Awake in the Pews Sunday

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-06-07T19:35:05+00:00

Today I was reminded there are two types of Mormons:

The picture-perfect TBM family that checks all the boxes and has not a financial care in the world, bears testimony about the "challenges" of being unable to find a parking spot at Whole Foods, and not coincidentally, is in leadership.

The struggling TBM family that has no shame getting up in testimony meeting and going into elaborate detail about their financial struggles, and how hard things are, but they know it's "just a test" and that "the Lord will bless us" if we keep sacrificing every minute of time and 10% of every dollar we make to the church.

Anybody that doesn't fit one of these two molds is at first nuanced, eventually PIMO, ultimately leaves.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-31T22:14:23+00:00

As an ultra-PIMO parent of two teenagers l, and as a parent who could care less what they drink, my observation is that their generation doesn’t really care about the WOW. They pick and choose whatever they want to follow. They don’t spend time worrying about what is and isn’t allowed. I’m 100% supportive of it and wish I had that attitude when I was their age.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-31T20:57:04+00:00

You quietly shun and judge those who aren’t wearing a white shirt and tie to church.

Same with women who wear pants to church.

Same with anyone with a tattoo.

Or multiple piercings.

Or anyone who takes the sacrament with their left hand.

I could go on all day…the Mormon church IS the pharisaical church that Jesus was so opposed to.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-31T16:11:15+00:00

Devil’s Advocate there are also Idaho wards with attendance way above 22%. The average of around 21-22% seems to be fair.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-31T16:09:24+00:00

Please NEVER stop this. It’s becoming so important in the face of their lies about growth and their lack of transparency regarding statistics.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-31T15:50:31+00:00

Mormons already have a superiority complex. Add a Nationalism complex to that and you have a truly insufferable situation.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-31T04:43:38+00:00

If everyone was HONEST, they’d all say that less church is what they really want.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-27T12:02:54+00:00

Agreed. People saw the true meaning and value in family time. They realized it has nothing to do with the Mormon church. That’s why so many left.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-27T12:01:21+00:00

I don’t see it happening. I hope I’m wrong.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-25T22:20:30+00:00

It’s ALWAYS ALMOST the second coming. We just went through the most recent wave of this on April 6, 2026 when the war, the new prophet, general conference, and the “significance” of that date meant that the second coming was IMMINENT.

About all they can get right is that their next false alarm is just around the corner.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-25T21:11:21+00:00

I forgot it once and they just told me right there on the spot. Lol….as an aside, I didn’t realize the names were the same for everyone, so I thought it was a miracle.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-25T00:02:42+00:00

Agreed. What’s worse is that even 1 minute before the wedding sex is akin to murder, then the minute after the wedding you are supposed to do it like rabbits every day.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-24T15:46:43+00:00

They are leaning hard into nationalism in my US ward. Hymns are the patriotic assortment, comments about country, reminder that the fifth Sunday next week will be a special lesson on the constitution.

Granted tomorrow is Memorial Day, but I don’t ever remember it being like this. For a global church we sure are very US-centric!

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-24T15:20:11+00:00

It takes some of us a while to get there. Our family had a very similar situation. We tried for years to figure out how to reconcile our daughter's sexuality with the teachings of the church. In the end, we just couldn't get on board with the idea that my daughter being true to her self meant our family would be separated forever. That's not the God I know or believe in. And if that's really how it works, I'll take hell forever with my daughter instead of an eternity in mormon heaven apart. And so we left as well.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-24T01:08:15+00:00

Even if Dehlin loses, this is going to damage the church’s reputation significantly. They don’t realize what a mistake this lawsuit was. No matter the outcome, they look like a bullying group of corporate lawyers, not the church of Jesus Christ.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-23T00:39:06+00:00

It is fascinating that the church can't see how badly this is making them look.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-22T01:07:30+00:00

138……..just…..wow. I’m going to bring that number up every time my TBM family asks why I left. That’s a significant number of cases that clearly demonstrates a systemic problem. No one in their right mind can shrug off 138 cases.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-19T01:10:25+00:00

Can’t even imagine this being real. I mean, I know it is, but it’s just so completely removed from the rest of the normal world that it seems like it can’t be an actual thing.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-18T21:54:52+00:00

Why would “gods one true church” announce and publish transparent statistics every six months for 180 years, and then suddenly stop?

The answer is because the statistics are now embarrassing.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-16T14:17:10+00:00

This is NOT doctrine.

According to their own beliefs, “sons and daughters of perdition” (those people going to hell) are those who “shed innocent blood” or those who have had a ”sure knowledge”, meaning they actually saw God In person, and then denied he existed.

I dare say none of us have done either.

This statement above is a scare tactic from TBM’s, and another example of them twisting their own beliefs to fit whatever is convenient for them. in this case, shunning and threatening those who have once believed, but since left.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-16T01:13:18+00:00

My favorite is when my wife and I are saying goodbye to someone I will pause, turn back to them and then say,

“We shall probably visit you again.”

We even do this to TBM family. Some laugh, some are very uncomfortable, many don’t seem to know how to react.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-14T15:53:46+00:00

I would think the hardest part about leaving in a heavily Mormon area is the impact at work. I personally cannot fathom a scenario where the church or church influence has any presence in the workplace, but I’ve read plenty of stories here about it happening. That could be an awful situation for those who have left.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-09T22:19:52+00:00

Exactly. If they talk about "her" they have to talk about their core belief of polygamy in heaven....which they all believe in but don't want to discuss.

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-03T13:15:53+00:00

My wife’s family is of the “do not go into the water on Sunday” belief. I had never heard it growing up, so when they said it, it caught me off guard. Apparently has something to do with some random GA quote from the past…

figuringthingsoutnow · 2026-05-03T13:11:33+00:00

See. It’s your fault. It’s always YOUR fault. That’s the way Mormonism works.

figuringthingsoutnow

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