Modern-day Pharisees

How the hypocrisy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has led it into a modern-day apostasy

Premise

Based on LDS doctrine, two plans were presented in the premortal life:

1. God’s plan: All of His children are given agency, then sent to Earth to be tested. If they choose Him, they can gain Eternal Life.
2. Satan’s plan: All of God’s children would be saved… but there would be no agency. Salvation would be an obligation, obedience would be mandated, and all credit would go to Satan.

Fast forward to the time of Christ, and we see an extension of this conflict. During his final sermon, Christ spoke the harshest words directed at any single group in recorded in scripture: the Pharisees.

Mainstream Christianity refers to this sermon as “The 8 Woes.”

During His sermon, Christ criticized the Pharisees for several things. His biggest issue with them was their dedication to a life of perfect obedience to the minutia of the law—their belief (and teachings) that scrupulous obedience to even the smallest rule would get you to heaven.

Instead, he urged them to focus on the spirit of the law—on loving God and neighbor—rather than obsessing over the letter of the law.

This same battle rages on today within the walls of the Church. One faction (what I’ll refer to as the Church of the Pharisees) believes we can earn our way to heaven through obedience and adherence to the minutiae of God’s commands. The other faction (The Church of Christ) generally believes in loving God and neighbor, serving, uplifting others, and being a positive force for good.

It’s my belief that while the general membership of the church tends to belong to the Church of Christ, the modern-day LDS Church leadership has been infiltrated by members of the Church of the Pharisees.

(Credit to Peter Bleakly and the Mormon Civil War podcast for helping me articulate this idea clearly.)

Definition of  “Pharisee”

The purpose of this document is to show actual evidence that supports my assertion. In order to do that, we need to agree on what exactly it means to be a “Pharisee” in the negative sense.

Let’s start with the LDS Study Guide definition of Pharisees:

In the New Testament, a religious group among the Jews whose name suggests being separate or apart. The Pharisees prided themselves on strictly observing the law of Moses and avoiding anything associated with the Gentiles. They believed in life after death, the Resurrection, and the existence of angels and spirits. They believed that the oral law and tradition were equally as important as the written laws. Their teachings reduced religion to the observance of rules and encouraged spiritual pride. They caused many Jewish people to doubt Christ and His gospel. The Lord denounced the Pharisees and their works in Matthew 23; Mark 7:1–23; and Luke 11:37–44.

Jesus harshly rebuked the Pharisees for specific reasons:

Jesus began His critique of the scribes and Pharisees by acknowledging that they taught truths that would bring men closer to God and that those teachings should be followed. But the scribes and Pharisees did not follow their own teachings; they acted out of pride and self-interest. [...]

The word hypocrite is translated from a Greek word meaning “actor” and refers to one who pretends, exaggerates a part, or is deceitfully inconsistent in his or her actions. The Lord denounced the scribes and Pharisees for exaggerating their outward observance of the law of Moses, while their hearts were arrogant and insincere. The Savior pronounced a series of eight “woes” that would befall the scribes and Pharisees because of their hypocritical actions. The word woe means a condition of misery, distress, and sorrow resulting from great affliction or misfortune. The following chart briefly identifies some actions of the scribes and Pharisees that the Lord identified as hypocrisy:

-New Testament Manual

We’ll dive more into the specifics later in this document. But to summarize, Jesus’ strongest rebuke was toward a religious group who taught one thing while living another, who obsessed over obedience to even the smallest of rules, and who prioritized outward signals of their own righteousness above loving and caring for their neighbors.

The Comparision

The rest of this document will be a comparison between the Pharisees of old, and modern LDS Pharisees based on the above premise.

Let me be clear: I believe most members (like you) are actually members of The Church of Christ. You primarily want to love, serve, uplift, give back, help others, and make the world a better place. My criticism largely focuses on the words and actions of modern leaders of the church who set the policies and promote pharisaical doctrines that don’t align with the teachings of Jesus.

Now, on to the comparison…

The Eight Woes

Jesus was famously not a fan of the Pharisees. The Gospels—specifically Matthew and Luke—document Jesus criticizing the Pharisees' form of worship. (See Luke 11:37–54 and Matthew 23:1–39. Mark 12:35–40 and Luke 20:45–47 also include warnings about scribes.)

The Eight Woes are all woes of hypocrisy and illustrate the differences between inner and outer moral states. Jesus portrays the Pharisees as impatient with outward, ritual observance of minutiae which made them look acceptable and virtuous outwardly but left the inner person unreformed.

Summarized, these woes call attention to the Pharisees’:

1. Positions of religious authority in the community
2. Concern for outward recognition and honor
3. Enthusiasm for making converts
4. Emphasis on observing the legalistic minutia of the law

The Pharisees exhibited themselves as righteous on account of being scrupulous keepers of the law. They were, however, not righteous: their mask of righteousness hid a secret inner world of ungodly thoughts and feelings. They were full of wickedness. They were like whitewashed tombs, beautiful on the outside, but full of dead men's bones.

They professed a high regard for the dead prophets of old and claimed that they would never have persecuted and murdered prophets when, in fact, they were cut from the same cloth as the persecutors and murderers: they too had murderous blood in their veins.

Woe #1 | Matthew 23: 13

THE ANCIENT PHARISEES

“But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.”

INTERPRETATION OF THE VERSE

“They not only rejected Christ, His Church, and His offer of salvation, but they also sought to prevent others from accepting Christ and salvation.”

-New Testament Study Manual

I like the Albert Barnes commentary on this verse:
[The Pharisees] shut up the kingdom of heaven up by:

• Teaching false doctrines respecting the Messiah
• Binding the people to an observance of their traditions
• Opposing Jesus, and attempting to convince the people that he was an impostor, thus preventing many from becoming his followers.

Many were ready to embrace him as the Messiah, and were about entering into the kingdom of heaven—that is, the church—but they prevented it.

Luke 11:52 says they had taken away the key of knowledge, and thus prevented their entering in—that is, they had taken away the right interpretation of the ancient prophecies respecting the Messiah, and thus had done all that they could to prevent the people from receiving Jesus as their Redeemer.

THE MODERN CHURCH

The following is evidence that the modern church is “shutting up the kingdom of heaven against men.”

🔴 TEMPLE RECOMMEND QUESTIONS

In the most literal sense, I believe several of the temple recommend questions are literally keeping righteous people from “entering in” to the Kingdom of Heaven.

Many parents, siblings, cousins, and friends sit outside the temple and wait (shamefully) while those they love get married inside (like this dad who is no longer a believer).

Many of the temple recommend questions are a perfect example of “outward, ritual observance of minutiae which made them look acceptable and virtuous outwardly but left the inner person unreformed.”

I’ve highlighted those I believe to be most Pharisaical in yellow:

1. Do you have faith in and a testimony of God, the Eternal Father; his Son, Jesus Christ; and the Holy Ghost?

2. Do you have a testimony of the Atonement of Jesus Christ and of his role as your Savior and Redeemer?

3. Do you have a testimony of the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ?

4. Do you sustain the president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as the prophet, seer and revelator and as the only person on the Earth authorized to exercise all priesthood keys? Do you sustain the members of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles as prophets, seers and revelators? Do you sustain the other general authorities and local leaders of the church?

5. The Lord has said that all things are to be “done in cleanliness” before him. Do you strive for moral cleanliness in your thoughts and behavior? Do you obey the law of chastity?

6. Do you follow the teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ in your private and public behavior with members of your family and others?

7. Do you support or promote any teachings, practices or doctrine contrary to those of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints?

8. Do you strive to keep the Sabbath day holy, both at home and at church; attend your meetings; prepare for and worthily partake of the sacrament; and live your life in harmony with the laws and commandments of the gospel?

9. Do you strive to be honest in all that you do?

10. Are you a full-tithe payer?

11. Do you understand and obey the Word of Wisdom?

12. Do you have any financial or other obligations to a former spouse or to children? If yes, are you current in meeting those obligations?

13. Do you keep the covenants that you made in the temple?

14. Do you honor your sacred privilege to wear the garment as instructed in the initiatory [a temple ritual] ordinances?

15. Are there serious sins in your life that need to be resolved with priesthood authorities as part of your repentance?

16. Do you consider yourself worthy to enter the Lord’s house and participate in temple ordinances?

I believe most of these questions could be replaced with these 3 questions:

1. Do you have faith in and a testimony of God, the Eternal Father; his Son, Jesus Christ; and the Holy Ghost?

2. Do you have a testimony of the Atonement of Jesus Christ and of his role as your Savior and Redeemer?

3. Do you consider yourself worthy to enter the Lord’s house and participate in temple ordinances?

🔴 THE PRIESTHOOD BAN

“From the mid-1800s until 1978—the Church did not ordain men of black African descent to its priesthood or allow black men or women to participate in temple endowment or sealing ordinances.” (see: Race and the Priesthood Gospel Topics Essay.)

This ban is often referred to as “The Priesthood Ban,” when, in reality, it was an Exaltation Ban. Black people couldn’t get the saving ordinances required to enter the Celestial Kingdom.

There are multiple quotes from church leaders implying that the highest level of exaltation black people would ever attain was the status of servants to the righteous in the Celesial Kingdom.

This is a perfect of example of how modern church traditions “shut up the kingdom of heaven against men.”

For a list of cited quotes demonstrating why church leaders believed black people were seen as unworthy, click here.

I realize the ban has been lifted, but I believe it’s still a valid example of the Modern church’s gatekeeping an enormous subsection of God’s children from experiencing all the blessings of exaltation.

🔴 NOVEMBER 2015 POLICY & GAY AND LESBIAN ISSUES

In 2015, President Nelson implemented a policy that prevented the children of gay and lesbian parents from being blessed or baptized without First Presidency approval.

