In my own life, I was recently asked to do something I didn't want to do. I was asked by God to resign as a member of the LDS Church. I have been a member my whole life, and this was hard. I expect that few will believe that the commandment I received came from God. I expect that few will understand how I could throw away salvation or lose my eternal family. But I must do as God asks, and so as of October 13, 2015 I am no longer a member of the church.
God asked me to do this for a number of reasons, but I think the most important reason is to testify of the idolatry and false teachings that are ever growing within the doctrines of the church. I want to be clear that I did not do this because I wanted to. I am not angry or disillusioned. This was not an act of rebellion but an act of obedience. Below is a copy of the resignation letter I gave my bishop:
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October 13, 2015
Bishop XXXXXXX
XXXXX
XXXXXX
Dear Bishop XXXXX,
I have been asked by the Lord to do something that I do not want to do. I expect that I will be misunderstood and judged to have been led astray, but I sincerely believe that what I am doing is what Christ wants me to do. And so, with great regret, I hereby resign as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, effective immediately. I understand that the church handbook states that such an action will nullify my baptism, priesthood, and temple blessings. I believe that this is in error, but I understand and acknowledge the church’s teaching on this matter, and want you to know that I appreciate the seriousness of such an action. I ask that my resignation would be processed immediately.
There are several reasons for this action, and I hope that by listing them it will not be seen as a list of complaints or grievances. I have listed my reasons so that you can understand my action better and to state that I have not done this because of sin, anger, or hatred. I appreciate my membership in the LDS church and am thankful for the good and truth that is in it. Through the church I have been introduced to the Book of Mormon and the prophet Joseph Smith. I have a sincere testimony that Joseph Smith was a prophet and seer and that he restored much truth to the world, including the Book of Mormon. Most importantly, through the church and through the Book of Mormon I have been introduced to Jesus Christ, my savior. I have a deep and abiding testimony that He lives. I have been baptized with fire and the Holy Ghost by Him and been cleansed of my sins by His grace and kindness. This was a specific event, a testimony from heaven to me about my standing before the Lord. I am unworthy of such blessings and do not consider myself to be righteous. I am just a fallen man who loves Christ and relies completely upon Him for my salvation and growth.
Despite the good that has come from the LDS church, there are a number of reasons why I must resign. First and foremost, the Lord has commanded it and I want to be obedient to Him. I would not do this if it were not for the commandment I received. Again, I list these things as an explanation. Please don’t take it as a list of grievances. I believe that the Lord wishes me to testify of truth, and the truth is that the church is filled with idolatry and doctrinal errors, and the current course of the church is taking it ever further from Joseph Smith and the truth.
The most grievous form of idol worship in the church is the tradition of “Follow the Prophet” that has sprung up in the last 50 years. Teaching men to follow other men fosters spiritual laziness and points away from Jesus Christ. Problems with this teaching include the following:
- We are taught that the prophet talks to God, and that because he does, somehow that is great for us. Supposedly each successive church leader speaks for God by virtue of their office. What if by “my servants” Christ meant anyone who is given a message from God, regardless of their church position? We are taught that the prophet speaks for God because we are to heed his words (D&C 21). But this scripture is about Joseph Smith. How can other men claim this same right simply because they have inherited an office? Because of our preoccupation with prophets, we are not taught to approach Christ to know him personally. Lip service is paid to this principle, but in practice the focus of the church is programs, ordinances, and leaders. When you do seek for a personal relationship with Christ, curiously it no longer seems to matter whether we have a prophet or not because you have your own connection with heaven. Church leaders no longer teach that men should seek to enter into Christ’s presence while in the flesh or to make their calling and election sure. Instead, we are counseled to rejoice because we have a man who talks to God for us so we don’t have to. This denies the Christ. It is hard for me to see how we are any different than the Israelites. They had a Moses to talk to God for them, and they were cursed for doing so. We are not different at all. We have a Gordon, a Thomas, a Joseph, or a Russell to talk to God for us. We have the scriptures right in front of us and don’t understand how they apply to us.
- We are taught that the prophet somehow has “keys” that men need in order to be saved. We are taught that without such keys, even the dead who have repented are kept from salvation because we have not done certain ordinances for them. This is a false teaching and denies the Christ, and is also form of idol worship. This idea puts men in between us and God. Jesus is the way of salvation. We are repent and come to Him. Outward ordinances do not save. Baptism is required by the Lord for all who live on the earth, but other ordinances are meant to teach. Our ordinances are only types and symbols of the real thing, but this concept is not taught. We are taught that somehow the temple endowment and the marriage sealing magically seal in heaven as on earth. There seems to be no focus on the fact that every “temple blessing” is offered as a condition, and that we must obtain the real thing from God Himself. It does not happen by virtue of the “keys” of men. God does not wait on the keys of men before acting to save the souls of the repentant. Nephi condemned the latter-day church for teaching that God has given his power to men, and yet we completely overlook this scripture and cannot see that Nephi was talking about us.
