Mormon Sin = “An act considered a sin according to Mormon teachings, that are not necessarily a sin according to other religions or Christian denominations.” – Paul The Judged Mormon
This letter from a friend is what has led me to make my blog & podcast, The Judged Mormon.
In my 30’s and having been born into Mormonism and an active member of the Mormon church my entire life, I did believe 100% that the Mormon church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints) was the only true church in the world.
What changed? Well, lets call it the day of the internet has been here and many many things are now available. Growing up, I would go to church and always here the same topics…. Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God, Pay your Tithing, Pray to God every morning and night, Read your Scriptures daily, Repent, and Families Can Be Together Forever.
I don’t write this letter to trash talk religion or the Mormon church. In fact, I like religion. I like the principles and values religion brings to ones life, including the Mormon religion. And in all fairness, I believe many leaders of the Mormon church probably don’t know most of what I have discovered through research on the many different topics I have learned more about.
My Mormon upbringing was good. I grew up in a family that taught good family values, respect everyone, be frugal, and take care of those in need. I went on to serve a Mormon mission in Europe; it was a great experience I had. It was during my Mormon mission that I began to question and look into the different teachings of the Mormon church. I would be asked questions that I didn’t truly know the answer too. Mainly questions regarding polygamy in the early years of the church, and a couple of times I was asked why African Americans were not allowed to hold the priesthood in the Mormon church until the 70’s or 80s. I knew very vague answers that I was taught and I knew these answers were no longer enough. My time in Europe is when my studies began, I was in my early 20’s.
I heard over and over during my years that the Mormon church is Christs church, Jesus Christ is the head of the Church, and it cannot change….. because God and Jesus Christ are perfect and they would not allow their church to become corrupt or change.
I was constantly taught that God and Jesus Christ speak to the Mormon prophets and that’s why the Mormon church is perfect, because the prophets are Gods mouth piece on earth and we are to believe and follow everything the Mormon prophet says due to the revelation he receives from God. This is not necessarily something unique to Mormonism, I mean many churches have heads that lead and say they receive inspiration from God. Now I will not say these men are liars. I have heard many preachers speak and they share great wholesome messages that I agree with and feel are true. But I have to question the Mormon prophets words when they begin to contradict or even change what past prophets of the Mormon church have said.
One such preacher I used to listen to on TV as I would prepare and get myself ready for church (Mormon church) was Joel Olsteen. I would listen to this man speak and preach and I never heard him say anything that was contrary to my own beliefs or what I was taught in a Mormon church. Who am I to say that this man is not inspired by God to preach a beautiful message to all who will listen? Many different preachers from many religions teach and preach beautiful messages. I cannot not say only Mormon leaders are inspired by God. I believe all seeking God and religion in their life will find good in messages being preached by all of the different religious sects. Do I believe Mormon leaders to be inspired by God? Only sometimes.
I am writing this letter because I have learned information during the past few years that have made me question what Mormons believe, and if the Mormon church is the only one true church on earth that is guided by Jesus Christ. If this was true, then anything prefect does not change. Anything perfect will always show the love of God toward everyone, regardless of nationality, skin color, or sex.
In recent years, I have discovered words from early church leaders that did not speak of love for everyone. I have found some basic church principles and teachings have changed. With my research, I began to ask more questions, which led to more research, and more questions, etc….
I can tell you that I still attend the Mormon church on Sundays when I am able to attend. I participate in different church callings asked of me. (Not all of them. I have no problem saying no.) I continue going to the Mormon church because I like the values and teachings of Gods love that is shared each week. I will not say I believe Joseph Smith was the prophet of God. I will say that he was the first prophet of the Mormon church, but to me that does not mean he was called of God or that he even spoke with God. Let me compare this…. I believe the Pope for the Catholic church is the head of Catholicism. Whether you call someone a Prophet, a Pope, a Rabbi, etc…. I look at these titles all the same….. They are titles of religious leaders. Individuals can take the title and believe what they want. If the individual wants to believe that a specific title means that person speaks to God, or receives inspiration for the world, then that is their belief. I believe Joseph Smith was a prophet of the Mormon church because that’s the title he carried. I do not believe the title automatically means he spoke with God and Jesus Christ and that Jesus Christ has directed the Mormon church through man on earth. I will not say Joseph Smith or any prophet of the Mormon church was called of God to lead it. I believe men on earth place each other in these positions. It would be fantastic if there was a church truly guided by Jesus, but I’m not convinced of this, yet.
Now before I came to my own realization that I don’t know if I believe the Mormon church to be the only true church on earth, I was already not following Mormon teachings 100%. The Mormon teaching about the Word of Wisdom says to not drink coffee. Well guess what….. I am one of the biggest patrons of Starbucks that exists on the planet. In the eyes of Mormons, I am a sinner. And because I am a sinner, I cannot go to heaven and live with God in the after life. That is when I began to be judged. I first hid the fact I was drinking espresso drinks. But then I realized, who cares. If a fellow Mormon wants to judge me as a sinner, I don’t care. After all, Mormons aren’t supposed to judge anyone. Well I can tell you that there are plenty of Mormons that have judged me and looked at me as a bad person because I drink coffee. I can tell you that I have been shunned by this act of not following the Word of Wisdom. I’ve been judged by Mormons when they have seen me not wearing the temple garment. (It’s easy to spot because I don’t have the white undershirt, or the boxer brief style line that would rest just above the knee cap.)
Mormons are taught to love and not judge. Many Mormons have not judged me or cared about my coffee or my asking questions about the religion. But there have been Mormons who have judged me and caused friendships to fall away. I have also been around many Mormons who talk behind others backs and gossip like crazy. My experience is that a lot of Mormons will always talk about what someone else is doing that is wrong according to the Mormon chruch, but they will not talk about what they do that is contrary to the Mormon church teachings.
One last thing I would like to say is I have friends from many faiths, backgrounds, nationalities. I have straight friends, gay friends, Black friends, Hispanic friends, Asian friends, Muslim friends, etc… I will tell everyone to follow the religion that will help you be a good person. I don’t care if you follow an organized religion, or you are the type of person who is spiritual in your own way. We are all individuals. Lets all be good to each other. There are good people from all religions and faith.
End of the letter.
Reading my friends letter, I realized that I relate to him in the sense that I have done a lot of research myself and I have scratched my head many times when I read something that is contrary to what I have been taught my entire life, and also new things I have read and learned that left me dumbfounded. This encouraged me to blog about my research. And to also start a podcast where I will be interviewing people that have been judged by individuals in their church.
I want to emphasize that I am not blogging about my research to convince anyone to change their mind or beliefs about the Mormon church. My intent is also not to offend or do any trash talk on the Mormon church. I am sharing my research that has raised some questions in my own mind regarding the Mormon church history and teachings I have been taught throughout my life.
I will continue to add to this blog regarding the topics and teachings that began my personal learning and deeper studying of my Mormon faith. And I look forward to hearing from you. Anyone can email me personally at TheJudgedMormon@Gmail.com If you have ever been judged for anything, or you have a story to share, let me know. Email me and lets talk about being interviewed for my podcast or if you want to have your story shared in my blog, please contact me. Just like my friend stated in his letter that he has been judged, I too have been judged during my life because I am not a perfect Mormon and I am not afraid to ask questions.
The Judged Mormon 