When I was 15, I was called in for my tithing meeting by the 1st counselor of my ward. I was asked if I had participated in bestiality. I did not know what he was asking me. I had to ask a lot of peers and do a lot of research to figure it out.…
Approximately 11 years ago I was busy with work and school as well as dealing mentally with the loss of my mom to suicide a few years prior. I let my bishop know that I needed a blessing. I told him I was taking Benadryl to sleep a lot through a depression. The bishop at…
This happened in Marseille, France approximately in 1969. I was being interviewed by my Branch President for a Patriarchal Blessing. I was 18/19 years old at the time. After asking if I had any sexual activities of any kind (I do not remember the specifics) I was asked if I ever had any sexual intercourse…
I am sharing my story in hopes that it helps others to know they are not alone in their feelings, in their experiences and in their trauma, but also to raise awareness to the reality of the unhealthy culture and environment of the church for our children. I would love to see change for future…
I am 100 percent positive that my story is not even close to being the worst one out there. I felt so ashamed by my body as a child that I was afraid to even look at my private parts for years growing up. I started to date in college and when my boyfriend at…
This story belongs to my mother. In 1970, in Salem, Utah, C.G. was a naive and innocent 11 year old, happy and willing to babysit the children of her Sunday school teacher. She endured multiple episodes of fondling, kissing, and hypersexualized discussion, on her teacher’s living room floor. THEN, the wife of this vile human…
I am no longer a member, but was an active and faithful member for the first 21 years of my life. I was accustomed to the “worthiness” interviews from the age of 8 and never understood that I did not have to do them. I felt like my bishop had the power of God to…
Even though I was a fatherless Mormon Boy, my Mormon childhood was great all the way up until the dreadful day my testes started to produce semen and that is when my LDS nightmare began. It would happen naturally and I could not stop it from becoming erect. The Church had assigned a convert man…
I’m writing to say this petition doesn’t go far enough. As good faithful members, my wife and I have always been instructed throughout our lives to speak to the Bishop regarding transgressions. We’re told this is a requirement for all members to do in order to receive the fullness of God’s blessings. Marriage can be…
Masturbation. Just before turning 12, I was called in for an interview with the Bishop prior to becoming a deacon. One of his questions was if I have a problem with masturbation. I didn’t know what the word meant. I said, no. Puberty hit me at age 14 and from 14-18 “self-abuse” became a frequent…