In April 2019, the Church announced three important changes: first, that baptisms of children of LGBT parents may be authorized by local bishops without First Presidency approval; second, that children of these couples can now also be named and blessed; and third, that homosexual immorality will be treated in the eyes of the Church in the same manner as heterosexual immorality.

To date, it’s still unclear whether homosexual couples can actively participate in church—including holding callings, or if they’ll be excommunicated for what the church considers to be immoral behavior.

These members cannot attend the temple, partake in saving ordinances, or be sealed to their posterity.

🔴 THE SECOND ANOINTING

“The Second Anointing” is an ordinance that the church leaders have kept secret from ordinary members. During this exclusive, by-referral-only ordinance, members deemed worthy have their “calling and election made sure,” guaranteeing them exaltation in the next life.

For details, listen to the Tom Phillips interview here.

Woe #2 | Matthew 23: 14

THE ANCIENT PHARISEES

“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretense make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.”

INTERPRETATION OF THE VERSE

They were greedy and materialistic, and they preyed upon the misfortunes of others.

-New Testament Study Manual

Again, from the Albert Barnes commentary:

Devour widows' houses - The word "houses" is used here to denote "property" or possessions of any kind. You take away or get possession of the property of widows by improper arts and pretenses. This was done in two ways:

1. They claimed a very exact knowledge of the law and a perfect observance of it. They pretended to extraordinary justice toward the poor, friendship for the distressed, and willingness to aid those who were in embarrassed circumstances. They thus induced "widows" and poor people to commit the management of their property to them as guardians and executors, and then took advantage of them and defrauded them.
   
2. They put on the appearance of great sanctity, and induced many conscientious but credulous women to give them much, under pretense of devoting it to religious purposes.

Long prayer - Their prayers are said to have been often three hours in length. One rule among them, says Lightfoot, was to meditate an hour, then pray an hour, and then meditate another hour - all of which was included in their "long prayers or devotions."

THE MODERN CHURCH

Evidence that the modern Church “is greedy and materialistic, and preys upon the misfortunes of others.”

🔴 PAY YOUR TITHING BEFORE FEEDING YOUR FAMILY

On more than one occasion, the Church has urged (and even glorified) members to pay tithing before paying bills or feeding their families. Here are a few of the accounts:

No bishop, no missionary should ever hesitate or lack the faith to teach the law of tithing to the poor. The sentiment of “They can’t afford to” needs to be replaced with “They can’t afford not to.”

One of the first things a bishop must do to help the needy is ask them to pay their tithing. Like the widow, if a destitute family is faced with the decision of paying their tithing or eating, they should pay their tithing. The bishop can help them with their food and other basic needs until they become self-reliant.

Tithing—a Commandment Even for the Destitute, By Elder Lynn G. Robbins Of the Seventy

———

One day during those difficult times, I heard my parents discussing whether they should pay tithing or buy food for the children.

On Sunday, I followed my father to see what he was going to do. After our Church meetings, I saw him take an envelope and put his tithing in it. That was only part of the lesson. The question that remained for me was what we were going to eat.

The Language of the Gospel, by Elder Valeri V. Cordón Of the Seventy

———

The honest payment of tithing is much more than a duty; it is an important step in the process of personal sanctification.

The Windows of Heaven by Elder David A. Bednar

———

President James E. Faust: “Some may feel that they cannot afford to pay tithing, but the Lord has promised that He would prepare a way for us to keep all of His commandments. To pay tithing takes a leap of faith in the beginning. … We learn about tithing by paying it. Indeed, I believe it is possible to break out of poverty by having the faith to give back to the Lord part of what little we have.”9 My brothers and sisters, we have but to obey the law.

The Law of Tithing by Elder Daniel L. Johnson Of the Seventy

Compare that with the policy in the Church Handbook to, “When appropriate and feasible, those in need should seek help from family members before seeking help from the Church.”

This gives off a “Pay us first—but if you need help, come to us last” vibe.

President Nelson also says “We preach tithing to the poor people of the world because the poor people of the world have had cycles of poverty, generation after generation. That same poverty continues from generation to another, until people pay their tithing.”

The implication is that paying tithing will get you out of poverty… which is patently untrue, and a predatory promise to make to poor people.

Additionally—and maybe this is the greater sin here—the Pharisees took money from the widows and the poor under false pretenses. They used the illusion that the funds would be used for Godly purposes, but they weren’t.

The same pattern of behavior has been repeatedly proven of the modern church. They are not honest about how they spend tithing funds, including using those funds to help build the City Creek Mall. The tithing slips even contain a disclaimer stating that even when a donor designates they want their money to go to a certain cause, the Church ultimately gets to decide how the money is used.

🔴 GOLD FILLINGS TO PAY FOR TEMPLE

President Faust often used a story of members in Brazil selling their gold dental fillings to donate to the Church to help the Sao Paolo temple get built.

He purchased several of the fillings and would show them to congregations to inspire them to sacrifice more for the building of the kingdom.

This is one example of how a billion-dollar church exploited poor people into believing they had to make extreme sacrifices in order to have a temple in their area.

🔴 POOR TREATMENT OF WIDOWS

Rather than using anecdotal stories here, I’ll simply lean on the offical doctrine of the church.

Upon the death of a spouse, Church policy currently allows men to be concurrently sealed to multiple women. President Nelson is a perfect example—sealed to both Dantzel (deceased) and Wendy (living).

However, if a woman’s husband dies, she is not allowed to be sealed to her new husband unless she breaks off the sealing with her former husband first leaving her with an incredibly painful choice mired in bureaucracy.

If a woman remarries and has children with a new spouse (to whom she is not sealed), the children will belong to the sealed husband in the next life.

Woe #3 | Matthew 23: 15

THE ANCIENT PHARISEES

“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.”

INTERPRETATION OF THE VERSE 

They were recruiting souls to false beliefs.

-New Testament Study Manual

From Matthew Pool’s Commentary:
A proselyte was one who, coming from some pagan nation, relinquished idols, and worshipped one true and living God. [...] Their business was not to turn men from sin unto God, but merely to convert them to an opinion, if they had once got them into their church, so as they could make their markets of them; never regarding their souls more, nor to press upon them the reformation of their lives, that they might be saved.

THE MODERN CHURCH

Evidence that the modern Church’s missionary efforts are corrupt, and recruiting souls to false beliefs.

🔴 MISSIONARY OBJECTIVES

A clear example of phariseeism within the missionary program of the church is the prioritization of baptism over conversion.

Missionaries regularly compete for status and receive “promotions” to leadership positions based on their “success” in the mission field—meaning the number of baptisms they’re racking up. Performing the ordinance of baptism on someone is more important than the actual conversion of the investigator.

The Missionary program is literally built on teaching missionaries to give investigators a performative, emotionally exploitative experience, then commit them to baptism on the first or second meeting.

The goal of a missionary doesn’t seem to be to truly convert someone to the actual gospel of Christ—but rather to fast track them through the missionary lessons as quickly as possible and baptize them into the church where they will “consecrate themselves, your time, talents and everything which the Lord has blessed them to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.”

Baptizing people before they’re truly converted has led to huge issues with inactivity, especially in areas like South America and Southeast Asia.

This is why Elder Holland was sent to South America (and Oaks was sent to the Philippines)  in the early 2000s. In 2003, I spent 50% of my time on my mission in Chile doing reactivation work under the direction of Holland.

When you objectively look at the church’s approach to missionary work, it’s obvious that what the institution REALLY cares about is increasing worldwide membership numbers, and tithe payers.

🔴 RECRUITING SOULS TO FALSE BELIEFS

In most of Christianity, the only requirement for baptism is to accept Jesus as your savior. But in order to be baptized in the LDS church, an investigator must meet a list of the Church’s arbitrary standards. For example:

• Can’t drink coffee or tea
• Must commit to paying 10% of income to the Church
• Cannot be in an LGBTQ+ relationship
• Can’t be smoking or using drugs

None of these requirements were established by Christ.

This is a clear example of converting people to what Pool references as an “Opinion” and not to God—especially considering the Word of Wisdom was not originally intended to be a commandment.

🔴 MISSION OBLIGATION

Church leaders have an expectation that every young man (and couples of retirement age) serve a mission.

“Every worthy, able young man should prepare to serve a mission. Missionary service is a priesthood duty—an obligation the Lord expects of us who have been given so very much. Young men, I admonish you to prepare for service as a missionary”

President Monson, “As We Meet Together Again,” Ensign, Nov. 2010, 5–6

The mission is not reserved as an experience for those looking to convert others to Christ. It’s a cultural obligation used as a measure of personal worthiness, righteousness, and even viability as a spouse.

Additionally, the mission rules and environment check virtually every box for how cults brainwash their members. The church’s secondary goal is to create an army of fully committed, obedient, lifelong members who refuse to ask quesions.

Add to this the fact that none of the members of the current first presidency (Nelson, Oaks, Eyring) served missions, and I think we have ourselves a pretty corrupt program with goals that don’t align with what Christ taught.

Woe #4 | Matthew 23: 16-19

THE ANCIENT PHARISEES

“Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor. Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty. Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift?”

INTERPRETATION OF THE VERSE 

Through their oaths, they gave more reverence to the gold and furnishings of the temple than to the Lord, whom the temple honors.

-New Testament Study Manual

I really appreciated the BibleRef interpretation/explanation of this verse:

Jesus continues His condemnation of Israel's religious leaders, specifically the groups known as the scribes and the Pharisees. These were the primary self-professed teachers of Jewish law and spirituality. As the judge ordained by God (John 5:22), Jesus is pronouncing a series of "woes" against them. He now comes to the third such condemnation.

Highlighting their hypocrisy (Matthew 13:13) and false teaching (Matthew 23:15), Jesus repeats His criticism of these men as blind guides (Matthew 15:12–14; John 9:39–41). These religious leaders cannot hope to lead anyone to the correct conclusions since they can't see the truth themselves.

