Good day All

I have been a faithful member since 1998, I have served in various callings, served a honorable mission, married in the temple and continue to study and shape my life after Christ. I was called as bishop in 2023, during this time, much good was accomplished as ward. However, I needed financial assistance and essentially I requested help from the Stake President and he approved my help for 2 or 3 months, it was 100% my mistake that I needed further assistance and unfortunately did not get an updated letter of approval from him. I take full accountability that it was not the correct administrative procedure. When these payments were processed, they were to my home mortage directly, never to me, and it was always my counselors that did it all. Besides the approval letter, I ensured that everything was above board, there was nothing hidden or deceitful.  I can firmly say that I did not hide anything, all payments were under my name and no one elses. I did not try to conceal anything. The stake president was even aware of the help being received and did say that I needed to update the approval letter but again I take accountability that it was not followed through.

The Stake president then called for audits, area and stake audits found no theft of tithes and offerings and no other financial misdeeds. Infact the only issue was that I approved help for myself without approval from the SP. I strongly felt that this was an administrative mistake rather then embezzlement, nevertheless it was labelled as embezzlement of church funds. For almost 7 months I sat on the stand week in and week out as a non functioning bishop, then finally was called in for a stake council in July 2025. I feel that ultimately following logic, there is a clear distinction between embezzlement and administrative wrongs. This was clear admin - if that approval letter was updated then there would be no issues. Furthermore, is it not procedure that if this was found by the auditor then I would be given time to rectify, such as go to the stake president to retroactively get the approval letter and upload it?

I plead my case that yes what happened was incorrect but that i felt it was admin rather than theft because if the letter of approval was updated there would not be this problem, the presidency did not agree and they put me on a formal membership restriction for 1 year and was told to pay back the money. During this period nobody from the stake presidency ministered to me in any way whatsoever, there was no meetings held monthly too. 

Now this July, I expected a called for a new council but it never came, till I reached out to the stake and then immediately a meeting was setup between the SP and me to determine if I was ready for the council. 

He confidently said to me that the restrictions can be lifted but the fact that the money has not been paid back would mean that although restrictions will be lifted I cannot serve in certain callings. I was happy with this because my wife is giving birth in 4 weeks and all I want is to reenter the temple, partake of the sacrament and bless my baby. I said that paying the money back will be done as I want to be in full membership again. He said that by September I would be surely okay to bless the baby. Ofcourse I explained why I had not been able to pay the money which was due to me being the sole breadwinner and that my wife being pregnant meant that I needed to pay $2125.00 for the process as we do not have medical insurance. 

I attended the council yesterday and was met with extreme judgement, the entire presidency interrogated me as if I were a convicted criminal, nevermind that I never missed a Sunday at church, or that I refused to stop being faithful. All they cared about was that the money was not paid. A counselor even said to  me that when i benefited from the money it was because I was scared to lose my house but when it comes to paying back the money, I do not give the Lord the same seriousness...even though I had thrice explained my circumstance. 

Many other negative things were said but the conclusion was that the restrictions continue indefinitely till the money is paid, they would review after 3 or 6 months. 

I have been around for long enough and am a diligent student of the gospel, I made it my life's work to know the gospel indepth and apply teachings of modern prophets and apostles, to me this is not the way Christ would judge. I even shared the parable of the impossible debt and hoped that would help them. 

If I am wrong and their decision is right, please let me know, but I need some guidance. I feel that they should remove the restrictions and keep the annotation till I do pay. Given my personal circumstances that should be something they understand, show compassion and extend mercy. I am not unwilling, I am currently unable. 

I worry to imagine how they would have treated the lady taken in adultery. Surely the widows mite shows us that the Lord is not concerned about monetary value as he is with a sincere faith no matter how small that is.

The Exodus is one of the main sources of tension among standard Christian apologetics. The problem and scale of mobilizing millions (2-3 million) people through the wilderness is non-trivial near the level of Noah’s flood. However, Mormon theology has a built-in get out of jail free card with the Bible (since most Mormons believe that the Bible is only true as far as it’s been translated correctly, not absolutely true). Do you believe that the Exodus happened as presented, or do you believe that this is a myth?

I’m rereading No Man Knows My History by Fawn Brodie, and she notes that the Book of Mormon contains about 27,000 words that closely parallel the King James Bible.
The Church has always been good at PR, so I assume there’s a standard talking point missionaries and apologists use when this comes up.

If the Book of Mormon is an ancient record, what is the current explanation for why it contains the actual King James wording, including the italicized words added by the KJV translators?

