sincere concern and a teacher bore his or her testimony as a response intended to avoid the issue.". I don't want you to go to the trouble or expense of obtaining an ASL interpreter. A main theme of the letter is the belief of Runnells that the church knew unflattering aspects about its history but deliberately hid or misrepresented them. But the decision is made after the court meets. So the real problem here is that the church has a problem with freedom of expression. It was a Mormonism where you were expected to search for and embrace all truth regardless of where it may be found. She tried several things to humanize the situation, like talking to the doorkeeper and explaining how she had gotten a blessing from her own stake president before coming to Kansas and had prayed that they would all be able to see one another beyond their divisions. Richard Lyman, who held the rank of apostle in the church, was excommunicated in 1943. The only reason why cesletter.org exists is because I needed a centralized place to be able to provide my defense and responses to the various personal Here is a sister - of ours (ALL members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; hereafter "the Church) who has not maintained a close relationship with her leaders or community recently and seems perplexed that "people who do not even know me" are calling her to account with her (perceived) "contrary to the doctrines of the Church" pronouncements. I'm a firm believer in free agency and individual freedom. against me. Stephen Daley, LDS stake (regional) president in Derby, wrote in a letter on Wednesday that while members may hold diverse opinions on a number of topics, Helfer "cannot be a member in good. The. [12], The CES Letter, along with a book published by Egyptologist Robert K. Ritner and the reactions generated by apologists were influential in the 2014 release by the LDS Church of an essay addressing historical difficulties in the Book of Abraham. - George Albert Smith. Most Chapel Mormons would be disturbed and shocked at the new Mormonism that these unofficial apologists mingle and preach with It is my sincere hope that your next email to me will contain answers that I have been asking you for - many times - over the past year and a I am glad to hear that, although you need to understand that some of However, in spite of my wish to avoid misunderstandings, apparently there may have already been one. ", https://www.facebook.com/runnells/posts/10158069407958737, "With its gentler approach, FAIR drops its snarky videos aimed at LDS Church critics", "Marvel Removes Anti-Mormon Reference from 'Amazing Spider-Man' Comic", "These Mormon twins worked together on an IRS whistleblower complaint over the church's billions and it tore them apart", "Mormons, Here's Why I Published the Revelations About the LDS Church's $100 Billion Stockpile", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jeremy_Runnells&oldid=1141515508, This page was last edited on 25 February 2023, at 12:50. The probations can simply be with the Bishop and at his discretion without a court, and even with out the counselors being made privy of what is going on (except after the fact, and even then he is not bound to tell them what the offense was, simply that they have had an action occur). The CES Letter Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, is an entity that contributes to the Mormon marketplace of information. The Church's own essays (https://www.lds.org/topics/essays?lang=eng) discredit many of the What errors or mistakes are there in the 'CES Letter' or on my website that I can publicly correct? The reason why my responses to FairMormon and other unofficial Mormon apologist attacks exist: to defend my name, character and integrity fromFairMormon's blatantly dishonest attacks, at full display on https://cesletter.org/debunking-fairmormon. loved ones on a day set aside for commemorating love. Race and the priesthood. The artist, Ryan Ottley, also released a statement saying, "My entire family are members, as are many of my friends, and I would never include anything mean-spirited about them or their beliefs. believe that leaders in the Church are kind, dedicated, loving, caring, well-meaning and very diligent servants to the members. I am glad to hear that, although you need to understand that some of It is worth bringing up current Church Historian Elder Steven Snow's comment again: "I think in the past there was a tendency to keep a lot of the records closed or at least not give access to information. priesthood leader. I have asked you questions seeking understanding and clarification from you as to how you and the church justify your demands to censor me, obstruct my Goodbye. So will questioning any of the claims of the church, such as the very standard egyptian burial diagrams at the end . Sample 3: "Letter of resignation from mormon church". the free agency of members of the church. ", "Author Jeremy Runnells Resigns From LDS Church At Excommunication Hearing In American Fork", "Jeremy Runnells and His Letter to a CES Director", "Inside the Secret Facebook War For Mormon Hearts and Minds", "The Trials of YouTube Jesus: A Mormon Apostate Fighting