ExMormon Hymn Book: December 2012

Thursday, December 27, 2012

AS I HAVE CAST OFF ALL THE LIES - LDS Hymn Parody #79

Recognizing the LIES within Mormonism is a recurring theme in the ever-expanding ExMormon Hymn Book. As I've said before, sometimes I feel like a broken record, repeating the same things over and over again, but in my opinion the subjects on which I dwell bear repeating. It upsets me greatly that I spent 52 years in a church that is so obviously based on blatant lies and pure deception. Having been born and raised in the Mormon Church, I tried to "just believe" as I was told to do, but in the end, I simply couldn't continue to "have faith" when I realized that the evidence is stacked against Mormonism actually being true. Ultimately, the only conclusion to which I could come was that Joseph Smith simply made the whole thing up. In my opinion, there were several reasons that Joseph created Mormonism, including his drive for power over people, no matter the cost, his desire to be worshiped as a "Prophet of God," and having his perverse sexual desires fulfilled via polygamy and polyandry (which I believe he created for that very reason). Also in my opinion, Joseph Smith was a sexual predator, preying on people who believed he was a "Prophet of God," which included 10 teenage girls varying in ages from 14 to 19. I do not say that lightly, and to me, it was unconscionable for him to take advantage of young girls and women in that manner. The fact that 11 of his polygamous wives were already married to living husbands is further indication to me of the depth of his depravity.

And so I have cast off all the lies, and am now living an authentic life, simply being myself. There have been a number of TBMs who have visited my blog and have asked me why I can't just leave Mormonism alone, why I have to be so vocal about my opinions. The answer to that question is contained within this quote:

Some of you are probably thinking, "Why don't you just leave them (the Mormons) alone?" So I ask you, if you saw a thirsty man drinking water from a well you knew to be poisoned, would you let him continue to drink or would you guide him to a safe well? ~Christopher Miller

Although most Mormons will scorn me and call me an Apostate who just can't leave it alone, that's okay with me. While I was an active Mormon, I tried to "just believe" and kept my doubts and questions to myself. Back then, I was a perfect little Morgbot. But since discovering the actual truth behind the Mormon Curtain, I cannot stay quiet any longer. If people who have discovered that the Mormon Church is based on an enormous stack of lies keep quiet about it, then others will continue suffer within Mormonism's walls. They will do as I did - simply keeping quiet about their doubts and questions, thinking that perhaps they are the only one who don't understand it all, believing that they are not righteous enough to grasp it all, and feeling completely and totally inadequate. It took me a very long time to finally break free from Mormonism, and if I can do anything to help others recognize the lies, then I see that as my duty and obligation. Others may disagree with me, but that's okay, too.

So here is my latest LDS Hymn Parody... #79 and counting...

AS I HAVE CAST OFF ALL THE LIES
Sung to the tune of Come, Listen to a Prophet’s Voice - #21

As I have cast off all the lies,
And to myself am true.
I've tossed aside what they disguise,
No truthfulness to view.
But those still trapped within its walls
Continue to deny
The false pretense on which it falls
And all the facts belie.

They say that I have gone astray,
Apostatized, you see.
They ask me to just go away,
To simply quiet be.
But I must say my piece at last,
My voice must now be heard.
And I don’t care if they’re aghast,
My words are not absurd.

The Mormon Church was built on lies,
Deception running deep.
So clear to me, no hows or whys,
That secret I can’t keep.
Oh no, the message that I speak
From research on my own,
For it is truth we all should seek,
And not feel we’re alone.

And so you cannot silence me,
The Mormon Church is wrong.
And no, I will not quiet be,
I’ll loudly sing this song.
I know the truth, I’m finally free
From Mormonism’s grip.
But I will not go silently,
My lips they cannot zip.

Wednesday, December 26, 2012

DOES THE GOSPEL SEEM WRONG? LDS Hymn Parody #78

Here's another LDS hymn parody... #78. Writing these parodies is an interesting experience for me. Like I've said before, it's very cathartic since it really helps me to work through my issues about the Mormon Church and the fact that I was lied to my entire life. After discovering that there are so many lies laced throughout Mormonism, I came to the conclusion that Joseph Smith made the whole thing up out of thin air. Of course, since history shows that he was a charlatan, shyster, and flim-flam man, that's not surprising. As history shows, Joseph had run many scams before that, but Mormonism turned out to be his biggest hoax. It is said that Joseph Smith was very charismatic, and because of that he was apparently able to convince a lot of people that he really was a "Prophet of God." But that is SO NOT TRUE!!

I am so thankful that I finally looked at Mormonism with a critical eye, and began doing research on my own - beyond the facade, the pretense, and the outer shell of falsehoods, and found the actual truth. Not a pleasant experience, as the picture above says, but unless we eradicate untruths from our lives, we will never reach that point of enlightenment. But however "destructive" reaching that point of enlightenment was, and may at times continue to be, I wouldn't change anything because I am living an authentic life now, and that is what is most important to me.

DOES THE GOSPEL SEEM WRONG?

Sung to the tune of Does the Journey Seem Long? - #127

Does the gospel seem wrong,
Just deception and lies?
Does it simply not make any sense?
Were you filled with surprise
When you saw the deceit,
When you realized there’s no defense?

When I found out the truth,
I felt hurt and betrayed,
Very sad, I shed so many tears.
But I knew in my heart
And when I faced the facts,
I was lied to for so many years.

It is clear to me now
That the gospel’s not true,
And it’s obvious Joseph Smith lied.
Through my research I learned
The historical facts,
All the evidence I had denied.

When I thought it all through,
So apparent to see,
It is simply not the Word of God.
Can’t accept it on faith
When there’s evidence loud
Shouting “Yes, Mormonism’s a fraud.”

