I think many here over state how dire the situation is as far as activity and retention rates for the LDS. I know many LDS families and they are all active and all of their children are going on missions and convert lots of people. I think this board is not very factual but has a lot of bitter people who were formerly LDS. The LDS I know all remind me of Ned Flanders from the Simpsons all good Christians with perfect families.

Good luck with that!

Did you just tell us that all the active Mormons you know are active? I thought so. Funny thing is, the membership records include the inactive as well. You know, the ones you don't see going to church because they don't go to church. I doubt there's a ward anywhere in the world with a 90% activity rate.

Well of course all the LDS families you meet in church are active! They're not the ones who don't go to church!

In every ward I was ever in, activity rates hovered around 25%. That's not my "bitterness" speaking, that's just the truth. And though people do convert, the convert retention rates are abysmal. Check the facts next time please! You're fighting a losing battle...a battle with the truth.

People state what they experience. Assuming people are "over stating" because their experiences don't match yours, doesn't make yours *true* and theirs false.

The spirit told him, it must be true.

Why are you on here? Shouldn't you not be on an "anti-Mormon" site? You might be corrupted with facts. Please, enlighten us with what's not factual on here. No, seriously.

Also, NO family or person is perfect. The fact that you'd even say that shows you are lying.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/28/2013 05:29PM by woodsmoke.

The Simpsons mocks the hyper religious. Ned is an overly nice guy who allows himself to be walked all over (especially by Homer), and he'll do it with a smile. He is completely out of touch with his own true feelings. Ever see the episode when his repressed anger finally comes out?

Do you think he was out of line?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/28/2013 05:33PM by imaworkinonit.

Than stuck on a computer completing your "member missionary" assignment on the innertubes?

And you know, heavenly father is really really sad when you lie, right?

Better than talking about activity rates, why don't we talk about how you, as a parent, allowed your teenage children to be interviewed by a grown man, alone, with the door closed, about how touching their nether parts made them feel all tingly and funny down there.

That sounds a lot like pedophilia, or maybe hebephilia, to me.

What's your thoughts on that?

But it can't live here :) It may be a joke, not sure?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/28/2013 05:40PM by Susan I/S.

Yahoo - can we talk about mormon presidential candidates, too?


:)

"I was just petting it George."

;)

http://movieclips.com/6Ufk-of-mice-and-men-movie-lennies-dead-mouse/

Thanks Susan I/S, but I've noticed that the recent trolls are

Mormon Banzai Trolls

The wars over, they've lost, they want to die for the leaders and honor their Mormon family.

So they just show up for a moment and then crash their plane in the water, missing the target.

To them this is the more honorable choice, than accepting the defeat, telling their children about the fraud cult and suffering the consequences.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/28/2013 05:55PM by gentlestrength.

Better to die with honor than live with shame.



But eerily prescient: The japanese kamikaze pilots had nothing to be ashamed of, they hadn't failed. It was the system, the leaders, the emperor that had failed them.

Your modern day kamikaze pilots also have nothing to be ashamed of, they haven't failed. It is the system, the leaders, the prophet that has failed them.



And actually, for me, that was one of my bigger epiphanies with the church: When I finally realized that I hadn't failed, somehow, but that I had been failed by the church.

Wow, what a lifted burden once I figured that one out.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 07/28/2013 06:44PM by schlock.

Mormons should know we would rather have them alive, rather than be some of the last few to die for the Mormon church and for God's sake don't be like those Japanese people that killed their children and themselves in Okinawa rather than accept the failing of the Emperor.

Let it Go people, it's a fraud. It's not your fault, only you have to let it go. No more casualties. The Americans are friends and trading partners with the Japanese now. Things can be forgiven. Truth Seekers can be on the same team, even if it took a while to join the team.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 07/28/2013 07:05PM by gentlestrength.

About 15 years ago we lived in a ward (Dallas) were DW was the primary president. The activity rate for primary was 100% with over 100 children. The ward also had almost 100% of the 19 year old males go on missions (50% of the missionaries for the stake were from our ward) and had the highest percent of Eagle Scouts in the nation.

There are always exceptions and this one ward was it. However, the bishop was exed for having a girlfriend. And I thought we were going to be translated like Enoch. Damm bishop screwed the pooch.

Poe's Law strikes again.

