When someone chooses a certain lifestyle or religion such as LDS, they accept the reality of being LDS. Being a BIC is totally different especially if your family is active. To quit being LDS means you are left out of family social situtations such as weddings.

A BIC gives up alot to leave the church. That is way so many BIC’s are not “converted” yet they attend.

As a BIC, I find that I do not trust any kind of religious leader. To me they are all liars. The concept of religion has been a lie and why go from one lie to another lie?

I do miss talking with people and if anything were to get me to attend a church, it would be to socialize.

I find that LDS preach one thing but live another set of rules. 20 years ago, my ex wife and I lived in Mesa, Arizona (LDS City) and when we seperated, the other LDS children were no longer allowed to play with my daughter.

I have teenage sons who had several very good friends that they would spend the weekend with almost every weekend. Since I have quit attending church, the parents of my sons friends no longer allow my sons to spend the weekend yet all the other boys still get together almost every week.

My LDS friends have also quit including my wife and I in social outings. All we have to do is start attending church to be included. What pressure to attend 3 hrs a week of church to keep our friends.

To quit being an active LDS, means you often give up family and friends. I understand why many people stay in the church even though they do not believe the story. Social pressure is huge to conform and accept.

BIC’s were taught as a children to believe lies and to admidt they were lied to is really hard wheras a convert has accepted the lies as an adult.

The church leaders want members to believe the ones that leave do so because of sin but more often it is something totally different such as unrighteous leaders.

Other religions preach they are the one true way to return to God.

As far as I go, I find that I am much happier not attending church than attending. Why would I want to attend any brand of church when they all lie?

“I am greatful I was not born into the church.. I see many jaded people who were born into it, but also many, many strong, diligent lifelong memebers. It’s a personal thing.”

Yes, I am a testimony to that. I was born under the covenant, never strayed, never lost my testimony. on the OTHER hand, I have 6 siblings, only one of which is active at this point and even she went off the deep end (actually she is only one of two that went off the deep end, the others just drifted and are rather jaded with the “mormon” church). She climbed back on though. The others…well, they have their paths.

“God still lives, and the church is still true. It’s just all those dang pesky Mormons that mess things up.”

How true… how true!! I can relate with a little of what you wee saying. I joined the church when I was 21-22. It took me a while too.. I checked out every nook and cranny and read every book I could find, including every issue of the ensign. The one thing that had me convinced was the consistancy in the doctrine. How every question I had was answered, and to this day I marvel at the clarity that can be found as you link together the doctrines of the gospel. No other church I investigated was able to do it. None.

I have always based my testimony off of those teachings and have avoided as best as possible relying on the testimony and/or actions of others, as Bookslinger put it… pesky Mormons always mess things up.”. lol. I’m glad my testimony is based in Christ and his teachings and not his “people”.

I am greatful I was not born into the church.. I see many jaded people who were born into it, but also many, many strong, diligent lifelong memebers. It’s a personal thing. :)

I know many people who have found other, more satisfying religious communities after leaving mormonism. And I know many people who left mormonism even while they were temple-worthy in all respects except their belief/testimony. It is easy to confuse, I think, the cause and effect in such cases. From the outside, it is difficult for us to see whether someone who drinks (for example) left the church because they wanted to drink, or if they left the church because they did not believe in the gospel and THEN opted to partake in previously verboten behaviors.

Sorry for the tangent. On the original topic, I am certain I would not have joined the church if I’d not been born in it. In my case, I have always been skeptical of the very existence of god, and without the kind encouragement of family members, I’d have had no incentive to keep trying to gain a testimony.

Thanks for sharing that. Yes, one of the things it is hard to realise is that the church isn’t the members. We are all imperfect. Thank goodness the Lord is perfect.

I did gain a “burned in” and “clear as daylight” testimony of the restored gospel.

I went inactive at age 30, about a year after I got back from a mission. Yes, there were issues with sin, and I didn’t want to repent. But I was also lied to, abused, manipulated and hurt by fellow church members, including leadership.

It can be a crushing blow when the reality of church programs and leaders just doesn’t match up with what the apostles on the big screen during general conference say it “must be.”

I never stopped believing the church was God’s official church. But I became convinced I didn’t want any part of it, and requested name removal after four years of inactivity.

After 15 years of inactivity, God came after me and whacked me upside the head with his 2×4 and got my attention. To make a long story short, I came back to church, and started a journey of repentance and learning to resolve all the hurts and offenses. (Hint: repenting of your own sins makes forgiving others easier, and vice versa.)

I still haven’t been rebaptized yet, and still haven’t fully recovered from all the hurts, but it’s in process.

God still lives, and the church is still true. It’s just all those dang pesky Mormons that mess things up. ;-)

mc

Fortunately, Pat Robertson isn’t typical of non-LDS Christianity.

That point aside, I (as a faithful member of the Church) would have to answer yes (at least to “the others”). There are areas where we can learn from other Christians, and there are areas where they have expressed the truth (or parts of it) better than our leaders have.

Other Christians have done a better job than we have of separating the essentials of faith from the culture of faith. Members of some other churches have done a better job showing love to those who are different than we are. It was other Christians, not LDS, who were among the leaders of the civil rights movement. It has been other Christians, not LDS, who have spoken out against consumerism, sexism and unjustified war.

Do I want to become a non-LDS Christian? No. (In fact, I’m a convert from such.) But in my view, to say that other Christians don’t have something to offer is shortsighted at best. Although I won’t be one of them, I can certainly understand why some LDS might be interested in looking elsewhere.

I certainly believe that Smith, Young, Hinckley etc. were/are prophets and have spoken the truth. But they haven’t spoken _all_ the truth and should be expected to do so.