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

I FINALLY SAW THE LIES - LDS Hymn Parody #77

Here's LDS Hymn Parody #77 - another addition to the ever-expanding ExMormon Hymn Book. Since this hymn parody is obviously self-explanatory, I won't go into a long drawn-out explanation. Just suffice it to say that I'm so glad that I finally saw the lies laced throughout it all - and once that happened, I came to the conclousion that I could no longer be associated with a church that plays so fast and loose with the truth.

I FINALLY SAW THE LIES
Sung to the tune of We Give Thee But Thine Own - #218

I finally saw the lies
Within the Mormon Church.
Deception they cannot disguise,
The truth for which I search.

For way too many years,
I tried to just believe.
But after shedding many tears,
I saw how they deceive.

The Prophet Joseph Smith
Created such a fraud.
So obvious it’s just a myth,
And not the Word of God.

And so, I walked away,
Rejected the deceit.
For in the end, I could not stay
Apostasy complete.

When I first began writing LDS Hymn Parodies, I first began by posting them on my other blog (http://mormonismschism.blogspot.com/), and then decided it would be a good idea for them to have their own dedicated place (with special pages in alphabetical order and all), so this blog was created for that purpose.

Having been born and raised in the Mormon Church, I spent my entire life singing hymns, not only in church meetings but also in various Ward and Stake Choirs (and even in the Southern California Mormon Choir). Ward Choir Director was also my calling for awhile. Since I also play the piano (and learned from a Mormon piano teacher), I also learned to play the hymns, and was Pianist in Primary, Sunday School, and Relief Society. Naturally, playing the piano led to learning to play the organ, and then being Ward Organist for a long time.

So it's no wonder that I have so many LDS hymns stuck in my brain. It amazes me just how many hymns I can still sing from memory. Of course, since I've been out of Mormonism now for over 8 years, it irritates me that I know the words to so many Mormon-themed hymns. So one day, I started making up alternative words - and found it very amusing and extremely cathartic. The first hymn I parodied was "I Stand All Amazed," and since then I haven't been able to stop. So I'm gonna just keep going until I can't think of anymore. But since I apparently have the gift for blasphemy (as my daughter recently told me), that probably won't happen anytime soon.

I hope you enjoy my "spin" on some old familiar LDS Hymn favorites. But if you don't, you're probably a TBM and not an ExMormon like me. Oh, well...

MY EXIT FROM MORMONISM

As a preface to my thoughts about Mormonism (and my exit from my lifelong religion), I would like to share the following quote:

"Well, it's either true or false. If it's false, we're engaged in a great fraud. If it's true, it's the most important thing in the world. Now, that's the
whole picture. It is either right or wrong, true or false, fraudulent or true."

President Gordon B. Hinckley,
Interview, "The Mormons,"
PBS Documentary, April 2007

In essence, after researching the roots of Mormonism, which obviously form its foundation, as well as examining its doctrine in depth, I have concluded that it is a great fraud. Having been born and raised in the Mormon Church, and remaining LDS until my early 50's, facing that realization was very difficult and was not done lightly.

SOME BACKGROUND:
In the Summer of 2001, I went on a Mormon Church History Tour. Before going, I decided to do some research so I would know more about what occurred at the key places when we visited them. But that was the beginning of the end for me as I discovered more and more of the sordid history of the Mormon Church. Soon, I began to realize that Joseph Smith made the whole thing up and that the Mormon Church is built on an enormous stack of lies. Sadly, I also began to realize that I had allowed the Mormon Church to pull the wool over my eyes for a very long time. But even with that realization, it took me quite a while longer to finally break away because of how intricately my life was tied up in Mormonism and how long I had been blinded by the lies Mormonism perpetuates (which, of course, is what they are counting on).

But finally, I did break away - and I have now been Mormonism Free for over 8 years. What I have realized during the ensuing years is that my intellectual curiosity was squelched by Mormonism. Being told to "just believe" and "have faith" was very detrimental to my psyche, particularly since so much made little sense. Trying to rationalize through everything had a negative effect on me as well, making me very confused and uncomfortable. Since that time, I have discovered that these types of feelings are called "cognitive dissonance" (a feeling of discomfort when simultaneously holding two or more conflicting ideas, beliefs, values or emotional reactions). Cognitive dissonance is discussed in greater length in a book I have written, which is coming soon to Amazon.com and Kindle. Since leaving Mormonism behind, I have grown so much and have discovered who I really am - and that is a tremendous gift.

As noted above, a book I have written is coming soon to Amazon.com and Kindle. That book (entitled "Finding My Own Voice: The AHA!! Moments of a Former Mormon Woman") chronicles my very long journey through and away from Mormonism and discussed many of the issues that had plagued me for many years. Also, on my other blog - www.mormonismschism.blogspot.com - you will find some poems I have written about my views concerning various aspects of Mormonism as well as discussions relative to the issues that led to my decision to eventually disassociate myself from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

In sharing my opinions and the information I have uncovered, it is my hope that I can in some small way help others by offering some insights into issues that many Mormons undoubtedly face in determining whether or not their faith has been misplaced.

For those of you who are thinking, "Oh, those Ex-Mormons... they can leave the church but they can't leave it alone," I offer this quote:

"Some of you are probably thinking, "Why don't you just leave them (the Mormons) alone?" So I ask you, if you saw a thirsty man drinking water from a well you knew to be poisoned, would you let him continue to drink or would you guide him to a safe well? ~Christopher Miller

While I'm sure that active Mormons (TBMs) and the Mormon Church itself would be much happier if people who have left the church kept their opinions to themselves, I cannot do that. If I can help one person to see the lies that are laced throughout Mormonism, then I will feel that my efforts have not been in vain.