The Day I Officially Left the Church

   

 So, I wanted to take a break from theology and just share a moment of my life with you.  I know this post may only apply to a handful of people who read it, but it was a big moment for me. But for you people who are looking for some dirty laundry you'll have to find it somewhere else.  SPOILER ALERT: The church didn't excommunicate me.  It was I who went to them and asked to have my name removed from their records.

Anyways, here is how it went down...

     After I became a Christian, the next step was to leave the Mormon church.  I thought that detailed just never stepping foot in their buildings again, but I felt like I needed to go a step further.  I needed to have my name removed from their records.  I didn't want any ties to the Mormon church and as long as they considered me a member (inactive) I felt that I wasn't honoring God.
     Mormons have an extensive church directory.  Every member is documented with things like their birthday, their baptism date, their priesthood authority, etc.  But don't get scared away.  I don't think this is uncommon in churches, nor is this a bad thing.  I would assume they do this so that if their members move or when people pass away the church body can still function.  This record keeping came in handy when I was younger because we moved a lot but never seemed to skip a beat when we got to church Sunday morning.  However, like I said, I felt that the next step in honoring Jesus was to remove my name and my association with a church that I felt was dishonoring to Him and His message.
     The only problem was that I didn't know where to go to get this done.  So, I contacted the missionaries.  I asked them how one would go about removing their name from the Church.  After they tried to convince me not to leave, they said that ultimately I would need to see my bishop.  Now for those of you who are unfamiliar with the LDS church's structure, each member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has a home church, called a ward.  Each ward has a bishop that oversees the entire ward.  So, for me to get my name removed from the church, I would need to go see my bishop.  However, this was a problem since it had been years since I stepped into an LDS church I had no idea who my bishop was!
     So I made a few calls...or tried to.  Apparently nobody is at the Mormon church office during the week.  I'm not kidding.  I called once or twice every week or so for months at random times and never got a hold of anybody.  It got to the point that I questioned whether or not I was ever going to get my name removed.  Luckily, I remember that every Wednesday (or Thursday) the LDS church has youth group, which they call Mutual, which the bishop has to attend.  So on the next available Wednesday I decided to go back to church...hopefully for the last time.
     I made the trek over to the church closest to my work and walked to the bishop's office.  Wouldn't you know, he wasn't there.  I then decided to walk around trying to find him...which also proved unfruitful.  After a few minutes of talking to everyone in a suit, I finally found him back in his office.  I asked him if I could have a few minutes of his time, which he obliged.  However, after a few minutes of talking he said that he wasn't able to help me because he wasn't my bishop.  He told me that I needed to go to my home ward and talk to my bishop.  I told him that I had no idea where my home ward even was.  He asked where I lived and whatnot and eventually figured out where I was supposed to go.  I left feeling a bit flustered, but at least I knew where to go next.

FYI - not the actual meeting we had.
It's just a visual aid.  Move along.

     On my next free Wednesday I headed over to my home ward to meet with my bishop and sat down in a small room.  He sat across from me in a suit and tie and I was completely under dressed.  He was a nice man, probably in his late 30's.  He seemed a bit nervous though.  Maybe he'd not done one of these meetings before or something, I have no idea.  I was actually glad he was a bit shaky because it made me focus less on my rattled nerves.
     We made small talk for a bit.  He asked how I was, where I lived, if I was married or not, things like that.  After a few minutes, he asked why I was there.  I told him that I wanted to be excommunicated.  He kind of looked at me puzzled for a split second, and then asked me why.  I took a breath, and spoke from the heart.  "Well, sir, the main reason is because the Mormon church just doesn't follow the Bible.  The Jesus you guys follow is not the Jesus of the Bible.  I don't believe that Joseph Smith is a true prophet.  I think the Book of Mormon detracts away from the true Gospel of Jesus Christ and I no longer want to be a part of this church."
     My heart was racing and my palms were sweaty as I waited for his response.  He just kind of looked at me and said.  "Ok, well, I'm sorry to hear that."  To be honest, I thought I'd get a different reaction than that.  I don't quite know what I expected, but indifference was not one of them.
     But then he said something that made me stop and think.  "If you get your name removed from the church and are excommunicated, I need you to understand that your baptism, your priesthood authority, your temple recommends, your blessings, and your sealings, and the ordinances I've received/done will all be voided out.  You will not be allowed to pray in church and you will not have the Holy Ghost with you anymore."  Now I knew that I didn't want to be Mormon any longer.  I knew that the LDS church was false.  I knew that their doctrine was in opposition to the Bible.  But when he told me that everything I had done in my 20+ years of being a Mormon would be nullified, I panicked a bit.  It's a weird feeling.  Like I said, I knew they were wrong but was I willing to bet my eternity on it?  After a few seconds (which felt like minutes) I told him I would like to proceed.  He had me sign a paper stating my renouncement of faith and told me that there would be a holding period of 60 days, in which I could renounce my renouncement.
     I left feeling overwhelmed with joy.  I felt like a huge weight had been lifted from my shoulders and that I was finally free.  When I got the letter from the LDS church a few months later, I was so happy!  I wanted to frame it and post it on Facebook, but I thought that would be offensive to some of my friends.  I wanted to shout to the world that I now belong to Jesus and Him only.  Praise God!

     Now, some of you may be reading this and thinking that this isn't that big of a deal.  Leaving a church that you know is wrong should be a no-brainer.  But, it wasn't that simple.  I loved being a Mormon.  I believed it with all my heart.  I got into arguments in school defending my faith, and even tried to convert my girlfriends along the way.  I was a faithful member for 20 years!  To go back on everything I was taught, on what my family raised me up in, what my friends all believed was truly difficult.  Then hearing that everything would be wiped clean, as if it never happened, it was scary.  It became leap of faith for me, and one that I could have never taken if not firmly planed with Jesus.  Thank you God for being my rock, that which all my fears rest on.  Amen.