"I think it's going to be a small percent of thoughtful members who stay once exposed to the facts."
"We can't change the church--definitely not."
"Number one goal is to bring awareness of the tougher issues to as many members of the church as possible...the should know what they're getting into....honesty about the facts is goal number one."
"For all those who with whom mormonism explodes in their face I want to help minimize collateral damage."
"We're ambivalent / agnostic about whether people stay or leave the church....we've renounced staylds.com as the path..."
"[We] provide information, and then provide support for those that need it."
at 11:45 he expresses his religious views.
"At the point where the probability that god exists is quite low. ... that it is random is perhaps lower / absurd."
"I don't have any idea if Jesus existed or not....probability is pretty low....I like the simple teachings. ... I'm not invested in the resurrection. ... I don't understand the atonement..."
But then he reverses course on Joseph Smith and calls him inspired and doing good for whatever god there is. (around 18:30)
He calls the church a bimodal distribution of good and harm. Classic splitting. It has no middle ground.
I'll leave it to others to listen to the rest.
Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 01/20/2012 11:14AM by Jesus Smith.
He said Jesus's dying for our sins made no sense to him.
That is my bottom line problem with Christianity, too. It's a pagan, primitive belief, rooted in blood sacrifice. It has never made sense even when the most devout and intelligent believers try to explain it to me in terms of justice and atonement.
And I never got those folks who saw Passion of the Christ and found it moving and inspiring. (I didn't go.) It seemed to be just a lot of senseless brutality and cruelty.
John Dehlin was the catalyst that got me headed out of the church. For that I will always be grateful. He was a gentle leader. After I researched the points he brought up about the church, he now comes across as wishy washy to me. I'm sure i feel that way because I have had a huge paradigm shift in my thinking. It seems like he's trying not to sound that way, but to me, he does. I find myself wanting to tell him to take a stand. Any stand, just take one! He is getting better at it, but it leaves me feeling frustrated. Knowing all that he knows, I can't understand why he is still a part of a church that is so dishonest in its dealings with its fellow man.
I listened to this podcast today. Loved it and I couldn't agree more. I am not so sure about his chosen belief in God... but appreciate his open mindedness and admitting that the probability that there is a God is low (or something along those lines)
Because his path out has taken a little longer than many and his detailed recordings, his exit has created a wealth of information for people at each stage of leaving Mormonism. JD, Bob McCue, Erik, Susan, CZ, Decon, Mak, Steve Benson, Jeff Ricks, and the list goes on and on. There have been so many who have given so much of their time and knowledge to the search for the truth.