The specific example Christ gives of this spiritual blindness involves the taking of oaths in binding agreements. Swearing oaths was deeply built into the culture of this time, though it's not a practice most modern people understand. Under the ancient understanding, the responsibility of an oath was directly related to the power or sacredness of the object—or person—by which the oath was taken. During this period, the Israelites were not allowed to swear oaths on God Himself or even to speak the name of God directly. Instead, they would swear oaths by objects closely connected to God in some way, such as His throne, or the temple, or the altar.

Wallowing in legalism and loopholes, the Pharisees had apparently devised a system separating objects which would "truly" bind someone to their promise from objects not significant enough to require one to keep their word. This allowed a crafty person to swear an oath by something non-binding, leaving room to be deceptive about doing as they said. Jesus' example is one of those distinctions: If someone swears by the temple, it was not a meaningful oath, but if someone swore by the gold of the temple, he or she was bound to do what was agreed to.

Jesus has already condemned the practice of taking oaths to lend weight to one's word. During the Sermon on the Mount, He declared such tacked-on promises as unnecessary and as coming from evil. Instead, He insisted that people simply say "yes" and "no" and then do what they said (Matthew 5:33–37).

In these verses, the immediate criticism is how the Pharisees wrongly assign value according to worldly standards, not the standards of God.

THE MODERN CHURCH

Evidence that the modern church is hypocritical with their temple worship:

🔴 THE EVOLUTION OF “UNCHANGING” TEMPLE CEREMONIES & COVENANTS

The temple ceremony has been changed, updated, sanitized, and watered down several times over the past century—most often to eliminate barbaric, creepy, and culty aspects of the ritual. The fact that these horrific oaths have been part of the most sacred rites and rituals of the LDS faith for so long is deeply disturbing, and in direct conflict with the teachings of Christ:

• 1927—The removal of the “Oath of Vengeance” from the temple ceremony—a commitment to avenge the blood of the prophets and seek retribution for the saints' wrongs.
  “You and each of you do covenant and promise that you will pray and never cease to pray to Almighty God to avenge the blood of the prophets upon this nation, and that you will teach the same to your children and to your children's children unto the third and fourth generation.”
• 1990—The removal of penalties for breaking temple oaths, including:

• Slitting your own throat: “Should I [reveal any of the secrets], I agree that my throat be cut from ear to ear, and my tongue torn out by its roots” 
• Removing your heart: "our breasts ... be torn open, our hearts and vitals torn out and given to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field;"
• Disembowelment: "our body ... be cut asunder and all your bowels gush out."

• 2005—Elimination of partial nudity and touching of the body during washings and anointings.
• 2019—In the temple ordinance, women were historically treated as property—or at a minimum, as subservient to their husbands. This practice has been (and still is) responsible for an unfathomable amount of spousal abuse—physical, mental, emotional, and sexual. As of 2019, the endowment was updated so that women are no longer required to covenant to obey their husbands. Instead must covenant only to follow their husbands as their husbands follow God.
  
  Similarly, the eternal reward for women in the church has historically been lesser. Women were urged to be a priestess "unto her husband," while men were promised they will be priests to God. In January 2019, that topic was removed from the endowment process.

🔴 TEMPLE COVENANTS SUPPORT PRIESTCRAFT

The temple endowment requires members to make the Covenant of the Law of Consecration with the Church, not with God directly.

“You do consecrate yourselves, your time, talents and everything which the Lord has blessed you, or with which he may bless you, to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saint, for the building up of the Kingdom of God on the earth and for the establishment of Zion.”

This covenant directly encourages priestcrafts. What are priestcrafts? Nephi gives us a very succinct and helpful definition:

“He commandeth that there shall be no priestcrafts; for, behold, priestcrafts are that men preach and set themselves up for a light unto the world, that they may get gain and praise of the world; but they seek not the welfare of Zion” (2 Nephi 26:29).

Examples of priestcraft by current church leaders:

• Russell M. Nelson’s 95th birthday celebration that he threw for himself.
• Russell M. Nelson’s obsession with building announcing temples
• The church is embroiled in legal battles around the construction of several temples due to violations of building and lighting ordinances. In the case of the Heber temple, they literally want to be a “light” unto the world.

The church builds temples across the world—often in communities full of people who are poor, destitute, struggling, and suffering.

Christ taught we were supposed to feed the poor, help the sick and homeless, visit the widows. He didn’t teach that we needed to build lavish buildings in his honor.

Consider the good that could be done if, for every temple that was built, the LDS Church spent an equal amount of money (or even just 10%) on an orphanage, homeless shelter, or soup kitchen.

Imagine if—instead of focusing so much on redeeming the dead—they focused more of their energy and resources on ending human suffering by providing the world with clean drinking water, childhood education, immunizations from deadly illnesses, or ending child hunger.

The Temple ordinances required for salvation don’t need a multi-million dollar building. Baptisms can be done in lakes, oceans, and rivers. And early saints often did ceremonies in tents or houses. I have a hard time believing that Jesus would be proud of the hyper-focus on these buildings when there’s so much suffering in the world.

🔴 NEPOTISM IN TEMPLE CONSTRUCTION

The church is announcing and building temples at an unprecedented rate. Several of the construction companies hired to build these opulent buildings are run by general authorities or family and friends who are directly connected to them.

These contracts enrich the families of LDS leadership.  

Woe #5 | Matthew 23: 23

THE ANCIENT PHARISEES

“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.”

INTERPRETATION OF THE VERSE 

They obeyed rules but ignored the more important doctrines and principles the rules were based on.

-New Testament Study Manual

The modern saints are susceptible to phariseeism:

The misdirected Pharisees with whom he spoke took pride in rites and rituals, but were nevertheless condemned by the Lord because they neglected the weightier matters of the law: fair judgment, mercy, and the exercise of true faith which produces righteous works [...] we ourselves may be like the ancient Pharisees. We may attend to rites and rituals and yet overlook the weightier matters such as brotherly kindness, honesty, mercy, virtue, and integrity [...] Think for a moment of the second great commandment to love our neighbors as ourselves. (Matt. 22:38, 39.) How many observe it? Keep in mind that the Lord said it is of like importance to the first great commandment, which is to love God with all our heart and soul.

Consider, too, his commandment to do unto others as we would be done by. How many live that law? How many go down that road to Jericho?

Read again the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30–37), especially in light of the last part of the twenty-fifth chapter of Matthew. Do not these scriptures teach that if we fail to do right by our fellowmen we seriously jeopardize our own salvation? Note the Lord’s words:

“I was an hungered, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:

“I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: … sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. …

“Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.” (Matt. 25:42–43, 45.)

Those to whom he spoke, who were thus neglectful, were not counted with the sheep of his fold. They were not on his favored right hand, but on his left where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth. “And these,” the scripture says, “shall go away into everlasting punishment.” (Matt. 25:46.)

-Do unto Others …  By Elder Mark E. Petersen

How the gospel was “polluted” by the very things that can be seen in the latter-day church:

Over the centuries dogmatism, coercion, and intolerance have too often polluted the living water of the gospel, which quenches our spiritual thirst eternally. The Savior observed this in His day. [...] I have some fear, however, that some members consider guidelines and procedures to be as important as the timeless, immutable laws of the gospel,

-The Weightier Matters of the Law: Judgment, Mercy, and Faith By President James E. Faust

They taught the law, but did not practice some of the most important parts of the law – justice, mercy, faithfulness to God. They obeyed the minutiae of the law such as tithing spices, but not the weightier matters of the law.

Benson Commentary:
Here we have the fifth wo, which is denounced for their superstition. They observed the ceremonial precepts of the law with all possible exactness, while they utterly neglected the eternal, immutable, indispensable rules of righteousness. Judgment — That is, justice; mercy — Charity, or compassion toward the poor; faith — Fidelity. “The word πιστις has undoubtedly this signification in many places; (compare Titus 2:10; Galatians 5:22; Romans 3:3.) But there are many more in which it signifies, the confidence reposed in another; and it is of great importance to observe this. See Colossians 1:4; 1 Peter 1:21.” Ye blind guides, which strain at [or rather, strain out] a gnat — Namely, from the liquor you are going to drink, lest it should choke you. “In those hot countries, as Serrarius well observes, gnats were apt to fall into wine, if it were not carefully covered; and passing the liquor through a strainer that no gnat, or part of one, might remain, grew into a proverb for exactness about little matters.” And swallow a camel — “The expression is proverbial, and was made use of by our Lord on this occasion to signify that the Pharisees pretended to be exceedingly afraid of the smallest faults, as if sin had been bitter to them like death, while they indulged themselves secretly in the unrestrained commission of the grossest immoralities.”

Pulpit Commentary:
Fifth woe - against scrupulosity in trifles and neglect of weighty duties (Luke 11:42). Ye pay tithe of (ἀποδεκατοῦτε, ye tithe) mint and anise and cummin. Practically, the law of tithe was enforced only in the case of the produce mentioned in Deuteronomy 14:23 - corn, wine, and oil - but the Pharisees, in their overstrained scrupulosity, applied the law of Leviticus 27:30 ("all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord's") to the smallest pot herbs, even to their leaves and stalks. [...] The Pharisees were very far from treating important duties with the same scrupulosity which they observed in little matters.

Christ particularizes these weighty duties: Judgment, (and) mercy, and faith. Three are named, in contrast to the three petty observances mentioned above. Christ seems to refer to the words of Micah 6:8, "What doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?" (see also Hosea 12:6; Zechariah 7:9, 10). Worthless are all outward observances when the moral precepts are neglected. "Judgment" (τὴν κρίσιν) means acting equitably to one's neighbour, hurting nobody by word or deed; as in Jeremiah 5:1 a man is sought "that exerciseth justice.'" Such impartiality is specially enjoined in the Law (Deuteronomy 16:19, etc.). "Mercy," loving kindness in conduct, often taught in the Pentateuch, as in the case of the widow, the stranger, and the debtor, and very different from the feeling of those who "devour widows' houses." "Faith" may mean fidelity to promises: "He that sweareth unto his neighbour and disappointeth him not, though it were to his own hindrance" (Psalm 15:4); but it is more probably taken as that belief in God without which it is not possible to please him, and which should underlie and influence all moral action (Hebrews 11:6). These (ταῦτα)... the other (ἐκεῖνα). "These last" are judgment, mercy, and faith; these it was your duty to have done. "The other" refers to the tithing mentioned above.

