Was it doctrinal disagreements? Historical cover-ups? Hypocrisy? Hurt feelings? Policy stances? Just wasn't working for you? Didn't feel right?
I was raised Mormon. I used to be a defender of the faith. I knew all about Mormonism's history of polygamy (even polyandry), Joseph Smith's glass-looking trial, "Lying for the Lord", no DNA evidence of Israelite origins of Native Americans, the Masonic origins of the LDS endowment, the Danites, the Kinderhook plates, the Adam is Heavenly Father doctrine taught by Brigham Young, racist doctrines, etc. I also knew all the apologetic responses for those issues by the folks over at FAIRLDS. But, what did me in was a thorough investigation of the Book of Abraham. I read beyond the standard apologetics and came to realize it was all a big sham - a fraud. Joseph Smith had knowingly deceived us all. I was mad at being lied to and deceived, for I had truly believed it. I really thought God had told me Mormonism was true, yet I was looking at undeniable evidence that it could not possibly be true. That in turn led me to realize that I could not trust what I thought had been communications from God. I researched the origins and doctrines of the Bible and eventually concluded that Judaism and Christianity are no more true than any other religion out there. I am now atheist.
So, what is your story? Why did you reject your former religion?
Mike suggests that I did not dig deep enough into Christianity or study it long enough. I disagree. I am always open to reading things that are contrary to my current beliefs, for that is the only way I can discover when I am in error. So, feel free to recommend anything you believe might be useful to me. However, I must confess that I have read an awful lot. I have read the entire Bible once and several parts many, many times including Genesis, Isaiah, and all of the New Testament. I dare say that I know the Bible better than most Christians and could preach from it were I inclined to do so. I have had many marvelous experiences that Christians would interpret as signs from God. I believed I truly knew God and had a personal relationship with Him. I think I know very well how Christians experience God. I have read a lot of Christian apologetics which try to explain away the evidence and arguments of the critics, yet find the critics' more compelling.
Joseph Smith's translation was not "close to perfect" anywhere at all. Read Ritner's translation of the papyri and facsimiles: http://www.utlm.org/other/robertritnerpapyriarticle.pdf and compare that to the BoA - no similarity at all.
I find that many of these so-called unique parallels to extrabiblical traditions about the early life of Abraham are not unique at all in that the ideas are also present in the Bible. I believe there are other parallels with books that we know Joseph Smith was familiar with like with Josephus, and Book of Jasher (with BoA verses after BoA 2:1). The remaining subtopics can be explained as rational inferences from what was already written about Abraham, or necessitated by Joseph's having to incorporate the facsimilies into his BoA text. The last point that I'd like to make is that the traditions about Abraham contradict each other in numerous aspects and there is no definitive version of the story of Abraham's life. I have more to say but no space left.
Orignal From: What led you to reject your former religion?
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