That's what I think, too. It seems to me that someone who was really serious wouldn't use a cartoon character as an example of a perfect family, but a Poe would. And the name "wellsville" strikes me as satirical, as well.

But difficult to tell for sure, as with all good Poes.

Let me act on fact:

I live in an SLC east bench neighborhood (white, middle upper class...lots of lawyers, MDs, professionals in the neighborhood). I left the church 4 years ago and spent my last 3 years in the church teaching 16 year olds in sunday school. Here is what is going on in my ward (one, which I might add, has 2 GA's, 2 former general relief society presidents and a few current and former mission presidents)

-less than 1/2 of the eligible young men went on missions.

-the last of those that I taught, that went on missions, are just getting home; except for one major morg bot, these RMs just want to move on with life and none have plans on marrying or having kids...several have gone on major trips to europe or other exotic locations within several months of going home (such a worldly thing to do...)

-only one girl went on a mission

-2/3 of the kids that stayed home and went to college are inactive; one woman, going to school at a small college in state, told me last month that "getting out of your bubble lets you realize the way you were raised isn't the only way of looking at life". Yeah, good luck, morg.

Here is the most realistic report I can give as to what has happened in my ward:

-in the past 4 years, 4 priesthood holders (an IT executive, a Finance/Econ guy, myself...Fortune 100 employee..., and an attorney) have all openly declared that the church is false. One of these situations immediately ended in divorce.
-there have been NO convert baptisms in our ward for years...we are not picking up any of non-mo neighbors.

Let me put this another way to demonstrate just how out to lunch your thinking is:

-we are multigenerational mormons on both sides of my family.

-of 6 children, four served missions. Four of the six are COMPLETELY out of the church, as are our collective 10 children (which represents 66% of my parent's grand children). They church has lost the biggest battle of all...the loss of generational growth (think of this as not only loosing your principal, but never/ever earning any compound interest).

-two of my four children will not even be members of record, as we will not have them baptized (the morg can't use them to pad their bogus membership records, as they were never blessed or baptized.

-of my oldest TBM sibling's children (5 total), three went on mission; 2 are active, 1 is "active" but completely disbelieves and is putting on a front while they finish their education at a church college, 2 are completely inactive (both RMs) and would completely walk away if it wasn't for the shit storm it would create with their parents. So, even in the TBM portion of my family, they are loosing well over 50% of the next generation.

We have a very networked community of exmo's in our area; this story is the same across the board, to a person.

Here is the good and even better news:

TSCC may be loosing membership, but they are making it up in volume.

Ward houses won't be vacant tomorrow, or even in the next 5 years. They will be vacant in the next generation, and even less populated in generations beyond that.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 07/28/2013 05:49PM by Susan I/S.

Speak Truth to the Mormons. Amen. No more BIC. No more parents passing the Mormon Monster on to their children. Someone has to stop it, it's happening now.

"bitter people"

Mormon code for those who have left the silly LDS pseudo-religion.

Well, Mr. mormon, I'm not bitter - but I am mortified that I ever joined your idiotic "religion".

Our ward's rates were 40% to pushing 50% attendance for the people on the roster--we had 600-700 people on the ward roster, and about 240-300 showed up each Sunday.

They weren't all happy smiling folks either. A number of the adults seemed like they were sort of going through the motions. Sure, we had in the ward a few permanently (I won't say necessarily mentally unbalanced) cheerful, constantly giggling people, but some of that is just people putting on a good face for church. And a Mormon ward being a social fishbowl, one can infer that there might be quite a bit of happy on the outside, not-so, not-so on the inside.

I mean Elder's Quorum was awash with bored looking guys.

Some people, whom I knew were screwed up because I'd heard so in Bishopric meetings, when you talked to them smiled and beamed like someone was running a feather up and down their back constantly. Such "happy" people!

And then when people's only social outlet is at the ward level, then guess what? They are happy to see their Mormon "friends" (because it's not unusual for Mormons to have some difficulties or stumbling blocks in really connecting with non-Mormons--unless they might be converted of course!). The old people really seemed to appreciate the socializing the most to me. They'd talk and talk before and after Sacrament meeting. So happy to be fellowshipping. But you'd probably see that from old people at any church.



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 07/28/2013 06:01PM by derrida.

