Read The Stories

Warning: Sexually Explicit content.

Legend for Consequences Suffered (CS):

Inappropriate shame and guilt
Childhood self-loathing
Adulthood self-loathing
Normalizing children to sexual questions by adult men. (Grooming)
Sexual abuse. (Pedophilia)
Impaired sexual relations after marriage.
Years of recovery from childhood shaming. Often lasting decades.
Suicide Ideation
Attempted Suicide
Suicide of a loved one or friend.

#63 Melissa E. CS: 1,3

I don’t have the horror stories that some people have, but I have a few incidents to relate. First, when I was about thirteen, Elizabeth Smart was kidnapped. I was…

#62 Name Hidden. CS: Other: No permanent damage.

I am the mother of two grown and married daughters with their own children. We have all signed the petition Sam started because we felt it to be important. As…

#61 Lisa B. CS: 1,2,3,4,6,7,8,9

The first interview I remember was my pre-baptism interview when I was 8. The bishop took me into his office, having my parents wait outside. He asked me a lot…

#60 Name Hidden. CS: 1,2,3,4,6,7

I turned twelve in 1973, while living in Cache Valley, Utah. I spent the two years I was a Deacon in the Aaronic Priesthood in Utah. I do not recall…

#59 Brian M. CS: 1,3

I was a good kid. Didn’t smoke, didn’t drink, over 4.0 GPA, seminary president (out of Utah, had to wake up at 4:30 every morning.) My only “problem” was I…

#58 Name Hidden. CS: 7

I just recently learned of this interview. My son sustained a broken back that took nearly a year to heal. He often missed church. You could not meet a kinder…

#57 Name Hidden. CS: 1,4. Other: Lying in order to coerce me into allowing my children to be interviewed alone with the bishop without me present.

When my son turned 8 the bishop interviewed me to make sure I was worthy to baptize and confirm him. He also wanted to interview my son alone to make…

#56 Melissa D. CS: 1,2,3

When I was about 12 years old I went to my first combined region wide fireside which was something I was very excited to be a part of. At this…

#55 Name Hidden. CS: 1,2,3,6,7

Just like many other young women in the church, I was specifically taught from a young age that my worth was dependent on my purity. Young women are taught that…

#54 Name Hidden. CS: 1,2,3,6,8. Other: Obligation to be straight married despite being gay

I’m gay. I thought if I was the perfect Mormon boy, God would cure me of my gayness because obviously this is sinful. When I found out as a teenager…

#53 Amy Hall. CS: 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8. Other: Sexual abuse by the bishop

Trigger Warning * Sexual assault involving a bishop* **If you are a survivor of molest, be very cautious about being triggered reading my story!!!** * Sam Young, THANK YOU for…

#52 Ryan W. CS: 1,2,3,4,6,7

Bishop’s interviews are so damaging to young people. And adults. The damage I suffered because of these interviews and the teaching that masturbation is a sin, has been severe and…

#51 Carianne W. CS: 1,2,3,4,6,7

I am a girl and I remember as early as 4 or 5 years old casually feeling slight sexual feelings that were immediately followed by shame and guilt. I was…

I was not asked inappropriate questions by bishops/counselors, but I still suffered incredible guilt and self-loathing because of the general process of worthiness interviews. I was terrified by the prospect…

#49 Name Hidden. CS: 1,2,5,6,7. Other: Intentional Self Harm

I first experienced orgasm as an 8 year old girl, at the hands of a teacher. I didn’t understand the sensation I had felt nor had I wanted it. It…

#48 Name Hidden. CS: 1,7. Other: Prolonged medical issues

So in light of the current trend, here is one of my stories. This is not necessarily a story of abuse per se, but of my paranoia to be worthy…

#47 Name Hidden. CS: 1

When I was in high school, we had a bishop who was also one of our high school teachers in my small home town. When this bishop would bring me…

#46 Dave S. CS: 1,2,3,4,6,7,8,10

I’ve lived with decades of shame, guilt and anxiety due to dozens of private worthiness meetings with LDS leaders when I was as young as eleven years old. The questions…

#45 Name Hidden. CS: 1,2,3

I always had to report to my bishop growing up if/how often I masturbated or looked at porn. It was always degrading, and left me with a ton of guilt.…

#44 Name Hidden. CS: 1,7. Other: Nightmares, shame, rejection

This is the story of my two children. One MIA night, my son, 17 and my daughter 14, were called into the bishop’s office separately. This couldn’t have been a…

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