I’m looking for the strongest answer missionaries or LDS scholars give today, not a strawman. I’m genuinely interested in understanding how this issue is addressed from a believing perspective.

I left the LDS Church 3 years ago. In all that time I never hated it, but I have definitely spoken out against polygamy and the priesthood ban, and changing doctrine. Still, I see the same arguments that seem so ignorant. I see the hate the LDS church gets, and I don't know how to put it other than not Christian.

And then I think about the Bible, I see people quoting David and Solomon and others. These men were chosen by God, did great things , their words are still recorded forever in scripture, and yet they fell hard. I know this is the same argument we've been making back and forth for years, but from my pov, the LDS position is stronger.

I don't think I could ever go back to thinking Brigham was a good person, but I certainly can rationalize that he was the one God chose to get a task done.

I'm not saying I'm coming back, I'm happy where I'm at in the Methodist Church, but I am saying it's something I am eyeing the possibility of again.

I'm heartbroken and ashamed by what I've learned from the LDS churches investment portfolio. I struggle to understand why our church of peace would invest in and profit from weapons of war. Especially when these weapons have slaughtered 20,000 + children so far, and have injured 45,000 + so far with little to no medical care.

I've been reprimanded and shamed for outwardly questioning my church leaders. How can I go to church and stay silent while children are suffering? How can I not speak up for families whose entire lives have been shattered?

I haven't stopped following Jesus. I can't ignore what He wants of us. We should stand with the suffering, the vulnerable, and the forgotten. I speak for those who can no longer speak. It has cost me many great relationships. However, I must stand for the children.

You can stand up for them too. Tell the Presidency how you feel. Put pressure on them to stop being part of the brutality. Please, for the sake of children who were sent here by God almighty to live, learn, and grow.

Hi! I'm doing research on the history of Trek. Does anyone have any source materials to its history or how it started?

...are there so many anachronistic things in it? I think most people critical of the BoM figure he didn't come up with the book all on his own, and that Oliver Cowdrey among others helped him produce it.

But assuming the Book of Mormon is a work of fiction, which is what most of the facts seem to support, why would you put so many anachronistic old world animals in it, like horses, sheep, chickens, pigs etc? Was it not widely known in the early 1800's these things were introduced by Europeans?

[Not in a manner of 'I want this to be true', but a 'wait, what the heck?' manner:]

If Brigham Young's teaching of blood atonement is not a 'correct'/'true' teaching, doesn't that basically void a lot of the verses about Jesus?

If a later prophet 'cancelled' that application, what does that even mean then?

(Edit: I literally don't understand any of this anymore, maybe I never did to begin with)

I am hoping to strengthen the support I have found regarding Biblical evidence for Eternal Marriage and I am looking for feedback. I decided to do some deep research on what the Bible says about Eternal Marriage. Most Christians turn to the passage between the Sadducees and Jesus showing that there is no marriage in Heaven. This post should be helpful in addressing those passages and counter arguments against the idea of eternal marriage. Here is a run down of what I found (video format included):

Does God Want Marriage to End at Death? You might have heard the familiar phrase "till death do us part." But was this ever God's intent?

When I first began studying whether the Bible teaches eternal marriage, I expected to find overwhelming evidence against it. As mainstream Christianity holds to this ideal. In fact, I almost stopped researching because Jesus' words to the Sadducees seemed so clear.

But the more I studied Scripture as a whole, the more I realized something surprising.

The Bible never says that marriage ends for all individuals at death.

What I Mean by Eternal Marriage

By eternal marriage I simply mean:

The continuation of marriage after this life or the idea that marriage is meant to be forever.

-- Outlining The Counter Argument Against Eternal Marriage --

The strongest objection comes from Jesus' conversation with the Sadducees in Luke 20 (also recorded in Matthew 22 and Mark 12)

7 brothers each died childless after marrying the same wife successively after one another. The Sadduccees ask Jesus which brother remained married to the wife in the resurrection?

Lets see His response

Read Luke 20:34-36

There are some contextual limitations in what Jesus is saying here.

In this passage "they" specifically denotes those worthy to obtain that world AND the resurrection of the dead.

The phrase "neither marry nor are given in marriage" says nothing about the continuity of marriage that begins in this life and extends to that life, the phrasing is specific to the next life. However, I do concede that it only makes sense that the implication of what Jesus is saying in this passage is that the marriage for these brothers and the wife does not continue in the next life.

