs

= 5,840 hours awake per year = ~ 7% of waking time!

I spent more than that in many callings. Clerk. holding two callings, one as gospel doct teacher and in the EQ pres. etc.

I estimated my total hours (not incl the mission) to be around 3800. That's nearly two years of full time work ( about 1800 more than a full time job in a single year). Remember, a work year is about 40x52=2080 hours. At my salary, that's significant.

If I were to estimate the hours I did on my mission at the past min wage, added to the hours at historical pay rates when I did them, and add that to the actual cash donations, my total donations to LDSInc is around $250,000.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 12/18/2011 08:00PM by Jesus Smith.

The church is this huge parasite.

most ppl work 50 or fewer weeks.
If you average it out; some people have 4 or more weeks vacation!

This thread makes me wonder how many dissaffections with the Mormon Church start with just plain burn out. Burned out individuals tend to become more cynical, probably making them more receptive to questioning the entire thing.

Definitely I did. It was burn out being in the bishoprick, and Hinckley saying, I don't know that we teach that little flecks of history. I thought, after all I do, give and bleed for this church, you'd think he'd stand for something. So why am I?

There are guys in my ward, good guys--so good I think they constitutionally, as core of who and what they are, could do nothing but play by the rules--and these guys give everything to the church. It's ridiculous that grown men can be so used. It's obscene really.

Some of these guys are quite bright, accomplished, wealthy, but I know that there is a good feeling of camaraderie from serving together, that's what gets you to those meetings--you feel good--thinking that you are all on this special mission together to take care of the Lord's chosen people and to spread the Gospel--and the politics and lifestyle of the LDS Gospel! The church is in many ways a Political Action Committee.

But, you know, if it's BS it's BS. And if you know it's BS you cannot in good conscience and with a shred of integrity have anything to do with it. The people who say, "Well it's a good way to raise kids," are worms.

That's a lot of imprint time.

Think of all the church stuff you had to hear over and over. Repetition 400 hours a year.

No longer it's so hard for people to snap out of it.

"No *wonder* it's so hard...?"

Yeah. It's a hamster wheel and that abuse of people's time and goodwill is a tell-tale sign of a destructive organization.