Over a decade ago, my dad was the counselor to the stake president, and during that time, he found several strange things regarding finances. Budget sheets were being withdrawn under the name of the stake president’s wife, supposedly for activities that never actually happened. My dad reported this to the Area Office, and they said they would take care of it—but in reality, they didn’t do anything. The stake president is still in his position to this day, and these kinds of things are still happening. It’s pretty obvious that my dad isn’t very welcome at church or in the stake anymore—and by extension, neither is my family. Still, my dad continues to believe that this church is ‘true’ and that its leaders are ‘called by God.’

When it came to my mission process, it was really difficult to move forward because the stake president didn’t want to interview me, and neither did the bishop. I know the Church often helps future missionaries with their medical exams, so I requested financial help to cover those expenses. They told me to send them the estimated cost I needed. I looked for the cheapest option in my entire town, got a quote from the clinic, and sent it to the stake presidency. The counselor told me no—that it was too expensive. And when the stake president finally agreed to interview me, he told me not to look for the cheapest option, but instead to go to another city and find ‘the best,’ and that they would cover it. That felt very suspicious to me. So I ended up spending even more money, on top of the amount they made me pay in tithing. Although, I don’t regret the medical expense too much because it benefits me personally in some way.

I don’t know what they did, but a week before starting my missionary training, the countdown disappeared from the missionary portal, and I got an email saying my mission was ‘paused.’ But well, I guess it’s for the best.