So I agree with what is being said here with the exception that Jesus is not saying that this applies to all resurrected beings.

Matthew 22 and Mark 12 differ in that both do not specify that "they" denotes those accounted worthy of attaining that world.

Mark 12 shows that "they" specifies when the brothers and wife rise from the dead, Matthew 22 appears to be worded in a way where "they" could specify the brothers and wife or resurrected beings.

All three say these individuals are as or equal to the angels in heaven. Now if you didn't know, the only passages that say individuals are as the angels in Heaven are the verses that we just covered.

These next 6 points are what I see as Biblical evidence for eternal marriage.

---

1.

In Genesis 2:18 It is in the Garden where God first says "it is not good for man to be alone" and God proceeds to make Eve for man and woman to be together. Shortly after we read in verse 24, "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh."

So, God created Adam with Eve in mind from the beginning to not be alone and to be unified together as one flesh.

This marriage happened by God, before sin, the fall or mortality was introduced. Within the Garden of Eden and without the introduction of death this marriage would have lasted forever and so it would therefore be an eternal marriage.

Questions for the Counter Argument

Why does God establish marriage in His presence in a setting that would have allowed it to be eternal?

Why would God say "they shall be one flesh" if He intends on permanently separating them from one another?

In mortality or in the after life is it all of a sudden good for man to be alone?

And if in the after life it is good for man to be alone then why was that not the case in the garden of Eden when God was also with him?

Now you may not believe Adam and Eve were in a state of immortality before falling, so lets take a look at the additional evidence.

---

2.

Throughout scripture, marriage is consistently described as a covenant. With blessings and curses that are dependent on our fidelity.

God condemns adultery and infidelity

Jesus teaches that divorce exists only because of mankind's hardness of heart and that from the beginning divorce was not permitted.

Matthew 19:3-6, 8-9

Covenants are regularly considered to be eternal within the context of the Bible. Marriage is a covenant (reference text Malachi 2:14-16) and should have the same continuity after this life that other covenants have.

This shows how God views faithfulness and the permanence of covenants.

So, Why is there great emphasis on being faithful within the context of marriage and why is divorce strongly discouraged in this life if marriage is meant to end at death?

If God hates divorce then why would death cause it to happen? Especially when death has been overcome by Jesus?

---

3.

The central message of Christianity is that Christ defeated death and sin.

If death no longer has ultimate power over God's people, then it is reasonable to ask:

Why should death permanently dissolve the covenant God established before death ever existed?

If death is not permanent why would death cause a permanent separation of marriage when God intended for them to be permanently united?

---

4.

The Abrahamic Covenant is an everlasting covenant. Abraham was promised an eternal posterity.

The Bible consistently portrays God as preserving covenant relationships rather than abolishing them.

Marriage is a covenant which makes eternal marriage consistent with God's pattern.

Why would Abraham's children forever be considered his son's and daughters but his wife no longer be considered his wife?

Is she not eternally their mother?

and if she is eternally their mother then why is the only family relationship that is not preserved the one between the husband and wife?

---

1. Question of authority

In the example of the Sadducees, we do not know with what authority they are married. If it is of God or man.

All ordinances and covenants that are from God require a divine authority, they are not merely social contracts. Marriage in scripture consistently operates as a covenant not just a legal agreement.

Peter was given the power to bind on Earth and in Heaven.

If Peter can't bind marriage which God instituted from the beginning then how does this differ from binding other covenants and ordinances that God institutes?

---

1. Question of worthiness

If divorce is caused by man like Jesus says and if these specific people are not to be married in heaven, then it must be that this is ultimately a question of worthiness. These individuals are worthy of a specific world and are as the angels of God in terms of glory.

Yes, Angels are a category of glorified beings. So being angels refers to a particular glory or category of redeemed humanity but not the entirety of redeemed humanity.

The glory of the Lord and the glory of God --

* 1 John 3:1-2 to be like God is reserved for those who know the Father, for those that can see Him as He is.

* 2 Cor 3:18 we all (not all resurrected beings) changed to the same image or glory of the Lord

* John 17:22-23 at least some individuals are made one in the same glory with God

Circling back to the phrasing that Jesus used "those worthy to obtain that world" and "they are as the angels in heaven"

1 cor 15:38-44 resurrection consists of different glories and bodies.

Hence, Jesus in this passage is describing a category of resurrected beings and is not talking about all resurrected beings.

