Ex-Mormon
Ex-Mormon or post-Mormon refers to a
Reasons for leaving
Most ex-Mormons leave Mormonism and the LDS or RLDS Church because of intellectual reasons for finding the religion false or practices of Mormon organizations. The foremost reasons are disbelief both in Joseph Smith as a prophet[5][6] and in the Book of Mormon as a religious and historical document.[4][7] Reasons for this disbelief include issues with anthropological, linguistic, archaeological, and genetic evidence against the Book of Mormon in the New World. In addition to rejecting the Book of Mormon for such reasons, the Book of Abraham and other Mormon religious texts are rejected on similar grounds.[8][9] A study of 3000 people who were formerly affiliated with the LDS Church recorded that 74 percent of respondents cited a disbelief in church doctrine or theology as major reason for leaving the church, but only 4 percent of respondents cited conflict with other church members as a large factor in their decision to leave. Also, just 4 percent claimed that a significant reason for apostasy was dissatisfaction with the rules of conduct professed by the LDS Church.[10] This corroborates the assertion that many Mormons are satisfied with the communal aspect and attributes of LDS Church life.[11] A 2023 survey of over 1,000 former church members in the Mormon corridor found the following top three reported reasons for disafilliation: 1. History related to Joseph Smith; 2. The Book of Mormon; and 3. Race issues in the church.[12]
Individuals leave Mormonism for a variety of reasons, although "single reason disaffiliates are rare among former Mormons."[13] Research shows that 43 percent of ex-Mormon left due to unmet spiritual needs.[14] Other reasons for leaving may include a belief that they are in a cult, logical or intellectual appraisal, belief changes or differences, spiritual conversion to another faith, life crises, and poor or hurtful responsiveness by Mormon leaders or congregations.[15] Of former Mormons surveyed, 58 percent switched to other faiths or practices.[14]
Those who adopt
A minority of ex-Mormons cite their personal incompatibility with Mormon beliefs or culture.[
In recent years,[
Post-disaffiliation issues
After their decision to leave Mormonism and the LDS Church, ex-Mormons typically go through an adjustment period as they re-orient their lives religiously, socially, and psychologically.
Religious
An
Social
Ex-Mormons who publicly leave Mormonism often face social stigmatization. Although many leave to be true to themselves or to a new belief structure, they leave at a cost;
Psychological
Many ex-Mormons go through a psychological process as they leave Mormonism. Former Mormon Bob McCue described his disaffiliation as recovery from
Ex-Mormon organizations
Many formerly LDS individuals seek community and discussion about their former beliefs in online and in-person groups. Some of these international groups include the ex-Mormon page on Reddit (with over 275,000 subscribers) as well as various group listings on the Mormon Spectrum website. Localized groups include the SLC Postmos meetup and Facebook group (with over 2,000 members) and Utah Valley Postmos meetup and Facebook group (over 900 members).[27] The ex-Mormon subreddit gained publicity with its involvement leaking LDS documents.[28][29]
Latter-day Saint views of ex-Mormons
Latter-day Saints generally hope ex-Mormons will return to activity in the church.[30]
Demographics
According to a BYU Studies article, as of 2014, about one-third of those with a Latter-day Saint background have left the Church. Of those who leave the Church, about 58% switch to no religion or unaffiliated; 18% switch to evangelical Protestant groups; 8% went to Mainline Protestant denominations; 10% went to generic Christianity; and 6% went to "other".
See also
References
- ^ Deconstructor (September 2010), "Abbreviations: FOR NEWBIES - Guide to abbreviations used on exmormon.org board", Recovery from Mormonism
- ^ Golden, Hallie. "Why It's Not Easy Becoming an Ex-Mormon". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
- ^ Hatch, Heidi (13 April 2016). "Millennial Mormons leaving faith at higher rate than previous generations". KUTV. Sinclair Broadcast Group. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
- ^ a b c Lobdell, William (December 1, 2001), "Losing Faith and Lots More", Los Angeles Times, archived from the original on 2001-12-01
- Backman, Milton V. Jr. (April 1989), "A Warning from Kirtland", Ensign: 26
- History of the Church, vol. 1, Salt Lake City: Deseret News, p. 115
- ^ a b MPC3934849484. "Exmormon Survey". Mister Poll Enterprises. Archived from the original on March 16, 2008.
- ^ "Book of Mormon Page", Mormons in Transition, Institute for Religious Research, archived from the original on September 3, 2011[specify]
- OCLC 26140322
- ^ "Understanding Mormon Disbelief Survey – March 2012 Results and Analysis". Why Mormons Question (PDF). Retrieved 2016-03-16.
- ^ Beverley, James (2013). Mormon Crisis: Anatomy of a Failing Religion (Kindle ed.). Castle Quay Books. pp. Kindle Locations 76–77.
- ^ Riess, Jana (8 March 2024). "Who is leaving the LDS Church? Eight key survey findings". The Salt Lake Tribune. Salt Lake City, Utah. Religion News Service. Archived from the original on 9 March 2024 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ JSTOR 1387058.
- ^ JSTOR 1385774.
- ^ OCLC 38199795
- OCLC 25509094
- ISBN 0-375-76338-4.
- ^ "TOPICS: LGBT - AND MORMONISM - SECTION 1", The Mormon Curtain, archived from the original on 2008-04-03
- ^ Vanocur, Chris (2008-11-10), Some LDS members leaving church over same-sex marriage controversy, Salt Lake City: KTVX
- ^ "Religious Switching: Change in America's Religion Landscape". 2015-05-12.
- ^ Hedly, David (May 30, 2004). "Leaving the fold". Calgary Herald.
- ^ Kettunen, Eric, "My Mission", Recovery from Mormonism
- ^ Kettunen, Eric, "Thought reform and conformity within Mormonism", Recovery from Mormonism
- OCLC 46728224[page needed]
- OCLC 30314020, archived from the original on 2012-09-04, retrieved 2011-09-26[page needed][permanent dead link]
- ^ What did leaving cost you? (collection of forum posts), exmormon.org[unreliable source?]
- ^ Miet, Hannah (30 January 2014). "When the Saints Go Marching Out". Newsweek Magazine. Newsweek Media Group. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
- ^ Brown, Jennings; Cuen, Leigh (10 March 2016). "Dark Net: How Reddit Is Dismantling The Mormon Church". Vocativ. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
- ^ Wenzke, Marissa. "How the ex-Mormon community has found a home on Reddit". Mashable. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
- ^ Peggy Fletcher, Stack (2008-04-08), "LDS Church President Monson urges disenfranchised to return to the fold", The Salt Lake Tribune, archived from the original on 2008-04-12, retrieved 2008-04-26
- ^ Who Is Leaving the Church? Demographic Predictors of Ex–Latter-day Saint Status in the Pew Religious Landscape Survey
- ^ Who Leaves Mormonism?
Further reading
- Stack, Peggy Fletcher (26 July 2005), "Keeping members a challenge for LDS church", Salt Lake Tribune
External links
- Opposing Views: Latter Day Saints at Curlie
- The Exmormon Foundation - an organization dedicated to supporting those in transition from Mormonism
- Recovery from Mormonism - the most prominent ex-Mormon community on the web
- MormonNoMore - Information on how to resign from the LDS Church
- Utah Lighthouse Ministry - Founded by ex-Mormons Jerald and Sandra Tanner