- We are taught that the prophet cannot lead us astray. We deny that he is infallible, yet every word that comes from the church leaders is considered doctrine. How many times have we heard that General Conference talks are scripture? If the prophet cannot lead us astray, what need do we have for the Holy Ghost? The scriptures are the measuring stick for truth, not the words of the current church leader. The teaching that living prophets trump dead prophets is at odds with the scriptures. I cannot understand how it is that we accept a teaching that allows the leaders freedom to change doctrines simply because of their church office. Also, how is it that a leadership position qualifies a man to be a prophet? Prophets have fruits. The current leaders claim to be prophets, seers, and revelators, but they do not prophesy, reveal, or see. Joseph Smith did all of those things and produced evidence. I’m afraid that what we have in our church are men with church offices and not real prophets or apostles.
Temples have also become an idol. Members think that because they have “taken out their endowment” that somehow they are all set for the celestial kingdom. They have no understanding that the endowment teaches them to walk back to the presence of God in mortality, and that one of the first steps is to seek “true messengers.” Those true messengers are angels, not church leaders. Before the endowment changes in 1990, the ceremony taught about how preachers were false messengers and should be ignored. We now believe that the only way to find true messengers is to look at their church office.
The church itself is an idol. Supposedly the “good ship Zion” will transport us to the presence of God because it can never go astray. Yet, where are the scriptural accounts of such things? Nephi found God alone. So did Lehi. So did Abraham. So did Enos. Adam found the Lord’s presence with just a few family members. They did not have a church hierarchy or system to bring them back into the presence of Christ. Our journey is likewise solitary.
The church programs are idols.
There are other idols. The handbook is an idol. Church leaders at every level are idols. The church is filled with idols. We talk of Christ but preach a gospel that frequently points away from him and turns the pathway to God into a rigid program that has little room for the Holy Ghost. We have a changeable system that is subject to the whims of the current leadership.
Aside from the idolatry and the follow the prophet culture, I am also resigning because those who do seek the face of Jesus Christ in the flesh and teach others about this are cast out. I can give you several accounts of people who were excommunicated because they would not confess that Thomas S. Monson is a prophet, never mind that they have a deep and abiding testimony of Christ. Some even testify that they have seen Him, but they are dismissed because they don’t have leadership credentials. I think it is foolish to believe that one needs to be an LDS church leader to see Christ and publicly testify that He lives. Sadly, the apostles of the church who are charged with such a responsibility do not bear such witness. They openly claim that their “apostolic” witness is one from the Holy Ghost, and put down those who say that an apostle should be an actual eyewitness of Christ. I humbly submit that the church leaders who are called as apostles are not actually apostles until they complete their calling and become an eyewitness. If they claim to be apostles before then, they are false witnesses.
Finally, I am resigning because I am a hypocrite. I would not qualify for baptism given my current set of beliefs. If I don’t qualify for baptism, why should I be a member? By the current church handbook definition, I am an apostate. I associate with and agree with many who have been excommunicated. Given the new, expansive definition of “sustain” given by Russell Nelson in conference last year, I do not sustain the current authorities of the church. I do not pay tithing to the church anymore because they church uses the funds to….well, I don’t know what they use them for because they won’t tell me. But I sure see a lot of spacious buildings and nice malls. I have chosen instead to contribute my tithing funds to a small group where we support single mothers and assist with the financial needs of the poor among us. I have performed and will continue to perform ordinances that are not sanctioned by the presiding authorities of the church, such as baptism and the sacrament. I have not sought an LDS baptism for my children because I they are required to confess Thomas Monson as a prophet as condition for baptism. In 3rd Nephi and also in the D&C, Christ stated that all who desire to witness their repentance by being baptized should be baptized, and that this was his gospel, and that anything that is added or subtracted is not of his gospel. We have adulterated baptism as a result. We have also changed all of the other ordinances. Since they were revealed by Joseph, the sacrament, the style of priesthood ordination, and now baptism have all been changed, despite Joseph’s clear statement that ordinances revealed from heaven are not to be altered or changed. The temple endowment has undergone numerous changes, none of which have been done by revelation. It is my opinion that these changes and the fact that true messengers have been cast out (Denver Snuffer), the Lord does not recognize LDS baptisms as legitimate any longer.
Bishop, I love you and appreciate all you have done for me, my family, and our ward. I know that my actions will probably not be understood. I am just trying to do what is right. I think that what I am doing is right, but if I ever found that I was in error, I would repent immediately, in sackcloth and ashes, begging the Lord’s pardon. I hope that despite my status as a non-member, I will still be able to love and serve my friends and neighbors. I love the people of this ward and the church leaders. I consider you and President XXXX to be men who love the Lord. Thank you again for all you have done.
Sincerely,
Jake Mahan
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One interesting but discouraging thing I have noted - as I expected, my bishop shared the news of my resignation with the ward council, who in turn have shared the news with other members of their family. Of those who have talked with me since the resignation, including the bishop, none have been willing to discuss any of the doctrinal items I have discussed. I am afraid that they are scared of being corrupted by my apostasy. Why are people afraid to discuss doctrine? God is a God of truth. There is nothing to fear from a thorough, critical review of doctrine.