---

Scripture shows that marriage was instituted by God before the Fall, in His presence, and declared essential to human completeness. God consistently treats marriage as a sacred covenant, hates divorce, and permits separation only because of human hardness of heart. Christ conquered death itself, removing the ultimate cause of separation. If resurrection restores embodied identity and covenant faithfulness matters eternally, it is reasonable to conclude that righteous marital covenants need not be permanently dissolved by death.

Christ’s statements describe those who are “as the angels” and “accounted worthy of that world,” suggesting categories of resurrected glory rather than a universal condition for all humanity. Scripture also teaches differing glories in the resurrection and varying degrees of likeness to God. Therefore, eternal marriage is not contradicted by Christ’s words but fits coherently within the broader scriptural narrative of covenants, resurrection, and eternal life.

Additional References

* Hebrews 13:4

* Proverbs 6-7

* Proverbs 18:22

* Proverbs 19:14

* Levitucus 20:10

* Deutoronomy 22:22

* 1 Cor 6:9-10

* Gal 5:19-21

* Matt 19:8-9

* 1 Peter 3:7

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DbFMF22Bytw/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

I’ve been thinking about Chesterton’s Fence lately, and I wonder how well it applies to discussions about Mormonism.

For those who aren’t familiar with it, Chesterton’s Fence is the idea that before you remove a fence, you should first understand why it was put there. If you don’t know its purpose, you’re probably not in a good position to judge whether it should be removed.

The principle isn’t really about preserving tradition for tradition’s sake. It’s about intellectual humility. Institutions, beliefs, and practices often exist because they solved a problem that may not be obvious to us anymore.

Sometimes the original reason no longer exists, and removing the fence is the right decision. But we should understand what problem it was trying to solve before deciding that it’s unnecessary.

I think this principle creates an interesting challenge for almost everyone in the Mormon space.

If you’re a believing member, are there doctrines, policies, or cultural traditions that you defend simply because they’re familiar? Have you taken the time to understand what problem they were originally trying to solve, and whether they still solve that problem today? Do you think that the age of the Church’s top leadership sometimes leads them to keep things out of respect for history/tradition instead of asking the difficult question of if the problem still exists that their policies were meant to solve? Or, put another way, have times changed and we haven’t built the fences we need for today because we’re building fences for yesterday’s problems?

If you’ve left the Church or are advocating for significant change, do you understand why a particular belief, practice, or institution developed in the first place? Is it possible that eliminating it could also eliminate benefits that aren’t immediately obvious? Do you think that there are teachings, standards, or practices that Mormonism have developed over decades of experience that exmormons reject too quickly to their own detriment?

The more I’ve thought about it, the more I’ve realized that Chesterton’s Fence isn’t really an argument for keeping fences. It’s an argument against confidently tearing them down before we’ve understood them.

At the same time, understanding the purpose of a fence doesn’t obligate us to keep it forever. Some fences outlive their usefulness. Others continue solving problems we underestimate. The challenge is figuring out which is which.

So here’s my question:

What are some “fences” in Mormonism, whether doctrinal, cultural, organizational, or personal, that people frequently argue should be removed or restored? More importantly, what do you think those fences were originally built to accomplish, and have we accurately understood that purpose before arguing for or against them?

When the LDS church reaches out to divorced spouses who have formally resigned, to approve their Ex's new temple sealing, that's the tell they don't actually honor membership resignations.

Mind you, they only cancel a sealing when the ex-wife is remarrying, because a living woman cannot be sealed to 2 men. But if a man is remarrying, they leave that sealing in place.

"Don't worry we've flipped the field in your membership record for [member thinks they've resigned] to TRUE. But we'll still keep all your data for when you change your mind."

Hello 👋 not a member of LDS, just casually studying the Book for my leisure.

In 1 Nephi 4, Nephi claims God told him to kill Laban. Now earlier, in 1 Nephi 3:7, he says 'I will go and do the things the Lord hath commanded.' God can guide you all He wants but shouldn't there be a red line with murder? I understand Laban was a tyrant who threatened Lehi's sons with murder himself, but one of the Ten Commandments in Exodus is 'Thou shalt not kill.' I just can't wrap my head around divine command theory like this.