Christ does not censure this attention to minutiae. He would teach conformity to regulations made by competent authority, or conscientiously felt to be binding, even though not distinctly enjoined in Scripture (see vers. 2, 3); his blame is reserved for that expenditure of zeal on trifles which stood in the place of, or left no strength for, higher duties. It was a very elastic conscience which tithed a pot herb and neglected judgment. Strain at a gnat; διαλίζοντες τὸν κώνωπα. "At" is supposed to be a misprint for "out." Thus Revised Version, and early English versions, which strain out the gnat; Vulgate, excolantes culicem. Alford thinks the present reading was an intentional alteration, meaning "strain (out the wine) at (the occurrence of) a gnat" - which seems more ingenious than probable. If "at" be retained, it must be taken as expressive of the fastidiousness which had to make a strong effort to overcome its distaste at this little insect. The wine, before drinking, was carefully strained through linen (see Amos 6:6, "strained wine," Septuagint) to avoid the accidental violation of Leviticus 11:20, 23, etc.; Leviticus 17:10-14, by swallowing an unclean insect. The practice, which was in some sense a religious act, is found among the Buddhists in Hindostan and Ceylon, either to avoid pollution or to obviate the danger of taking life, which their code forbids.

The gnat and the camel, which were alike unclean, stand at the extremities of the scale of comparative size. Our Lord uses a proverbial expression to denote the inconsistency which would avoid the smallest ceremonial defilement, but would take no account of the gravest moral pollution

THE MODERN CHURCH

Here are some examples of how LDS Church leaders encourage a hyperfixation on the minutiae which distract, and often prevent members from practicing the higher laws of Christ.

🔴 SEC INVESTIGATION VS. TITHING

“We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law.”
—Articles of Faith 1:12

The church’s investment fund—Ensign Peak—was found guilty of intentionally creating shell companies to avoid publicly disclosing the size of their investment portfolio.

They did this under the explicit direction of the First Presidency:

“To prevent disclosure of the securities portfolio managed by Ensign Peak, the Church approved Ensign Peak’s plan of using other entities, instead of Ensign Peak, to file Forms 13F. The Church was concerned that disclosure of the assets in the name of Ensign Peak, a known Church affiliate, would lead to negative consequences in light of the size of the Church’s portfolio. Ensign Peak did not have the authority to implement this approach without the approval of the Church’s First Presidency”

SEC Report, Paragraph 8

The fear was that if members found out how much money they had in their portfolio, they’d stop paying tithing (as reported by the Salt Lake Tribune).

The church conducts its own internal audits, and provides no transparency into how their money and resources are spent.

In contrast, members are required to be generous with their tithes and offerings if they want to remain in good standing with the Church.

This is a blatant example of “do what I say, not what I do.” The church is basically saying, “Financial transparency for thee, but not for me.”

Charitable Giving

The church grossly inflates its charitable giving claims, and continues to hoard wealth despite having the means solve some of the world’s biggest challenges (including ending world hunger).

Instead of building homeless shelters, they build temples.

Instead of caring for the widows, they build a shopping mall.

Instead of comforting the sick, they acquire office buildings, farms, and warehouses.

The Widow’s Mite Report has done a deep-dive into the churchs’s charitable giving claims using publicly available records. Here’s some of what they found:

• They double counting labor and cash donations to inflate the totals
• Exaggerated refugee impact by up to 5000X
• Exaggerated immunization aid by up to 45X
• Oaks exaggerated volunteer service hours by 5X in a public brag speech at Oxford
• The church money launders donations to LDS Charities via Australian accounts to trick the tax system there
• The church has started giving less welfare resources to members, instead giving to external charities, so it can brag about being so much more generous with humanitarian aid (it tells struggling members go get govt help instead)
• The church sneaked church welfare and fast offerings amounts into the 2021 LDS Charities annual report to make the numbers look bigger by 20X
• And most of the assistance giving claimed by LDSC every year was volunteer labor, not cash or goods
• Member donations to LDSC peaked in 2017 and are actually trending down not up
• Church could be giving $18 billion a year to charity without touching its reserve savings, but it gives next to nothing instead

Members are required to be generous with their time and resources while the church is manipulative and exaggerates the good in exchange for praise and status.

Then, when members need help, they’re encouraged to exhaust all other resources (like family, friends, and government programs) before getting aide from the church.

🔴 PROTECTING PREDATORS OVER SEXUAL ABUSE VICTIMS

The church regularly and actively condemns abuse. “The Church does not tolerate abuse in any form. Abuse violates the laws of God and may also be a violation of the laws of society.” However, verbally condemning abuse is not the same as actively preventing it.

The church’s child protection policies don’t come close to meeting the recommended minimum standard for protecting children from sexual abuse. There’s a hyper-focus on following the policies, and adhering to laws—even when those policies and laws don’t always support what’s best for the victims.

I have no doubt that a church run by Jesus Christ would go above and beyond the minimum recommendations from an insurance company or group of lawyers to do everything in their power to protect children from being sexually abused, assaulted, and raped—especially considering research indicates that religious communities are the most popular communities being intentionally targeted by child abusers.

This is a clear example of the church focusing on obeying the rules and completly overlooking the principles the rules are based on. Until the church backs up its verbal condemnationn with actual action by updating and enforcing its child protection policies and practices they are living in apostacy and aiding/empowering child abusers.

It’s worth noting that the Church has been actively engaged in lobbying to protect clergy-penitent privilage laws, preventing bishops from being mandatory reporters. This is evidence that the Church values its own reputation over the safety of children.

🔴 THE CHURCH REFUSES TO APOLOGIZE

We are taught from a young age that part of the repentance process is taking responsibility for our wrong actions, and doing our part to make them right.

Often, that includes apologizing for our mistakes and sins.

Elder Oaks is on record saying that The Church (as an organization) doesn’t ask for or offer apologies. This is an example of how leadership may teach its members to live a higher law, while not holding themselves to that same standard.

>> Elder Oaks interview with Salt Lake Tribune <<

🔴 STOP USING THE TERM “MORMON”

President Nelson’s recent obsession with using the official name of the Church and canning the use of the term “Mormon” is a clear example of leaders obsessing over something incredibly trivial. (Especially when former prophets (Hinckley and Monson) spend millions of dollars building up the name and reputation around Mormonism.)

His fixation on using the “correct” name of the Church has turned members into a legion of insufferable word police, smugly correcting people both online and in person.

What a weird thing to obsess over when there are so many more urgent problems that could use the attention and resources of members.

🔴 LGBTQ+ DISCRIMINATION

On the surface, the LDS church preaches a “love of all of God’s children.”  Despite that proclamation, church leadership has actively campaigned against the LGBTQ+ community (during Prop 8, and within the Procalamation to the Family) despite there being no evidence from the teachings of Christ that support doing so.

The lack of empathy and love towards the LGBTQ+ people has created divdes within families, mental and emotional health issues, and has driven many teens and adults to suicide.

For a Church that preaches love and family above all, their exaltation ban on the LGBTQ+ community feels very hypocritical.

🔴 HYPERFIXATION ON EXTERNAL MARKERS OF WORTHINESS

In my lifetime, there has been a hyperfixation on the minutiae of the rules (both spoken and unspoken) instead of the actual principles the rules were built on. Here are some examples:

Woe #6 | Matthew 23: 25-26

THE ANCIENT PHARISEES

“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.”

INTERPRETATION OF THE VERSE 

They hid internal greed and self-indulgence beneath an exterior show of righteousness. They looked clean and good on the outside, but on the inside they were full of corruption and spiritual decay.

-New Testament Study Manual

They presented an appearance of being 'clean' (self-restrained, not involved in carnal matters), but they were dirty inside: they seethed with hidden worldly desires, carnality. They were full of greed and self-indulgence.

THE MODERN CHURCH

Evidence that the modern LDS Church is hiding internal greed and self-indulgence beneath an exterior show of righteousness.

WARNING: This section contains the most disturbing stuff…

🔴 WILFORD WOODRUF’S 200+ WIVES

Wilford Woodruff had 267 women sealed to him, most of the sealings were done as birthday presents to himself.

on 1 March 1877—in celebration of his 70th birthday—Woodruff was accompanied by 154 women to attend a special event at the St. George Temple to perform proxy endowments for deceased women who had been or were being sealed to Woodruff as plural wives. Of this occasion, Woodruff records in his journal:

I was there surrounded with one hundred and fifty four virgins, Maidens Daughters and Mothers in Zion from the age of fourteen to the Aged Mother leaning upon her Staff. All had assembled for the purpose of entering into the Temple of the Lord to make me a birthday present by being washed and anointed and receiving their endowments for and in behalf of one hundred and thirty of my wives who were dead and in the spirit world, the majority of which had been sealed to me. . . .

When they had all assembled together in the Creation Room I presented myself before them clothed in my white doe skin temple dress. I there delivered unto them a short address. . . . You are today in this endowment without a man with you, but we shall furnish one man an Adam. . . . I went through the endowments of the day more like being in vision than a reality. These 154 sisters were led to three veils and three of us . . . all dressed in temple clothing,  took them all through the three veils. . . . President Young was present at the temple in witnessing the ceremonies. . . .