for His Family", "Author of 'Letter to a CES Director' resigns from Mormon church", "Author of 'Letter to a CES Director' out of LDS Church after disciplinary council", "Jana Riess: This is your brain on Mormon Facebook", "Understanding Mormon Disbelief: Why do some Mormons lose their testimony, and what happens to them when they do? I would appreciate you or other church leaders taking the time to answer my questions before calling a disciplinary council. I wanted my church's answers and defense to very troubling facts I learned about Joseph Smith and the church's origins and Such things as murder, adultery, sexual perversion, or any other serious offense that resulted in a conviction by civil courts such as a felony. After 4 years of research and trying to get official answers through official church channels and going through all the unofficial apologetic nonsense, the road has finally led me to the following conclusions: This entire process of trying to get official answers and getting thrown into a disciplinary council close to being spiritually executed has validated and Unfortunately, no response ever came. I have discovered, borrowing the above words of Second, the Handbook is clear that the accused is allowed to have witnesses. I was always curious as to what level a court is required. I have painfully come to see for myself that the Mormonism of my youth is dead. agency and the free agency of others, and to take our conversation away from the light of transparency and openness into the dark of secrecy and Paste as plain text instead, I plan to continue to render service to members That way the chance for misunderstanding by either of us will be reduced. month where he acknowledges this: "Gone are the days when a student asked an honest question and the teacher responded, 'Don't worry about it.' I'm pleased that I and everyone else involved, including the high council, will be able to spend time with our If you can have your letter or email to me by March 10th, I will try to respond by March 15th. I don't know how to repent of church essay verified facts. Again, it is not me or the CES Letter itself that causes people to leave, if they do, but rather the facts and information verified by the church's own /r/Mormon is a subreddit for articles and topics of interest to people interested in Rather than get the answers from you which I waited a year and a half for, instead I received threats of excommunication. What you are asking me to do by taking down the "CES Letter website and any other related or similar websites, blogs, tweets, ect. 98 votes, 33 comments. simply the philosophies of men mingled with scripture. It takes a lot of time, effort, and money to provide quality information in a quality way. There is no true free agency when Mormon blogger and podcaster John Dehlin, who was excommunicated for apostasy from the LDS Church on Feb. 9, has filed an appeal to the faith's governing First Presidency, claiming the action was "a flawed and unfair process." In a Tuesday letter, Dehlin says that evidence his local Mormon leaders used to justify the excommunication namely . I'm going to begin by bringing up two very important fundamental points that I believe is the foundation and heart of all of this. They are unofficial men with unofficial pet theories and unofficial claims that the LDS Church bunnzy, who were asking them why they had doubts and concerns with the truth claims of the LDS Church. I will be out of the country between March 25, 2016 to April 5, 2016 and will have very limited, if any, access to email and phone. I did it their way only to find lots of icing but no cake. recovering from and am half deaf. absence. with fearless and open mind 'insist that facts are far more important than any cherished, mistaken beliefs, no matter how unpleasant the facts or how That they would take someone's salvation without answering their sincere, reasonable questions. information is absolutely essential and paramount to the free agency of the individual. The Salamander Letter: The Most Scandalous Document In Mormon History A clip from Netflix's Murder Among the Mormons that explores the infamous salamander letter. new window while listening to the audio recording on this page. No response ever came. If there is anything we can do to There is a great deal of legislation concerning common-law marriage, child custody, property ownership and contractual services. Ivins' office. Guess whatever the "additional information" that just demanded a Valentine's Day disciplinary court be held against Runnells wasn't that urgent or important after all Ivins asks Runnells to verify that March 15th informal meeting is still on. I remind you of your written agreement to abide by Handbook and respectfully request that you treat me fairly by not holding a disciplinary council in my A vigil for Jeremy Runnells is being organized on Sunday, February 14, 2016 @ 7:00 pm Mountain Time at the American Fork Utah East Stake Center. It appears that you and the church are attempting to kill and silence the messenger rather than address the message. If a one-night stand constituted a common law marriage, we would increase the number of polygamists by a million-fold overnight! 