This is my most vulnerable conversation yet. Matt and I talk about our time working together designer/developer apps together. We then spend the majority of our time sharing each their experience leaving Mormonism/LDS church (and religion in general for me). It is not an easy topic to address. It gets very personal and very detailed but we both hope that this conversation can be helpful for someone.
I believe religion can give people a framework which they can use to navigate life. If you find a framework/religion that works for you and helps you become a more loving, caring person, that is great. For me religion was not a framework that was helpful but I want to be clear, my intention is to continue to be respectful of other people’s beliefs. Yet at the same time, we are sharing our stories of what has been our experience and how it was very much counter to the narrative we were taught growing up in the church.
My story is mine. Your story is yours. My hope is we can hear each other’s story and use that new information to challenge our own assumptions and prior beliefs in order to create more well-rounded belief systems, individually and as a collective.
3vies Volume 32 - https://3vies.com/store/vol32
3vies Volume 32 PDF Preview (my written story) - https://3vies.com/vol32-preview
Joseph Smith Papers Matt referenced - https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/revelation-book-1/15
David Whitmer’s published address/experience - https://books.google.com/books?id=wVU3AAAAMAAJ&pg=PA1&source=gbs_selected_pages&cad=3#v=onepage&q&f=false
CES Letters is another helpful resource - https://cesletter.org