At the close of the labor at the temple I . . . was placed in the midst of a surprise party got up for the occasion. The room decorated and a table set loaded with all the luxuries of life, surrounded by nearly one hundred of those who had been receiving endowments for my dead during the day. President Young sat at the head of the table surrounded by his family and after blessing was asked, there was presented before me a present of a birthday bridal cake, three stories high, adorned with the beasts of the field from the elephant down, and ornamented with two satin sheets covered with printed poetry composed for the occasion.

Wilford Woodruff Journal, 1 March 1877

Woodruff would celebrate in similar fashion his 71st, 72nd, and 74th birthdays. On the occasion of his 72nd birthday, Woodruff recorded in his journal:

And I had sealed to me at the altar 74 single women who were dead, which makes 267 in all of the dead single women who have been sealed to me in the Endowment House in Salt Lake City and in the St George Temple. I was also sealed today for 65 Couple of dead friends of the Hart family, making 139 sealings and 7 adoptions.

Wilford Woodruff Journal, 1 March 1879

🔴 LORENZO SNOW’S MARRIAGE TO A 15-YEAR-OLD GIRL

Lorenzo Snow married Sarah "Minnie" Jenson in 1871 when she was 15 and he was 57. They had at least 5 children.

6 out of Snow’s 9 wives were teenagers.

Latter-day Saints look at the FLDS church and Warren Jeffs with a lot of judgement when our own history clearly demonstrates our leaders gave them the blueprint for child exploitation and polygamy.

🔴 JOSEPH SMITH’S WIVES

Joseph smith had 40 wives. Emma was sealed to him in March of 1842, making her his 23rd wife in the eyes of the Church.

Several of his wives were very young, the youngest being 14 years old. Several were sealed to Joseph after he sent their husbands out of the country on missions. And one affair was the catalyst for Oliver Cowdery’s excommunication. It was these illicit sexual behavirors that eventually led to his imprisonment in Carthage Jail, and subsequent murder.

To learn more about Joseph’s multiple wives, check out the Year of Polygamy podcast.

➡️ “Dirty, nasty, filty affair” with Fanny Alger

At the age of 39, Joseph Smith secretly married Fanny Alger—a teenager at the time—making her his first plural wife.

Oliver Cowdry was then excommunicated from the church, in part, for accusing Joseph of adultery with Fanny Alger.

Years later, accounts reveal that Emma caught Joseph in a “Dirty, nasty, filthy affair” with Fanny.

She was posthumously seald to him years after her death.

➡️ Helen Mar Kimball

Joseph married Helen Mar Kimball, daughter of Heber C. and Vilate Kimball, when she was 14 years old.

In the spring of 1843, when Helen was 14 years old, her father described the doctrine of plural marriage to her. He asked if she would consent to be "sealed to Joseph".[8] Helen described her reaction to this proposition:

My father was the first to introduce it to me, which had a similar effect to a sudden shock of a small earthquake. When he found (after the first outburst of displeasure for supposed injury) that I received it meekly, he took the first opportunity to introduce Sarah Ann [Whitney] to me as Joseph's wife.[9]

Smith gave Helen 24 hours to respond to this request. The girl consented only after Smith explained to her that it would ensure her eternal salvation, along with that of her family. Helen was sealed to Smith in May 1843 when she was 14 and he was 37. The marriage was kept secret, and Helen continued to live with her parents.[6] A friend of Kimball, named Catherine Lewis, reported that Helen said to her:

I would never have been sealed to Joseph had I known it was anything more than ceremony. I was young, and they deceived me, by saying the salvation of our whole family depended on it.[10]

Initially, Helen despised the concept of polygamy, stating that, "seeing the trials of my mother, felt to rebel. I hated polygamy with my heart." Later in her life, however, she became a vigorous defender of the practice and wrote a number of publications praising it.[11][12] With regard to her feelings about Smith's implementation of the practice, Kimball wrote,

It was a strange doctrine, and very dangerous too, to be introduced at such a time, when in the midst of the greatest trouble Joseph had ever encountered. The Missourians and Illinoisans were ready and determined to destroy him. They could but take his life, and that he considered a small thing when compared with the eternal punishment which he was doomed to suffer if he did not teach and obey this principle. No earthly inducement could be held forth to the women who entered this order. It was to be a life sacrifice for the sake of an everlasting glory and exaltation.[9]

Wikipedia article on Helen Mar Kimball

Contrary to the apologists argument, it was not normal for a 14 year old to get married in the 1840s. Census data shows that girls getting married at 16 years old or younger was extremely rare. It was also extremely rare for a man over 35 to be getting married. A man over 35 marrying a girl under 16 would have been rare and most likely scandalous if it had been known.

➡️ NAUVOO EXPOSITOR

Joseph’s philandering drew the ire of many in Nauvoo. The Nauvoo Expositor was founded by several members of the Church (and some non-Mormons) in Nauvoo. A single edition of the paper was released, criticizing the prophet for teaching doctrines like plural marriage.

On June 7, 1844, Joseph ordered the destruction of the newspaper, declaring it a “public nuisance.”

The destruction of the printing press led to charges of riot against Joseph—which eventually led to his imprisonment in Carthage Jail.

Joseph didn’t “die a martyr.” He died because he was using manipulation, threats, and fear to sleep with marry the women and girls in the community, and punishing anyone who spoke out against it.

🔴 TAX EVASION

The Mormon Church has been accused of engaging in significant tax evasion in Australia, allowing its adherents to collect hundreds of millions of dollars in tax exemptions that are not lawfully available to followers of other religions.

Some of its tax activities are run through a shell company, with no paid employees, that could be in breach of Australian tax laws.

The Sunday Morning Herald

The reporters are claiming the church created what The Age referred to as “a shell company” in order to exploit a loophole in Australian law. Australia does not give any kind of tax exemption for donations to churches or houses of worship. But it does give a tax exemption for donations to “charity,” things like homeless shelters and schools and hospitals.

The reports are stating that the LDS Church created a “charitable trust fund” and directed Australian Saints to send their tithing and other donations to that trust fund rather than to the church itself. They could then claim the tax exemption for contributing to a charity.

But if I am understanding it correctly, Australian law then requires the registered charities to distribute much of that money within Australia and to have that distribution overseen locally, with all decisions made by Australians who run the charity from within the country.

Instead, what appears to have happened is that Australians’ tithing dollars got centralized in Salt Lake City under the larger umbrella of the denomination’s charitable arm, which then disbursed the funds as it wished to.

Religion News

🔴 USING POLITICAL CLOUT TO MAINTAIN CLERGY-PENITENT PRIVILAGE

Proposals to reform laws that exempt clergy from child sex abuse reporting requirements went nowhere in Utah’s statehouse this year, failing to receive even a hearing as lawmakers prepare to adjourn for the year. Efforts were stymied by a coalition of powerful religious groups, continuing a yearslong pattern in which Catholics, Latter-day Saints and Jehovah’s Witnesses have defended the exemptions as survivors like Lundholm fight for reform.

In Utah, where the majority of lawmakers are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, state law requires most professionals — therapists, doctors and teachers among them — report abuse, yet clergy are exempt from alerting authorities about abuse they learn of through confessions.

Republicans and Democrats announced plans last year to reform laws that exempt religious clergy from reporting child sexual abuse cases revealed in conversations with parishioners. [...]

Each proposal was introduced or announced after an Associated Press investigation found that the Utah-based Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ sexual abuse reporting hotline can be misused by its leaders to divert abuse accusations away from law enforcement and instead to church attorneys who may bury the problem, leaving victims in harm’s way.

In lawsuits detailed in the investigation, attorneys from the faith widely known as the Mormon church have argued clergy-penitent privilege allows them to refuse to answer questions and turn over documents about alleged sexual abuse.

Associated Press

🔴 GENERAL AUTHORITY LIVING STIPEND

The church has proudly calimed to have a “lay leadership.” High-ranking church leaders get a “modest living stipend.”

The implication is that this stipend will cover their living expenses, not allowing much room for extravagance. However, documents show that in the late 2010’s and early 2000’s, a general authority’s stipend was in the range of $120,000.

Leaders who get stipends include the First Presidency, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, members of the Seventy, and mission presidents. Female general auxiliary leaders (General Relief Socitey Presidency, Young Womens’ Presidency, or Primary Presidency) do not get any sort of compensation or stipend.

The living stipend is not the only thing general authorities get access to. Leaked documents show that mission presidents (and general authorities) get access to a litany of other perks. (Mission president stipend 1, and stipend 2.):

• Free college tuition for kids and grandkids at church-owned universities
• House cleaner
• A personal chef
• Groceries
• Eating out
• Dry cleaning
• Clothing and luggage
• Birthday presents
• Family outings
• Hobbies, books, toys, and entertainment
• Family vacations
• Medical and dental insurance
• Elementary school expenses
• Extracurricular activities (like dance, music, sports)
• Missionary preparation expenses
• Vehicles
• Gas
• Fully furnished home
• Personal long-distance calls to family/phone bill

Not to mention, many general authorities make money selling books through Deseret Book, and speaking  

Leaders are encouraged not to report any of this income to the IRS or pay taxes on it.

To claim that there is no paid clergy, then pay top (male) leaders a generous salary stipend and cover their living, travel, and extracurricular expenses is an outright lie and the very definition of hypocrisy.

🔴 PRESIDENT NELSON’S BIRTHDAY PARTY

For a church that is supposed to be focused on Christ, it’s weird for the top leader, to throw himself a party featuring performing artists like Jenny Oaks Baker & Family Four, GENTRI, The Bonner Family, Nathan Pacheco and Donny Osmond along with The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square and 21,000 guests.

If this isn’t an example of an example of self-endulgence, I don’t know what is.

Woe #7 | Matthew 23: 27-28

THE ANCIENT PHARISEES

“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.”

INTERPRETATION OF THE VERSE 

It was common during New Testament times to apply a white finish to the exterior of tombs, thus making the exterior look clean, while the dead body decayed within. No amount of exterior polish could abate what was happening on the inside. The Savior used this image, along with that of a cup that is clean on the outside but not on the inside, to illustrate the glaring inconsistency between the inward and outward states of hypocrites.

