The Mormon Tabernacle Enquirer

POINT: JOINING THE CHURCH HAS MADE ME A BETTER PERSON

Kolob is right there!

By Mark Daniels

I cannot tell you how much better my life is now that I’ve joined the church! Having the missionaries come over and teach me has been an amazing, eye-opening experience. Before they came, I had no idea about Kolob, tannic acid in tea, or how all other baptisms are as useless as running around in the rain. It is essential truths like these that have pointed me in this new direction in my life!

Truth has not been the only exhilarating source of joy for me. Now I have a whole new set of friends, people who seem so happy, so joyfully lifted up above the world and all of its petty cares and sins. I see my pre-church life as so small, so trivial, and so worthless; everything now has an exalted, celestial importance. This of course has caused some friction with people from my past, people still caught up in their worldly ways, but I pray for them that they will eventually come to a knowledge of the truth.

What this change has really brought me is love. I love, for example, how we love children of gay parents enough to not cause them conflicts between home and church. I love how much I value God and God’s creations, and God’s children so much more now. Being a Mormon, I feel like when I serve others, it is because I see their real value in God’s eyes.

Everything is better now that I’m Mormon!

COUNTERPOINT: LEAVING THE CHURCH HAS MADE ME A BETTER PERSON

This movie is essentially about Mormons!

By Danielle Marks

I cannot tell you how much better my life is now that I’ve left the church! Learning the truth from friends and the Internet has been an amazing, eye-opening experience. Before that, I had no idea about church history controversies, confirmation bias, gaslighting, or how the church is simply a corporate, homophobic, racist, hate group involved in a dark power grab. It is essential truths like these that have pointed me in this new direction in my life!

Truth has not been the only exhilarating source of joy for me. Now I have a whole new set of friends, people who seem so happy, so joyfully lifted up above Mormonism and all its judgmental tendencies and gross neglect. I see my past church life as so small, so trivial, and so worthless; everything now has a deeper, more spiritual importance. This of course has caused some friction with people from my past, people still caught up in their small-minded, naïve ways, but I hope that they will eventually come to see the real truth of things.

What this change has really brought me is love. I love, for example, how I see the abusive ways that Mormons drill into people that they should only have sex inside of covenant relationships, when we all know that real love spreads itself out, especially sexually, among many, many people, and that it only grows by being spread! I love how much I value the Earth and other people so much more now. As an Ex-Mormon, I feel like when I serve others, it is because I see their real value.

Everything is better now that I’m no longer a Mormon!