Flock Off: Ex-Mormon Atheists of Utah

[BridgeTheGap]

A Mormon missionary who loses his faith while he’s out in the field has picked a strange time to abandon his beliefs. Yet, for Andrew Johnson, this is precisely what happened.

Johnson says he started doubting Mormonism when he was 18, but out of a desire to please his family, and still not knowing who he was, he turned in his mission papers and set out to serve a mission. After 18 months, however, he was exposed to contraband by a secular humanist, stuff like the movie Religulous and Richard Dawkins’ book The God Delusion.

“I remember having a distinct moment where I was like, ‘There is no God,’ and that was a liberating moment,” Johnson says. “I tried to do the rest of my mission without being too much of a hypocrite.”

Johnson felt like he couldn’t keep pretending he was a believer. He resolved to share his disbelief with his family even though he knew it wouldn’t be easy.

Read more: http://www.utne.com/mind-body/ex-mormon-atheists-of-utah-zm0z12mjzros.aspx#ixzz1ssao8bbV

[dimbear]

1. We used to hear amazing stories about missionaries. They're just kids, really, often

away from home for the first time and sometimes they have very strange episodes. It would make a great tell all book, except for that Mormon Curtain thing.

It's all worth it, tho. If it wasn't for Mitt Romney's mission, the French would still be drinking wine and smoking Galoises. Probably a lot of them would still be Catholics too.

[Curmudgeoness]

2. It seems that the only thing to be learned during missions

like the ones these Mormon youth participate in is rejection. I wonder how many people even tolerate these zealots.

And this is probably the first time they are exposed to real life.

[2ndAmForComputers]

3. Maher and Dawkins are "contraband?"

Where was he, Saudi Arabia?

[mr blur]

4. Texas? Mississippi? Italy? nt

[Taverner]

5. If you are a Mormon Missionary, yes, even Sports Illustrated is contraband

Anything other than proscribed Mormon literature

I used to tempt the Mormon Missionaries in Thailand with Sports Illustrated. It worked

[backscatter712]

6. The LDS church is notoriously authoritarian, even for religious institutions.

Ask anyone who's tried getting a drink in Utah.

Good for this kid for seeing through the bullshit!

[backscatter712]

7. Actually, Kirk and Spock explain it better than I can!