-New Testament Study Manual

Elder Lynn G. Robbins of the Seventy taught that hypocrisy involves inconsistency between what one does and the weightier matter of what one is: “The Savior often denounced those who did without being—calling them hypocrites: ‘This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me’ (Mark 7:6). To do without to be is hypocrisy, or feigning to be what one is not—a pretender. …

-New Testament Manual

The Pharisees exhibited themselves as righteous on account of being scrupulous keepers of the law but were, in fact, not righteous: their mask of righteousness hid a secret inner world of ungodly thoughts and feelings. They were full of wickedness. They were like whitewashed tombs, beautiful on the outside, but full of dead men's bones.

THE MODERN CHURCH

🔴 DISGUISING ABUSE AS RIGHTEOUSNESS

Steven Hassan developed the BITE Model to describe cults' specific methods to recruit and maintain control over people. “BITE” stands for:

• Behavior control
• Information control
• Thought control
• Emotional control

Within the church, these manipulative, exploitative, and even abusive behaviors and beliefs are often praised as righteousness, and faithfulness. It’s common for your conviction, obedience, even obsession around these rules to be leveraged to display a deep level of conversion and commitment to the Church.

Below is a full list of points from each category of of Hassan’s BITE model demonstrating the ways manipulative organizations exhibit mind control over their members. The bullets have been color coordinated in the following ways:

Green means: “I don’t think the Mormon church does this in modern times.”

Orange means: “I see this happening sometimes in the Mormon church (like on Missions), but not as a general rule .”

Red means: “This occurs regularly within the Mormon Church.”

✴️ Behavior Control

• Regulate individuals physical reality
• Dictate where, how, and with whom the member lives and associates or isolates
• When how, and with whom the member has sex
• Control types of clothing and hairstyles
• Regulate diet—food and drink, hunger, and/or fasting
• Manipulation and deprivation of sleep
• Financial exploitation, manipulation or dependence
• Restrict leisure, entertainment, vacation time
• Major time spent with group indoctrination and rituals and/or self-indoctrination including the internet
• Permission required for major decisions
• Thoughts, feelings, and activities (of self and others) reported to superiors
• Rewards and punishments used to modify behaviors, both positive and negative
• Discourage individualism, encourage group-think
• Impose rigid rules and regulations
• Punish disobedience by beating, orture, burning, cutting, rape, or tattooing/branding
• Threaten harm to family and friends
• Force individual to rape or be raped
• Instill dependency and obedience
• Encourage and engage in corporal punishment

✴️ Information Control

• Deception:

• Deliberately withhold information
• Distort information to make it more acceptable
• Systematically lie to the member

• Minimize or discourage access to non-cult sources of information, including:

• Internet, TV, radio, books, articles, newspapers, magazines, other media
• Critical information
• Former members
• Keep members busy so they don’t have time to think and investigate
• Control through cell phone with texting, calls internet tracking

• Compartmentalize information into “Outsider vs. Insider” doctrines:

• Ensure that information is not freely accessible
• Control information at different levels and missions within the group
• Allow only leadership to decide who needs to know what, and when

• Encourage spying on other members:

• Impose a buddy system to monitor and control member
• Report deviant thoughts, feelings, and actions to leadership
• Ensure that individual behavior is monitored by the group

• Extensive use of cult-generated information and propaganda, including:

• Newsletters, magazines, journals, audiotapes, videotapes, YouTube, movies, and other media
• Misquoting statements or u sing them out of context from non-cult sources

• Unethical use of confession:

• Information about sins used to disrupt and/or dissolve identity boundaries
• Witholding forgiveness or absolution
• Manipulation of memory, possible false memories

✴️ Thought Control

• Require members to internalize the group’s doctrine as truth:

• Adopting the group’s “map of reality” as reality
• Instill black and white thinking
• Decide between good vs. evil
• Organize people into us vs. them (insiders vs. outsiders)

• Change person’s name and identity
• Use of loaded language and clichés which constrict knowledge, stop critical thoughts, and reduce complexities into platitudinous buzz words
• Encourage only “good and proper” thoughts
• Hypnotic techniques are used to alter mental states, undermine critical thinking, and even to age regress the member
• Memories are manipulated and false memories are created
• Teaching thought-stopping techniques which shut down reality testing by stopping negative thoughts and allowing only positive thoughts, including:

• Denial, rationlization, justification, wishful thinking
• Chanting
• Meditating
• Praying
• Speaking in tongues
• Singing or humming

• Rejection of rational analysis, critical thinking, constructive criticism
• Forbid critical questions about leaders, doctrine, or policy allowed
• Labeling alternative belief systems as illegitimate, evil, or not useful
• Instill new “map of reality”

✴️ Emotion Control

• Manipulate and narrow the range of feelings—some emotions and/or needs are deemed as evil, wrong, or selfish
• Teach emotion-stopping techniques to block ffeelings of homesickness, anger, and doubt
• Make the person feel that problems are always their own fault, never the leader’s or the group’s fault
• Promote feelings of guilt or unworthiness, such as:

• Identity guilt
• You’re not living up to your potential
• Your family is deficient
• Your past is suspect
• Your affiliations are unwise
• Your thoughts, feelings, actions are irrelevant or selfish
• Social guilt
• Historical guilt

• Instill fear, such as fear of:

• Thinking independently
• The outside world
• Enemies
• Losing one’s salvation
• Leaving or being shunned by the group
• Other’s disapproval

• Extremes of emotional highs and lows—love bombing and praise one moment, then declaring you’re a horrible sinner
• Ritualistic and sometimes public confession of sins
• Phobia indoctrination: inculcating irrational fears about leaving the group or questioning the leader’s authority:        

• No happiness or fulfillment possible outside the group
• Terrible consequences if you leave: hell, demon possession, incurable diseases, accidents, suicide, insanity, 10,000 reincarnations, etc.
• Shunning of those who leave; fear of being rejected by friends and family
• Never a legitimate reason to leave; those who leave are weak, undisciplined, unspiritual, worldly, brainwashed by famly or counselor, or seduced by money, sex, or rock and roll
• Threats of harm to ex-member and family

If this isn’t an example of making something evil and corrupt appear good and righteous on the surface, I don’t know what is…

🔴 STRENGTHENING CHURCH MEMBERS COMMITTEE

The Strengthening Church Members Committee is a secret committee established under the leadership of President Benson. The purpose of the committee is to “monitor the publications of its members for possible criticism of general and local church leaders. If criticism is found, the committee may forward information to local church leaders, who may bring charges of apostasy, which can result in excommunication.” (source)

This Committee—which includes members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles—is a perfect example of how Church leadership is focused more on maintaining the public image of the church than understanding what’s hurting disaffected church members and causing them to leave. The committee pours over newspapers and other publicationns to identify members who are being critical of the church or its’ leaders, forwarding that infomation on to local leaders to put an end to the criticism—usually under threat of excommunication—even if the criticism is true.

🔴 UNCONDITIONAL LOVE

The Church does not believe in a God who loves unconditionally—which conflicts with a fundemental belief held by (arguably) the majority of members:

While divine love can be called perfect, infinite, enduring, and universal, it cannot correctly be characterized as unconditional. The word does not appear in the scriptures. On the other hand, many verses affirm that the higher levels of love the Father and the Son feel for each of us—and certain divine blessings stemming from that love—are conditional. Before citing examples, it is well to recognize various forms of conditional expression in the scriptures.
-Russell M. Nelson, Divine Love

Ironically, this quote contradicts with Nelson’s assertion in 1991, and President Hinckley’s 1993 Christmas Devotional:

Godliness characterizes each of you who truly loves the Lord. You are constantly mindful of the Savior’s atonement and rejoice in His unconditional love. Meanwhile you vanquish personal pride and vain ambition. You consider your accomplishments important only if they help establish His kingdom on earth.

-Russell M. Nelson, “These … Were Our Examples”

In moments of quiet, we reflect upon His matchless life and His unconditional love for each of us. As unworthy recipients of His mercy, we thank Him for His redeeming sacrifice.

-President Hinckley, 1993 Christmas Devotional

🔴 ILLUSION OF FREE AGENCY

Since the beginning, the LDS church has taught a fundemtnal doctrine that in the pre-mortal life, there was a war in heaven over free agency—the power to choose. Lucifer wanted to destroy agency.

Wherefore, because that Satan rebelled against me, and sought to destroy the agency of man, which I, the Lord God, had given him, and also, that I should give unto him mine own power; by the power of mine Only Begotten, I caused that he should be cast down

- Moses 4: 3

In a recent Question & Answer devotional, Elder Bednar responded to the following question: "How can I achieve both temporal and spiritual self-reliance without focusing primarily on temporal self-reliance?"

He said:

I want to make two observations. Number one I don't like the term self-reliance. We should never rely on self. First and foremost, we should recognize our dependence upon God and our reliance upon Him. That is a very good kind of dependence. Now, what self-reliance means is that we first look here (pointing inside ourselves) to solve our problems. Now, I hope that what I'm about to say may seem simple to you. There are basic principles and doctrines that help us understand this concept of self-reliance.

We are children of God. Through the Savior's Atonement, we are blessed with moral agency. The principle of moral agency is the least understood of all gospel principles. It is taught incorrectly often, and it leads people to behave in ways that are not appropriate. As I listen to members of the Church all over the world, this is how they define agency: It's the ability to choose, and I can do what I want. That's false.

Why do we have agency? Go find in the Pearl of Great Price in the Book of Moses God's explanation for why we have agency.

