Hey everybody. I'm yet another old forum-goer that's back for more; my fingers still start with "forum." when I want to visit NOM. I was an infrequent browser/poster on the old forum, and thought that I'd give it another go.
I think that it was really Jana Reiss book "The Next Mormons" (or rather, her interviews. I haven't actually read the book yet) that has spurred me to return. I've been feeling a lot of angst about my membership in the church lately, and I'm thinking of scaling it back.
My faith crisis journey started as a teenager many years ago, but I eventually got to the point where I felt OK about going along with all of the peer pressure and going on a mission (it was overall a pretty miserable experience with a few good points). I'm way past any anger, but I'm also to a point where I'm not going to study and pray my way back to belief. Any study just seems to magnify the differences between what I believe and what the church teaches. I'm OK with shaping my own beliefs and trying to maintain boundaries, I'm just concerned about whether or not I will be able to stick around or be welcome if I'm not all-in.
The hardest part, for me, is all of the life events that require you to be at least mostly in to participate. Baptism, ordination, temple sealings... if my family wanted to leave I'd be OK skipping them all, but I don't think that I'm OK sitting on the side while somebody else does all of that with my family.
My biggest hope is that Bill Reel's sources are right and the church is planning on dropping garments and the the no coffee rule soon. Those are probably the worst two things about being all-in right now, and if they were dropped then there wouldn't be a lot of difference between half-in and all-in aside from my internal dialogue.
Hello again
Re: Hello again
Welcome back!
And you are always welcome in the NOM ward family!
It's always the Pharisees who are obsessed with virtue signaling that wouldn't welcome you in the church. But those people are usually so broken on the inside, their friendships are more draining that anything. The people who will welcome you are the ones you want in your life.larecherche wrote: ↑Sat Mar 09, 2019 9:56 am I'm just concerned about whether or not I will be able to stick around or be welcome if I'm not all-in.
And you are always welcome in the NOM ward family!
...walked eye-deep in hell
believing in old men’s lies...--Ezra Pound
believing in old men’s lies...--Ezra Pound
Re: Hello again
Agreed. Welcome back larecherche! I hope you will participate in the conversations.
“The easy confidence with which I know another man's religion is folly teaches me to suspect that my own is also.” -Mark Twain
Jesus: "The Kingdom of God is within you." The Buddha: "Be your own light."
Jesus: "The Kingdom of God is within you." The Buddha: "Be your own light."
Re: Hello again
Hello larecherche! I'm just back as well! Welcome again and best of luck in your journey.
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misterfake371
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Re: Hello again
Garments aren't that bad. I remember during my faith crisis, I thought about taking off my garments, but then I felt like the Spirit told me to keep them on. So, I kept them on. I still wear them, pretty much all the time. I think God's happy about my underwear situation.
And is coffee really that good? I've never tried it.
Ha! This is like, TMI, but, in an indirect way, I have had coffee. I did a coffee enema a couple of times. Those are good for cleaning out colons.
I don't care if the Church does away with garments and the coffee ban. All I want from the Church is this: a bigger theological tent.
And is coffee really that good? I've never tried it.
Ha! This is like, TMI, but, in an indirect way, I have had coffee. I did a coffee enema a couple of times. Those are good for cleaning out colons.
I don't care if the Church does away with garments and the coffee ban. All I want from the Church is this: a bigger theological tent.
Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. Ecclesiastes 12:13
Re: Hello again
The institutional LDS church taught that we were supposed to be a "peculiar people" for a long time and the outward signal of garments and (no) coffee were part of it. I am certain that the very top leadership of the church has asked itself what is the bare minimum that the LDS church must retain to still be a distinctive church with something to offer. If they get rid of garments, WoW restrictions, BoM historicity, temple restrictions, and other LDS shibboleths, what is left that makes us different from the rest of the Christian world? I do not know where this might end but it's entertaining to watch the slow creep of culture changes that inorexably lead to us looking like a regular Protestant church.larecherche wrote: ↑Sat Mar 09, 2019 9:56 am My biggest hope is that Bill Reel's sources are right and the church is planning on dropping garments and the the no coffee rule soon. Those are probably the worst two things about being all-in right now, and if they were dropped then there wouldn't be a lot of difference between half-in and all-in aside from my internal dialogue.
We are glad to have you here, Larecherche.