IF LIES ARE LACED THROUGHOUT IT ALL - LDS Hymn Parody #34

One of the biggest remaining questions for me regarding the Mormon Church and its members is why so many of them seem to not want to know the truth.  Like in this picture, the minute someone tries to tell them an opposing opinion, they immediately shut off their minds... the ol' la, la, la, I can't hear you response.  But then again, I suppose this response is understandable when you look at the atmosphere created within Mormonism (i.e. when the prophet speaks, the thinking is done, the debate is over).  In this way, the members are more able to rationalize through all of the loose ends and apparent lies to arrive at the conclusion that the Mormon Church is somehow true.  Very clever, these Mormon leaders.

Of course, having been born and raised in the Mormon Church, I can understand where this immediate response to shut off your brain comes from to a certain degree.  Since I just went along for many years (50 to be exact), not really questioning very much and just accepting it all without much thinking or contemplation, I know how deep the brainwashing runs.  If I didn't understand something, I was given the message that we cannot understand everything in this life, but that if we endure to the end, it will all be made known to us and then we will know that it was worth it.  I was also given the message that I must not be worthy enough to understand certain things, so I needed to pray more, study the scriptures more, attend all of the church meetings, etc., and then perhaps it would make more sense.  If there's anything wrong, it couldn't possibly be that the church is wrong, so it must be that you are not worthy enough.  The ol' it's you not them mindset.  Sadly, this works quite well in Mormondom.

This is one of the things that strikes me the hardest when reading the comments posted on my blog by Anonymous in the past few days.  This person is obviously spouting the Mormon Party Line, and it seems to me that there is very little actual thinking going on.  The Mormon leadership should be very proud of this person since he/she is the epitome of The Mormon Way.

And so this leads to my latest hymn parody.  Truly, if lies are laced throughout it all, why don't they want to know?  When I began to discover all the discrepancies between what I had been taught and what was true in reality, I was flabbergasted and very confused - but I was also grateful that I had finally taken the step to finding out the actual truth.  If I am now ridiculed and mocked by TBMs, that is a small price to pay.  But regardless of what they all think, I cannot remain quiet about what I have discovered.  To do so would be to diminish the effect of the actual knowledge that I have gained.  And I refuse to be a compliant sheep anymore.

IF LIES ARE LACED THROUGHOUT IT ALL
Sung to the tune of O Love That Glorifies the Son, #295

If lies are laced throughout it all,
If lies are written on the wall,
Those lies will be its sure downfall.
Why don’t they want to know?
Why don’t they want to know?

Why do they cling to what they’re told
And all of the apostates scold?
There’s lies throughout what they’ve been sold.
Why don’t they want to know?
Why don’t they want to know?

They hide their heads deep in the sand,
And say that they don’t understand
Why we have taken such a stand
Against the Mormon Church,
Against the Mormon Church.

Instead of saying we besmirch
The doctrines of the Mormon Church,
Why don’t they do their own research?
Perhaps they’d find the truth,
Perhaps they’d find the truth.

They ask us why we can’t move on,
To Mormonism we are drawn,
They want us all to just be gone,
To simply go away,
To simply go away.

Apostates who have broken free,
Who all the lies so plainly see,
Our voices cannot silent be,
Or it will be for naught,
Or it will be for naught.

© Diane Tingen, 8/7/2011

IT AMAZES ME WHEN I LOOK BACK...

PEACE OUT

It amazes me when I look back
That I didn’t have a heart attack
From always trying to just conform
To the randomness of Mormondom.
Finally seeing that it makes no sense
Made me face the fact it’s just pretense.
Deceptive doctrines, a stack of lies,
Sordid history they can't disguise.

Mormonism is a dead-end street
Lined with numerous lies and deceit.

You can’t do this, and you can’t do that,
Compliance is clearly where’s it at.
Obedience, no deviation,
Follow every instruction given.
That mindset would have been my demise,
Since no middle ground or compromise
Is acceptable within the lines
Of Mormonism as it entwines
Its web of lies into families,
Blurring its limits and boundaries.

And now, I’m happy just being me,
Not what they expected me to be.
An ExMormon to my very core,
No longer the sheep I was before.

Not content to be lead around,
Astonished by all the lies I found
Laced in Mormonism, through and through,
Very glad I finally got a clue.
Life is too short to be miserable,
And being free is phenomenal.

But I know what the Mormons will say,
That I've thrown eternal life away,
Separated from my family
Is how I'll spend all eternity.
Condescending, as they chastise me,
Saying that happy I cannot be.
Wickedness never was happiness,
And my sins I will have to confess,
My true happiness is a concept
That they simply refuse to accept.

So "Peace Out" has new meaning for me,
And I can say undeniably

That being free to be who I am
And not just following the program
Is a priceless gift, its own reward,
So many options to be explored.
No longer plagued by suffocation,
Or feeling like there's a huge burden
Looming over me, about to fall,
As I bang my head against a wall.

Yes, I’ve taken the apostate route,
And though the Mormons may scream and shout
About the straight and narrow way to God,
I know that Mormonism is a fraud
Invented to exercise control,
A fake religion without a soul.
The truth is out there to be found,
So glad I got out before I drowned.
I am, beyond a shadow of a doubt,
Truly happy now, and so... PEACE OUT!!!