[Moses 7: 32 The Lord said unto Enoch: Behold these thy brethren; they are the workmanship of mine own hands, and gave unto them their knowledge, in the day I created them; and in the Garden of Eden, gave I unto man his agency; 33 And unto thy brethren have I said, and also given commandment, that they should love one another, and that they should choose me, their Father; but behold, they are without affection, and they hate their own blood; :34 And the fire of mine indignation is kindled against them; and in my hot displeasure will l send in the floods upon them, for my fierce anger is kindled against them. 35 Behold, I am God; Man of Holiness is my name; Man of Counsel is my name; and Endless and Eternal is my name, also.]

It is to choose Him. Not to choose what we want, but to choose God and to love and serve each other. Now, buckle up. Are you buckled up? OK. Here we go!

When you and I enter the baptismal covenant, there are three conditions of the covenant: A willingness to take upon ourselves the name of Christ, a commitment to always remember Him, and a commitment to keep the commandments. We learn about those elements of the covenant, and we exercise our agency to accept those conditions of the covenant. We then are promised that, if we honor the covenant, we may always have God's Spirit to be with us. OK.

As we pledge to take upon ourselves the name of Christ, that begins in the waters of baptism. It begins. We do not wholly and totally take upon ourselves the name of Christ in the waters of baptism. We begin. Where do we more fully take upon ourselves the name of Christ? In the temple! There's a pathway from the baptismal font to the temple. And there are increasing blessings by the power of the Holy Ghost that come into our lives. As we begin to have the name of Christ come upon us, through ordinances and covenants we have a new family name: Christian. And with that name, we are to represent Him at all times, and in all places, and in all things.

Now, this is why you need to be buckled up. When we enter into that covenant and begin to have the name of Christ come upon us, our agency is enlarged. It's no longer Individual Agency. It is enlarged to become Representative Agency, and representing Christ and His name, at all times, and in all places, and in all things, becomes more important than what we want. The reason we need to always remember Him is so that we may effectively represent Him. The reason we need the companionship of the Holy Ghost -Yes, that blesses us- but we need that companionship of the third member of the Godhead so that we may represent Him!

We have already pledged that we will keep the commandments. Have you heard someone say, a member of the Church who has entered into the baptismal covenant, "I have my agency. I can do whatever I want!" Have you ever heard that? Yeah, you know what the answer is? "No, you can't! You dont understand agency! You don't have agency to do whatever you want!"

We have the hymn, "Choose the Right", don't we, in Spanish? The hymn is called, "Choose the Right" Not "Choose what you want"! So, from tonight on, don't ever use a misunderstood concept of agency to justify sin! You can't just choose what you want! And when you begin to understand that principle, then you're on the road to becoming spiritually self-reliant, dependent upon God and devoted to representing Him all the time, everywhere.

Now, I want to say this in terms that I hope won't be scary, but they're true. If, after having entered into the covenant, we don't abide by the conditions of the covenant, for example, if you or I don't pay our tithing, do we have the option not to pay our tithing? Nope. It's breaking a covenant. It is not the exercise of agency anymore. Because, what happened to our individual agency? It was enlarged. Now, it's more important to represent Him. Is this making sense? If some night, you don't want to go to sleep, read the scriptures and learn what happens to covenant breakers. I guarantee you, you will not go to sleep. Now, I don't want to scare you. But I want you to understand that this is serious! Agency is the centerpoint of our moral experience. With that agency, we are agents to act. That is self-reliance. We are not objects to be acted upon. That is the absence of self-reliance.

Now, go find more in the scriptures. This is just the beginning. But if you come to understand what agency is, made possible through the Savior's Atonement, you will be taking steps in the direction of becoming spiritually and temporally self-reliant.

Elder Bednar uses spiritual psychobabble to completely redefine the word “Agency” and rationalize that as we grow closer to God, we actually lose our agency. Yet another example of how the leaders are corrupting a fundamental truth of Mormonism.

🔴 ELIMINATING THE LAW OF COMMON CONSENT

In 1830, Joseph Smith recorded D&C section 20—a revelation laying out how Christ wanted His church organized and governed. There are specific instructions about the duties of different priesthood quorums, how ordinances will be performed, and the process of calling and stustaining leaders in the church. In verse 65, the law of Common Consent is revealed: “No person is to be ordained to any office in this church, where there is a regularly organized branch of the same, without the vote of that church;”

In the early days of the Church, this principle was followed—even when Joseph didn’t necessarily agree with the outcomes as referenced in Church History Topics.

After the restoration of priesthood authority, the Lord commanded Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery not to ordain each other as elders and leaders in the Church until other believers could “decide by vote whether they were willing to accept” Joseph and Oliver’s leadership. One of Joseph’s first actions at the organizational meeting of the Church on April 6, 1830, was to call for such a vote. He asked those assembled to show whether they approved of him and Oliver as teachers and whether they should organize the Church according to revelation. The members voted unanimously in favor. A July 1830 revelation reiterated that “all things shall be done by common consent in the Church by much prayer & faith.” [...]

The practice of conducting Church business by common consent sometimes resulted in contrary votes. A revelation in 1841 even recognized the possibility of the Saints not ratifying callings issued by revelation. “A commandment I give unto you,” the Lord declared, “that you should fill all these offices and approve of those names which I have mentioned, or else disapprove of them at my general conference.” Some members at an 1841 conference objected to retaining the elders quorum president, a bishop, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and a counselor in the Nauvoo high priests quorum presidency. The respective quorums subsequently met in councils to reconsider these callings. At a conference in 1843, Joseph Smith questioned Sidney Rigdon’s fitness to serve as a counselor in the First Presidency. Other leaders spoke out in support of Rigdon, and the assembled Church members voted to retain him in his calling against Joseph’s initial wishes. Joseph begrudgingly accepted the result.

More recently (in the past few decades, especially) the Law of Common Consent has been ignored, especially at the highest levels of the Church. President Nelson’s and his First Presidency ordained themselves in secret and started doing their jobs 3 months before the global membership outside the Quorum of Apostles were allowed to vote to sustain (or oppose) them.

They didn’t even tell anyone they had done it and that they had ordained a new Prophet till the press conference a few days after the secret transfer of power. This completely violates the most basic principles of the laws of Common Consent in our scriptures which say that no leader is authorised to serve without the sustaining vote of the people they preside over.

It worth noting that Church Leaders continue to enforce other revelations in the Doctrine and Covenants such as tithing, the law of chastity, fasting, and food storage. All of these revelations deal with the controlling the behaviors and throughts of church membership. Yet, when it comes to scriptural revelations that require accountability on the part of leadership, they conveniently remain silent.

When the rules stop applying to those in power, it’s a clear sign that the system itself is corrupt.

🔴 INFALLABILITY OF PROPHETS

The President of the Church of Jesus Christ is often referred to as the Prophet—meaning, “one who prophesies.” It’s inferred that the prophet of the Church speaks directly with Jesus, and acts as His mouthpiece (despite there being a lack of actual prophisees for decades). In recend decades—especially in the 80’s and 90’s—the messaging of church leaders has reinforced the idea that prophets are infallible. Most who were raised in that time period grew up with a doctrine that focused more on following the Prophet, than on following Christ.

A small example that substantiates this idea can be found in the April, 2024 sessions of General Conference, where Christ was mentioned 47 times, and President Nelson was quoted 65 times.

Here are several examples of recent prophets and apostles reinforcing the idea that modern prophets speak for God, and we should trust them explicitly (inferring that they do not make mistakes, or speak mistruths).

"Let us live the gospel fully, and may we recognize the infallibility of God’s inspired word—whether by his “… own voice …” or the “voice of [his] my servants, it is the same.”

- Ezra taft Benson, Prepare Ye

"I am called of God. My authority is above that of the kings of the earth. By revelation I have been selected as a personal representative of the Lord Jesus Christ. ... My voice is his voice, and my acts are his acts; my words are his words and my doctrine is his doctrine.”

- Bruce R. McConkie, How Great Is My Calling

"Whose side are we on? When the prophet speaks the debate is over."

- N. Eldon tanner, The Debate is Over

"Prophets aren't always popular, but we will always speak the truth! ... our commission as apostles is to teach nothing but truth."

- Russell M. Nelson, The Love and Laws of God

"The Lord has promised us that He will never allow the prophet to lead us astray ... I bless you to follow the prophets with exactness."

Russell M. Nelson, True Millennials: Do the Impossible

A church that professes to be Christ’s one true church on earth should be focused on following Christ, not promoting Prophets to ex cathedra staus.

Woe #8 | Matthew 23: 29-30

THE ANCIENT PHARISEES

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.

INTERPRETATION OF THE VERSE 

They rejected living prophets while claiming allegiance to dead prophets.

They professed a high regard for the dead prophets of old and claimed that they would never have persecuted and murdered prophets when, in fact, they were cut from the same cloth as the persecutors and murderers: they too had murderous blood in their veins.

🔴 BATTLE AT FORT UTAH

The Battle at Fort Utah (also known as the Provo River Massacre, or Fort Utah Massacre was a violent attack in 1850 in which 90 Mormon militiamen surrounded an encampment of Timpanogos families on the Provo River one winter morning,  and laid siege for two days, eventually shooting between 40 and 100 Native American men and one woman with guns and a cannon during the attack as well as during the pursuit and capture of the two groups that fled the last night. One militiaman died from return fire during the siege. Of the Timpanogos people who fled in the night, one group escaped southward, and the other ran east to Rock Canyon. Both groups were captured, however, and the men were executed. Over 40 Timpanogos children, women, and a few men were taken as prisoners to nearby Fort Utah. They were later taken northward to the Salt Lake Valley and sold as slaves to church members there.  The bodies of up to 50 Timpanogos men were beheaded by some of the settlers and their heads put on display at the fort as a warning to the mostly women and children prisoners inside.