Hi all! I’m back again! I’ve been watching the Mormon and exmo subs and saw a lot of talk about Jeff Strong’s statistical research on why people leave the church and read his book Torn. Thank you guys for sharing the book and research on here. I really loved the book. I was kinda blown away that when I decided to have my team reach out to Jeff Strong he agreed to do an interview with us. I’m really proud of our two part interview. I tried to not just give him softball questions like the other interviews on the more popular shows he had done. Jeff was an amazing guest and really had no problem leaning into our questions. He even told us a story he said he hadn’t shared with anyone else as of yet, which I thought was kinda cool. Who knows if he has shared that same story with another podcast since we recorded with him a week and a half ago, but it would be nice to think we got the first exclusive on it. I would love anyone to give it a listen and share with your friends. Part one is linked at the top, and here is the link to part two: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lds-loudmouth/id1855590942?i=1000777615869

I'm curious if there's anyone from Ammons or Josh's ward on what news in the church there is about these guys. Ammon is certifiable. Just curious if they are even attending right now with how shameful their behavior is.

Hello fellow humans,

I wrote an open letter to church leadership requesting famine relief for 42+ million people across the globe using the interest off their $200+ billion slush fund. I’m perfectly happy to get excommunicated for it, but I’d like it to be persuasive and to bring attention to all the humanitarian good the church could be doing with its excessive funds, whichever way they slice the cake. I know that’s not a new concept, but I hope to put something out that gets non-member and member attention, to try and bring some good out of all this.

That said, I’m looking for honest feedback on this letter. Good things, bad things, points of improvement, opinions, missed details or persuasions, etc. Once it’s gone through a couple more drafts I’d like to send it to as many people as I possibly can, so I’d really appreciate anything you all can do to make it better for them.

Thanks!

(Note: this letter was originally posted in r/exmormon, but all thoughts are welcome)

I see this a lot in TBM/apologist commentary. "Joseph didn't have sex with the majority of his sealings!"

The same people make no claims that Brigham didn't have sex with most of his 50+ "wives". Nor that of any other LDS polygamist. But for some reason it is really important that if polygamy existed, for a least one prophet, it wasn't about sex.

Is this not evidence of dissonance about the doctrine of polygamy? Part of their brain is telling them it is not good, and they need the hero to have practiced it minimally. Does this not make them the same as the denier?

Why, for them, is the doctrine not measured in how Brigham and the others practiced it? Doesn't this also make them like the denier? With the belief that Brigham et al. screwed it up?

If I get proxy baptized after death even if I choose not to get baptized in life, why not just baptize everyone preemptively while living? Like it seems easier just to baptize someone in proxy and then let them later on decide if they want to accept it than spend months trying to convince them to get baptized themselves.

What other modified cuss words have you heard Mormons use?

Hello, first of all I apologies if my questions come off wrong or if they may be inappropriate; I do not have any ill intentions, my knowledge about mormonism is very limited and that is why I want to understand the religion more.
I was wondering what the core beliefs of the church are nowadays? I read somewhere that they may be different or evolve every few generations in accordance to the doctrine teachings changing. That brings up my next question: how can the doctrines, teachings and
/or core beliefs change so much over time? And still be the same religion?
My last question is what are the common day to day "rules" one has to follow?
Thank you for your time and once again sorry if my questions seem insensitive.

https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/elder-gong-dedicates-new-nauvoo-temple-visitors-center

https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/historic-nauvoo-in-pictures-2026

I wrote a whole tirade about why I’m leaving, but I decided not to post it.
Instead, I’d rather hear from people who have been through this. If you’ve left and have advice on the simplest way to write a respectful farewell—or to explain my decision without turning it into an argument—I would genuinely appreciate your thoughts.
If you don’t feel comfortable replying publicly, you’re welcome to DM me.

Edit:

No, I’m not writing an epistle. I know to have my name formally removed I need to write a letter to my Stake President. Confession time: I have done this before.

I do not need to worry about what my family will think, since they are scattered throughout the country. So, there will be no coming out tragedy.

Lastly, I’m thankful for all the support. I apologize in advance for not replying right away. I have so busy I feel like the walking dead—no pun intended.

Just need to vent a little. I've been PIMO a long time in supporting my active wife, and I've had a small music calling in the ward. I recently decided I no longer wanted to participate and asked to be released.

The bishop agreed to release, of course, but wanted to chat. Against my better judgment I opted to show up to his office yesterday. I'm kinda new to the ward and wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt as I've been fortunate to make friends by opening up a little here and there. Unfortunately leadership roulette got the best of me and I left feeling angry and judged.

The real low-light was the bishop insinuating I'd be an outcast for not accepting any calling. "I just really want to help people feel welcome here, and it might raise eyebrows if people hear you don't have a calling."

Bro, think about what you just said and see if you can piece together why I don't want to be a part of it. The amount of garbage packed into one sentence was incredibly impressive.