© Diane Tingen, 7/28/2011

A MIGHTY PUZZLE WAS THE CHURCH - LDS Hymn Parody #31

Yes, from the time I was a teenager, the Mormon Church was a puzzle to me.  So much of it just didn't make sense, but the message I received was that if I had issues, then I just needed to pray more, study the scriptures more, and be more obedient - and then it would make sense to me.  And believe me, I tried.  I accepted the proposition that it wasn't the church, it was ME - that I was not worthy enough to understand it all.  But regardless of how much confusion I felt, I kept plugging along, believing that if I just hung in there, one day it would all make sense.  Never happened.

When I began studying church history in preparation for going on a Mormon Church History Tour in the Summer of 2001, I immediately began to discover that there are all kinds of sordid details in Mormon Church History.  Naturally, my original reaction was disbelief - I must be misunderstanding something because these things couldn't have possibly taken place.  And then, when I came to terms with the fact that these were true accounts of what had occurred back then and all the lies laced throughout Mormon Church history and doctrine, I began to kick myself for not researching this earlier, for just going along and accepting it all without doing my own actual research.  In my opinion, this is one of the biggest problems with the Mormon Church - encouraging people to accept everything they are told and highly discouraging them from delving any deeper on their own.  Blind faith rather than actual reasoning or critical thinking.  Of course, since the church gives people the message that going ouside the "authorized areas" is a big No-No, it creates the type of situation where people "just believe."  But just believing based solely on what a person is told is not wise.  But that's what most Mormons do and seem to be just fine with it.

I am so glad that the Mormon Church is not a puzzle to me anymore.  I am very grateful that I finally broke the mold and began to research outside the "accepted parameters."  Of course, when I discovered that one of the characteristics of a cult is highly discouraging its members from researching outside what they have outlined as "accepted reading," I began to see the Mormon Church in a much different light.  Little did I know, all those years ago, when people told me that the Mormon Church was a cult, and I disagreed, becoming very annoyed that my church was being put in that highly offensive category, that they were actually right.  Live and learn.

And so, here is my latest hymn parody...

A MIGHTY PUZZLE WAS THE CHURCH

Sung to the tune of A Mighty Fortress is our God, #68

A mighty puzzle was the church,
For many years, I struggled.
No matter what I read or heard,
So many issues lingered.
And so, through my research,
I found the Mormon Church
Is filled with many lies,
And so I must surmise
That Joseph Smith just made it up.

So when I left the Mormon Church,
Enormous burdens lifted.
The puzzle had been solved at last,
And all confusion ended.

Where I was once devout,
I simply have no doubt
That it is just a ruse
For which there’s no excuse,
Religious cult that’s full of lies.

Apostates seek to know the truth,
And see behind the curtain.
They don’t accept what they are told,
They want to know for certain.
They see through the façade,
Believe that it’s a fraud,
Reject what is not true
With an objective view,
And aren’t afraid to speak the truth.

It was not easy when I left,
With family members active.
But though they may not understand,
The truth is my one motive.
For once I saw the lies,
There was no compromise.
I knew that if I stayed,
It would be a charade,
And now I live authentically.

© Diane Tingen, 7/15/2011

So many Mormons just stand there, staring at the missing puzzle piece,
not allowing themselves to take the leap and do their own research.
I will be forever grateful that I finally took that leap...

DEAR TO THE HEART OF THE MORMONS - LDS Hymn Parody #6

Here's my latest hymn parody - Dear to the Heart of the Mormons (revised from Dear to the Heart of the Shepherd, speaking of all the sheep out there).  With the completion of this hymn parody, I am checking off another one from my original list.  This is one of the hymns I mentioned last week when I began this project, and I think it is definitely apropos to be added to the ExMormon Hymn Book. 

In fact, as I mentioned before, this hymn was one that used to crack up my best friend growing up (who is still very TBM, even now) and I when we were teenagers.  We used to burst into laughter when we were sitting together, singing it in Sacrament Meeting. 

I mean, this hymn (in its original form) is just so dramatic, and the words are so overdone and cheesy.  I really think my new version is a big improvement...

DEAR TO THE HEART OF THE MORMONS
Sung to the tune of Dear to the Heart of the Shepherd, #221

Dear to the heart of the Mormons,
Dear are the sheep they entrap.
Held by the Kool-Aid they’re drinking,
And all the rest of the crap.
But to the anguish of Mormons,
Many are leaving the fold.

All the apostates and ExMos,
Finding the lies they withhold.

(Chorus)

Singling out all the Antis,
Who speak of lies and deceit.
Begging them, “Can’t you be quiet?

Why can’t you be more discreet?”

Dear to the heart of the Mormons,
Touting their lifestyle to all.
Claiming that the Word of Wisdom
Will help us all not to fall.
Saying Joe Smith was a Prophet,
Translating the Word of God.
But they don’t mention his history
Or that he was just a fraud.

(Chorus)

Condemning all of the “Antis,”
Who speak of lies and deceit.
Begging them, “Can’t you be quiet?

Why can’t you be more discreet?”

I was a part of the Mormons
For many years of my life.
I drank the Kool-Aid they offer,
I was an eternal wife.
But when I found the deception,
All of the lies that they tell,
Including the sordid history,
That’s when I bid them farewell.

(Chorus)

That’s when I joined the apostates,
Those who uncovered the lies.
Now unafraid to call bullshit,
Now less naïve and more wise.

© Diane Tingen, 6/2/2011

And one last word about Sheep...
ala Gary Larsen and his Far Side cartoon...