So I'm avoiding doing work today and instead reading Mormon Odyssey on the RfM main page.

It's a fabulous piece of writing but it's bringing up so many forehead-slapping moments, I almost feel like an idiot that I ever believed in this crap.

Case in point: So, we were always taught that only God knows when the second coming is, that even Jesus himself isn't aware of the precise date. So, therefore, not even the leaders of the church can say exactly when and where. This is kind of convenient for the leaders, isn't it? So many other cults and churches have thrown out exact dates and times that Jesus is going to come onstage and make his grand encore, and always, those dates pass with nothing happening.

The beauty of the LDS leaders saying no one knows when, is when time passes and it doesn't happen, no one can hold them accountable. "Well only Heavenly Father knows."

How did we not see through that transparency? It kicks me in the nards sometimes the sheer and utter stupidity of it all.

Joseph Smith did throw a date out, or at least a year. I think it was more of a narrow ballpark. Does anyone else remember this?

...but I found this on wikipedia:

>>Joseph Smith did make several interesting statements about seeing the Savior. B.H. Roberts in History of the Church notes the Prophet's remark in 1835 when he is reported to have said that,
...it was the will of God that those who went Zion, with a determination to lay down their lives, if necessary, should be ordained to the ministry, and go forth to prune the vineyard for the last time, or the coming of the Lord, which was nigh—even fifty-six years should wind up the scene.[2]
In Feb 1835, fifty six years in the future was February 1891. This would be shortly after Joseph's 85th birthday (he was born 23 December 1805).
Joseph made continuous reference to this date in light of a revelation which he reported. It is recorded in DC 130:14-17, and it is clear that the revelation leaves the exact date of Christ's second coming much more uncertain. Whatever Joseph meant or understood by "wind up the scene," it must be interpreted in light of the revelation as he reported it, and the conclusions which he drew from it.<<

Here is D&C 130:12-17

12 I prophesy, in the name of the Lord God, that the commencement of the adifficulties which will cause much bloodshed previous to the coming of the Son of Man will be in South Carolina.

13 It may probably arise through the slave question. This a avoice declared to me, while I was praying earnestly on the subject, December 25th, 1832.

14 I was once praying very earnestly to know the time of the acoming of the Son of Man, when I heard a voice repeat the following:

15 Joseph, my son, if thou livest until thou art eighty-five years old, thou shalt see the face of the Son of Man; therefore alet this suffice, and trouble me no more on this matter.

16 I was left thus, without being able to decide whether this coming referred to the beginning of the millennium or to some previous appearing, or whether I should die and thus see his face.

17 I believe the coming of the Son of Man will not be any sooner than that time

------------------------------------

I'm not including all this to be nit picky. I just find it interesting...

I think the same thing about myself all the time. Why did I hang on to this crap for so long?

I quit wearing my garments and attending the temple within two years of receiving my endowment, and yet I hung on for 11 more years. I remember practically begging my dad for a reason to keep going and the best he came up with is that "it's a great way to raise kids."

I now feel it is a terrible way to raise kids.

I must admit that it was Prop 8 that finally forced me to make a final cut instead of just fading further away. I had to decide if I was willingly to align myself to a church who could be the driving force behind that evil and even preach the politics over the pulpit.

So in a small way, I'm grateful for Prop 8.

It wasn't until I quit going to church that I started to study. The more time went by, the more ridiculous it all seemed. At times, I'm embarrassed that I bought into it.

Even though I was BIC, I had doubts from an early age, but I think the thought of disappointing my parents and causing them heartache kept me from really delving into all the issues I had with the doctrine.

When I finally quit, I was still very concerned about my mom's feelings, but I couldn't continue to believe in and live a lie just to make her happy. I couldn't raise my boys to believe in a lie. And it's not JUST a lie. It's a lie that is evil. The doctrine is hurtful. It destroys families. It is bigoted and racist and demeaning to women. It is controlling. It is slavery and I happen to like freedom.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 01/18/2011 03:32PM by Queen of Denial.

