Tucson Citizen Leslie Reynolds spent part of her life questioning her belief in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She attempted to leave the church four times but kept returning, until her final departure seven years ago. Now Reynolds has written Mormons in Transition, exploring the experiences of 13 others who made the transition from the LDS Church to Christianity. Reynolds, 55, first left Mormonism when she was 17. After attending many other churches, she now considers herself a Lutheran. “I was having problems with the church because I was bright and asked questions,” she said. Guilt, she added, caused her to return to the church each time she tried to leave. About 75 percent of the more than 9 million Mormons have a period of inactivity in the church, Reynolds said, but 68 percent return to the church because it is difficult for them to believe in a another faith, having been taught that the Mormon Church is the only “true church.” Reynolds said that many Mormons don’t realize the differences between the Mormon religion and traditional Christianity, and she notes in her book that there are several. Christianity, she writes, believes that God is a trinity. The LDS church believes the Father, Son and Holy Ghost are three separate beings. The LDS church, she writes, believes the stay on earth is a step of progression toward the Celestial Kingdom, the highest degree of glory in Heaven. Once Mormons are in the Celestial Kingdom, Reynolds writes, men have the potential for becoming gods, husbands and wives can be reunited in marriage and people have the ability to populate their own worlds. Christianity, on the other hand, is vague about the afterlife. The concept of the Celestial Kingdom is very appealing, Reynolds said. And the idea that a person may reunite with a lost loved one in the afterlife causes many to maintain their belief in the religion. Throughout the book, Reynolds presents others’ anecdotes. She said Mormons who are questioning the church can probably relate to at least one experience in the book.
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