Source

🔴 Mountain Meadows massacre

After arriving in Salt Lake City, the Baker–Fancher party made their way south along the Mormon Road, eventually stopping to rest at Mountain Meadows. As the party was traveling west there were rumors about the party's behavior towards Mormon settlers and war hysteria towards outsiders was rampant as a result of a military expedition dispatched by President Buchanan, and Territorial Governor Brigham Young's declaration of martial law in response.[3][4][5] While the emigrants were camped at the meadow, local militia leaders, including Isaac C. Haight and John D. Lee, made plans to attack the wagon train. The leaders of the militia, wanting to give the impression of tribal hostilities, persuaded Southern Paiutes to join with a larger party of militiamen disguised as Native Americans in an attack. During the militia's first assault on the wagon train, the emigrants fought back, and a five-day siege ensued. Eventually, fear spread among the militia's leaders that some emigrants had caught sight of the white men, likely discerning the actual identity of a majority of the attackers. As a result, militia commander William H. Dame ordered his forces to kill the emigrants. By this time, the emigrants were running low on water and provisions, and allowed some members of the militia – who approached under a white flag – to enter their camp. The militia members assured the emigrants they were protected, and after handing over their weapons, the emigrants were escorted away from their defensive position. After walking a distance from the camp, the militiamen, with the help of auxiliary forces hiding nearby, attacked the emigrants. The perpetrators killed all the adults and older children in the group, in the end sparing only seventeen young children under the age of seven.[a]

Following the massacre, the perpetrators buried some of the remains but ultimately left most of the bodies exposed to wild animals and the climate. Local families took in the surviving children, with many of the victims' possessions and remaining livestock being auctioned off. Investigations, which were interrupted by the American Civil War, resulted in nine indictments in 1874. Of the men who were indicted, only John D. Lee was tried in a court of law. After two trials in the Utah Territory, Lee was convicted by a jury, sentenced to death, and executed by firing squad on March 23, 1877.

Historians attribute the massacre to a combination of factors, including war hysteria about a possible invasion of Mormon territory and Mormon teachings against outsiders, which were part of the Mormon Reformation period. Scholars debate whether senior leadership in Mormonism, including Brigham Young, directly instigated the massacre or if responsibility for it lay only with the local leaders in southern Utah.

Source

🔴 EXCOMMUNICATION OF ADVOCATES

The church has a history of excommunicating members who actively advocate for change and transparency within the Church. Some examples are:

The September Six

A group of six members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who were excommunicated or disfellowshipped in September 1993 for their intellectual and historical pursuits that were deemed contrary to the teachings and doctrines of the Church. The six members were:

• D. Michael Quinn – A historian and former professor at Brigham Young University who published several works on Church history that were seen as critical of Church leaders and doctrines. In particular, his book “The Mormon Hierarchy: Extensions of Power” examines the development of Church leadership and its involvement in controversial issues such as polygamy and the Mountain Meadows Massacre.
  
  Quinn reflected and spoke often on the tension between scholarship and faith. In his On Bring a Mormon Historian lecture, he argues that there is a need for a more open and honest approach to Church history that acknowledges the complexities and challenges of the past, while also maintaining a commitment to faith and community.
  
• Lavina Fielding Anderson – An editor and writer who was accused of apostasy for publicly questioning the Church’s treatment of women and its handling of historical documents. She was also the editor of a controversial collection of essays titled “A Woman’s Place,” which explores the role of women in the Church.
  
• Maxine Hanks – A writer and feminist theologian who was excommunicated for her involvement in the publication of a book titled “Women and Authority: Re-emerging Mormon Feminism,” which was seen as promoting feminist ideas that were at odds with Church teachings.

• Avraham Gileadi – A Hebrew scholar who was accused of apostasy for publishing a book on the Book of Isaiah that was seen as promoting a non-traditional interpretation of the text.
  
• Paul Toscano – A lawyer and writer who was disfellowshipped for publicly criticizing the Church’s handling of dissenting members and advocating for greater openness and transparency within the Church. He also published several works that were critical of Church doctrines and practices, including “The Sanctity of Dissent” and “Strangers in Paradox.”
  
• Lynne Kanavel Whitesides – A writer and feminist who was involved in the publication of “Women and Authority” and advocated for greater gender equality within the Church. Whitesides was disfellowshipped for comments she made on television about how the LDS Church treated women. She is now a professional life coach.

Sam Young

A former bishop who was excommunicated in 2018 for apostasy after he launched a campaign to end the practice of asking children sexually explicit questions in one-on-one interviews with Church leaders. He argued that the practice was harmful and put children at risk of abuse.

Lyndon Lamborn

A member of the Church who was excommunicated in 1995 for apostasy, after he published a book critical of the Church called “Standing for Something More: The Excommunication of Lyndon Lamborn.” He argued that the Church was too focused on conformity and obedience, and not enough on individual freedom and critical thinking.

Jeremy Runnells

A member of the Church who was excommunicated in 2016 for apostasy after he published a document called the “CES Letter” — a collection of honest questions about LDS doctrine and Book of Mormon history written at the request of a CES leader who promised to answer all Jeremy’s questions.

Bill Reel

A former bishop who was excommunicated in 2018 for apostasy after he publicly criticized Church leaders and doctrines on his podcast. He also raised concerns about the Church’s handling of cases of sexual abuse.

Gina Colvin

A New Zealand-based podcaster and writer who was disciplined in 2018 for apostasy after she publicly questioned Church teachings on issues such as women’s roles in the Church and the historicity of the Book of Mormon. She left the church and started attending the Community of Christ instead, while her spouse is still an active and believing member of the mainstream Mormon church.

Since the excommunication of each of these members, the church has made changes aligning with their complaints and requests, such as:

• Allowing the parents of children to be present during 1-on-1 worthiness interviews with bishops
• Changes to the temple ceremony making it more egalitarian
• Changes to church policies regarding treatment of LGBTQ+ families
• Changes to the Young Womens theme to include reference to Heavenly Mother
• More transparency about Church history, including:

• The Gospel Topics Essays
• The series of “Saints” books
• More honest accounts of how the book of Mormon was translated (using a seer stone while peering into a hat)
• Young women being given the same budgets as young men

🔴 THE CHURCH IS A BREEDING GROUND FOR EXTREMIST CULT LEADERS

The modern Church is full of fringe doctrines that create the perfect breeding ground for megalomaniacs to prey on innocent, gullible, and trusting church members.

Not only is Utah the fraud capital of the world with a ridiculous amount of white collar crime, ponzi schemes, and affinity fraud—but the church’s fringe doctrines of polygamy, blood atonement, sexual purity, the desctruction of the world during the second coming, and the White Horse Prophesy (that the Constitution will dangle by a thread and be saved by church members) provide a perfect environment for psychopathic people to gain power and influence over other church members.

Some recent examples are:

• Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow: Chad claimed to have several near death experiences where he was able to glimpse the end of times—gaining him a reputation within the LDS prepper/doomsdayer subculture. His books chronicalling the apocalypse were widely read. He used his influence in the LDS communities of Utah and Idaho to build a loyal following. He pursued a relationship with Lori Vallow, then killed his wife, and her two kids after convincing Lori that her kids were possessed by devils.
• Jodi Hildebrnadt and Ruby Franke: Jodi Hildebrand was an LDS therapist whose clientele were largely referred to her via local Utah bishops. She claimed to have a new and proprietary way to help people overcome addictions. She emotionally and mentally manpiulated countless clients, making them dependent on her for their wellbeing—destroying many marriages in the process. Ultimately, she and Ruby were arrested and charged with child abuse for torturing and starving Ruby’s children after one of them escaped.
• Tim Ballard: Tim built a massive following (and a massive amount of wealth) via his human trafficking nonprofit, Operation Underground Railroad. He used a universally accepted cause—protecting children from sex abuse and trafficking—to build inroads with General Authorities like M. Russell Ballard, who introduced him to wealthy members of the LDS church who could become donors to his organization. Tim Ballard was recently accused by 6 women of sex trafficking them—taking them to another country where he would use his “couples ruse” to coerce them into sex acts—on child rescue missions.  He also had plans to run for Utah Senate, and it’s rumored that he believed he would become the prophet of the Church and the President of the United States, thereby fulfilling the White Horse Prophecy.
• Ron and Dan Lafferty: Ron Lafferty and his younger brother Dan were charged for the throat-slashing homicides of their sister-in-law Brenda Wright Lafferty and her 15-month-old daughter Erica that occurred on July 24, 1984. Ron, a self-proclaimed prophet, claimed to have received a revelation from God in which he was instructed to "remove" several people, including the two victims, based on the doctrine of Blood Atonement.
• Warren Jeffs: The leader and prophet of the FLDS church who married child brides to himself and influential men in the church in exchange for their loyalty. He would have orgies, and rape young girls in the temple. The FLDS church shares a history and core doctrines with the mainstream Brighamite church.

The church membership will continue to become more and more extreme as the years go by because more progressive members get culturally forced out or excommunicated, leaving behind only the most conservative members. This results in a higher concentration of extremists who will continue to prey on church membership until the Church either takes a stand against these dangerous doctrines, or steps away from the all-or-nothing approach for membership.

CONCLUSION

I believe this document provides all the evidence required to show that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has fallen into its own definition of apostasy: A turning away from the truth by individuals, the Church, or entire nations.

The church can’t be true if its leaders promote and enforce doctrines, policies, and cultural traditions that not only contradict what Christ taught—but perfectly align with the teachings Christ condemned.

This is a key reason I, and many others, have chosen to stop affiliating with the Church. The Church left me, and countless others who wanted to belong to the actual Church of Christ—the church that is dedicated to loving, helping, serving, and ameliorating suffering—not the Church of the Pharisees that obsesses over perfect obedience, rule-following, earning conditional love from a jealous God, compromising individuality to conform to the norms of the church, and sacrificing an individual relationshp with God in exchange for an institutional one.

It’s often stated that the Church is perfect, but the members are not. I believe the opposite to be true. Generally speaking, the members are amazing, charitable, kind, good-hearted people, caught up in a Church that has abandoned nearly everything that once made it good.