God, Country, and Apple Pie---and several Christian ministers in our family. And, a dappling in spiritualism, which led us to believe JS was a medium channeling spirits. (Interestingly, I later read in BH Roberts Comprehensive History of the LDS Church: Joseph Smith was not the only psychic in the Palmyra area. (I've posted those quotes from LDS history in the past.)

We thought that the LDS Church was just another Christian Church (belief in the savior Jesus Christ) and had what we knew to be "channeling" in regards to the Book of Mormon, which we kept to ourselves, of course. Seemed like a nice idea to us, in our little family: disabled mother, by polio, and four children, I was the oldest. The reason we called the missionaries in the first place and became a Golden Contact (remember that term?) was my brother had been in trouble and was in an honor camp and mother wanted a good youth program for him when he got out. (Interestingly, he never joined!:-)

We had never attended the LDS Church before we were baptized. We didn't have a car. It was too far to walk. After we were baptized, the Elders in their hats used their cars (they owned their own in those days) to take us to church.

Mother's father had a car and lived next door, and he had been agreeable to drive us to the family Christian church in the past a few miles away. However, when the ELders offered to drive us, mother decided not to ask him for transportation.
A few months later, I bought a 1955 Plymouth, (then had to learn to drive it) and that was our transportation to church.

Why not join the LDS Church? This was 1961. It seemed to have everything we wanted, and we were welcomed warmly and given assignments right off the bat and felt needed. My mother played the piano in Primary and taught Primary for years. She loved it.

It was a perfect match. At least, initially, for some of us.
Then I met an RM and married in the Logan temple a little over a year later then moved to married student housing at BYU where we lived for the next five years.That was where I became totally immersed in my new "tribe" -- Mormonism a-la Utah-BYU style!

I am quite sure we had no idea what we were getting into. But we made the best decision we could with the information we had at the time.

Along the way, I kept coming up against: "what's wrong with this picture," which I was counseled to put on a shelf, which later came tumbling down when I found the core--Joseph Smith Jr. didn't really have any golden plates from any angel, and the BOM was fiction about imaginary people, places and things, and a lot of plagiarized other notions.

I was so convinced for years that it was all literally true that we even made our own visual aid of Golden Plates! I chuckle now !

The interesting thing is that thousands -- millions, of people are convinced by faith and a spiritual witness that the whole story is factually true and believe it with every fiber of their being. I can understand that as much of my family believed the same about the Bible.

Well, not me, not anymore. I can see it all as a typical God Myth based on metaphysical, supernatural claims like most other religions (not all of course.)
Faith in those kinds of claims seems to be a core element in most societies throughout history.
I'm OK with that. It's just not for me, not anymore.

That is a short snap shot of my story and how I came to live Mormonism for three decades.

Just like everone else, we didn't want to.

After leaving the Morg and finding out that it was even more bogus than I at first suspected, I had lots of those "forehead-slapping moments". (Ha! I like that phrase.) Anyway, for several years I thought - stupid! stupid! stupid! - how could I have been so stupid? But now I realize that people who believe that crap (or in any god or religion) aren't stupid, just not critical thinkers. Believing in god is the norm - not that we're born believing in god, rather, that we're born with the ability to believe in god. It's easy! Our brains are wired that way. It takes effort and critical thinking to reject god and religion. It's still possible to be spiritual, to have a reverence for things that are awe-inspiring (the universe, nature, a lovely specimen of the opposite sex) without being "religious". That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

...the opposite sex specimen thing. LOL But to each his/her own :) *grin*

Yes--why didn't we? I was just talking to my ex's last partner--and he was saying--"So why couldn't God save the Provo tabernacle? Why aren't the members saying what is wrong with this picture?" (I think I read here that some picture of Jesus or JS was not burned???)--

BUT then I ask--why did this guy convert? When he is gay?

I was raised to believe be mormon or be damned. I thought I had no choice. SO MANY THINGS are like "Well, duh!" Noah's ark--just a regular old bible teaching--I was ALWAYS bothered by that one. Oh well, God will explain it someday.