0:00. #worstvalentinedateever. Updated on June 25, 2019. and this one. and website. The CES Director read the letter and promised a response to Runnells' questions and concerns. I want to add that I trust that you will be fair to me and will follow It's my understanding that there's several of you who have come The evidence against the Book of Abraham is so damning that the church abandoned, through its essay, its long held position that Joseph Smith did a literal Just a quick thought on excommunication. 1. you cant discipline someone who no longer belongs to your organization. - If he repent not he shall not be numbered among my people, 3Ne. But go ahead, bash away. On October 19th when I told you these facts, I was speaking in direct opposition against Joseph Smith and his character. Ivins responded with After scheduling the meeting with Stake President Mark Ivins' secretary, Jeremy Runnells voluntarily meets President Ivins for the very first time in Fox 13 did a piece on Runnells and the event: Runnells hilariously gets job proposal from LDS Church. In a normal month they usually process 500-1000 over the course of that entire period. Runnells did not hear back again from President Ivins until January 25, 2016 when Ivins telephoned Runnells to inform him of his intention to challenge Runnells' LDS Church membership. A Bishop has 4 tools at his discretion to help someone repent and be forgiven in the eyes of the church: The first 2 do not show up in a member's record, the other 2 do. If someone decides to resign membership and the church excommunicates them it looks like the church kicked them out when in reality they voluntarily left. Once he did that he realized that those After reviewing your website and your statements, there are '"[25], Harris, M. L., Bringhurst, N. G., & Mauss, A. L. (2020). But the world has changed in the As an act of good faith, while our dialogue takes place, your CES Letter website and any other related or similar websites, blogs, tweets, ect., will be be unable to receive and sign any certified mail. foundational truth claims (e.g., Book of Mormon and Book of Abraham historicity, Joseph Smith's polygamy and polyandry, LDS priesthood restoration, He must, Sam Young, a former Mormon bishop from Sugar Land, read a church letter announcing the decision . over the phone. In fact, truth, The free flow of information and a healthy, balanced marketplace of information are, Free agency - supposedly the church's most cherished and foundational principle (after all, Heavenly Father lost 1/3, Runnells responds to Ivins' censorship demands, Runnells updates the public on latest with communications with Stake President Mark Ivins, Ivins ignores Runnells' clarification questions and tries to corner Runnells, Runnells tells Ivins that his understanding is incorrect as he is asking clarification questions about Ivins' demands, Ivins continues to ignore Runnells' clarification questions and sends Runnells another disciplinary council letter, Disciplinary council is set for April 17, 2016 @ 6pm. and Facebook. April 22, 2021 By Jana Riess (RNS) Natasha Helfer, the Mormon therapist whose views on sexuality resulted in a disciplinary council on Sunday, has been excommunicated from the Church of Jesus. I am no longer a member of the church. overly aggressive and mean-spirited. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Questions which you agreed to help me get answers to - with zero conditions attached - in our November 2, 2014 The minute that the church interferes with a member's or investigator's investigation by withholding or [5], After not receiving a response, in April 2013 he posted his letter on the internet. "After carefully and prayerfully considering this matter," the letter states, "it was the decision of the council to withdraw your church membership in response to conduct contrary to the law and. Regarding my Letter to a CES Director and the website where it is currently posted: I originally wrote the Letter to a CES Director because the CES Director, a friend of my grandfather, directly requested that I communicate my To be clear, Jeremy Runnells voluntarily resigned his membership from the LDS Church. I was extremely alarmed and disturbed by your actions on the week of February 8th with your claim that newly "additional information" demanded a I have desperately tried to get official answers from the church to these serious problems for several years now. its source and where it leads. your website and other materials you have posted concerning the Church on the internet, are unwilling to stop trying to raise money for your endeavors Believe that leaders in the church has a problem with freedom of expression read the Letter and promised a to. A day set aside for commemorating love the church court meets was speaking in direct opposition against Joseph and... Testimony as a response intended to avoid the issue. `` on October 19th when i you! Truth regardless of where it may be found of resignation from mormon &! A normal month they usually process 500-1000 over the course of that entire period leaders taking the to! 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