Might want to double check how many people were assigned to those wards. Chances are you've never met the inactive Mormons, so how do you count them?

In my Dad's ward they like to tell themselves that the neighborhood as aged and that's why there are fewer people there. But I notice they rebuilt the elementary school, there are kids within the boundaries to fill the school, but they don't fill their ward house.

And explain why 80% of the Mormons are missing in Brazil.

http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/blogsfaithblog/54497395-180/church-census-lds-reported.html.csp

That sounds statistically correct. 60% have left. 90% of those remaining are still active per your observation, which means another 10% are inactive and heading for the exit.

Isn't that supposed to be 110% activity rates?

I thought we are all supposed to give 110% to everything now days - anything less is just inferior slacking.

Yeah, they just seem to be hit-and-runs lately, but I'm really starting to feel sorry for these poor souls.

Well, almost. If it wasn't for their arrogance and presumptions made, without even reading anything around here before they post, I would just feel sorry for them.

The same naive bubble that surrounds your tiny little world should be adequate to protect your family from the reality of the world, which by the way is measurable by results and statistics.

HMM, how would actual facts fit into your world where the membrane is so tight and impenetrable that air itself can not enter and offer a refreshing pause to even appreciate, let alone enjoy the reinvigorating possibilities of life WITHOUT the bubble.

Once again, HMM. Been there, done that. The Utah, Idaho, Arizona bubble of Mormondum seems to extend itself in the very core of every sheeple willing to surrender their potential selves for a world of servitude. With their own brand of Kool Aid, laced with intoxicating, blinding poison, but not yet fatal, (at least not until the brethren determine it's time to release all you have, or potentially will have to the future of the church and securing your spot in the Celestial KingDUM).

Enjoy your ingnorance, bliss in the ways of the Morg, but someday, when you finally decide to be HONEST with yourself, the questions discussed here will come home to roost. And, just like those willing to be vulnerable and are sincere seekers of the truth, you will find this board MORE THAN WILLING to support you on your journey to discovery of your REAL self.

SMILE

In Utah.

This isn't representative of most of the world.

Now, now. It IS possible to have 90% activity numbers. It happened in one of the wards in the stake where I was the Stake Clerk. Every month, this one ward reported over 90% sac mtg attendance, and usually had 100% HT and VT families visited. Every month, I told the SP that something was not kosher, but he kept telling me that I was too much of a skeptic (hence my name.)

Then, the bishop of that ward was released, nothing wrong, just in the normal timing of those things. THAT is when it hit the fan.....he had been cooking the books to make himself look better. In the past, the BP had been an SP in Mexico, and was somewhat upset that the gringos had not seen his abilities in the USA. Well, we actually did get a good idea of his abilities.....ha.

Wellsville, you're absolutely right. You've softened my heart. The people here are just bitter and have an ace to grind. I'm getting of the Internet and going back to church. Praise The Lord.

Have you ever noticed the interviews with people who were released from unjust incarceration after DNA tests proved they were falsely imprisoned?

That's how I feel-- bitter.

You, however, are an interesting piece of work. The DNA tests proved you were imprisoned falsely and you not only aren't walking out a free man/woman, you are staying and even criticizing those waving goodbye to you.

It's normal to feel bitter for a while when a fraud has taken your money and your time and maybe even ruined your children's lives.

That's why we're here, to help with the bitter.

Clearly you are the Ned Flanders who is there every Sunday noticing who's in attendance and who's not. And your statement that you believe every plastic smile represents a happy family is just laughable because it is so far from the reality of the human condition.

"Be Kind for everyone you meet is involved in a great struggle," Pliny the Elder/Younger (can't remember).

We are engaged in a war all right - a war between truth and what the Church tells you about its history. It is up to you to choose, no one forces you. You can choose to look at the truth or you can hide your head in the sand and wonder why you hear footsteps but don't see anyone.


Anagrammy

PS. You super active TBMs--we know you. You are no doubt one of the "stalwarts" who do all the work, hold all the callings, and basically run the ward. You spend your time shaking your head over the freeloaders and secondhanders who don't spend all their time at the church house. OF COURSE you don't know these "lesser" Mormons, your arrogance turned them off you long ago.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/28/2013 07:48PM by anagrammy.

TBM troll?

I think it's a Paternoster style joke.