As I write this added paragraph (January 2011), the ongoing investigation into Mormon Church non-compliance in respect of the DPA by the ICO on my friend’s behalf is now starting to bite. The ICO does not pursue cases that they do not consider a breach of law. The ICO has confirmed that Church leaders are being asked to explain themselves to the ICO; to provide my friend with the information he requested and to address his request as a matter of priority. The letter that my friend received from the ICO indicated that if the Mormon Church in England really does have no control over the data asked for, then their breach is even more serious, considering the EU contractual clauses that they entered into. The Church has been instructed to comply.

December 2010: I managed to complete the indexing for TMD Volume 4 during November; a thankless but essential task. The book is complete and currently being edited and proof read by my good friends Jean Bodie and John Bleazard. As ever, I am truly grateful for their eagle eyes and careful reading. It seems no matter how hard you try to get a final manuscript just right, there are still errors that need to be found by fresh pairs of eyes. Only yesterday, Jean discovered that I called God 'Cod' in an Appendix. I thought it fishy that I had missed that. Excuse the poor sense of humour.

November also saw the launch of a new web site hosted by Dan Johnson. He is making a series of short, two or three minute, video clips, where various exMormons briefly explain their decision. It is well worth a visit and can be located via this link:

I AM AN EXMORMON

November 2010: My grateful thanks to the Exmormon Foundation for inviting me to speak at Conference in Salt Lake City in October and also to everyone who was so kind about my presentation and my work. It was lovely to meet everyone and put many faces to some familiar names. Sorry I wasn’t able to bring more copies of my books and thank you to everyone who has subsequently purchased them from Lulu. I will offer an introductory discount for Volume 4 when it is published (in January 2011).

There is always something you forget to say, and for anyone who was there – when I was talking about Zina Huntington, I had meant to mention the method Joseph Smith used to persuade her to enter their polyandrous relationship. Whilst he had tried a direct approach twice (as I mentioned) to get her to marry him when she was a teenager, following her marriage to poor Henry Jacobs, Smith didn’t even approach her himself. He sent Zina’s brother, Dimick, to tell her that an angel with a drawn sword had stood over him and threatened to kill him unless Zina married him! That has to be the most outrageous chat-up line I have ever heard. It’s funny when you think about it, but it’s also sad that it really did happen and that she believed it… She should have said no – and that would have helped matters along! That would have been quite a novel end to Smith – the only human ever stabbed to death by an angel sent from God to do so… gullibility just isn’t a suitable word and I can’t think of one that fits the scenario at the moment.

The Foundation will upload my presentation to YouTube in a few days time once they have sequenced the PowerPoint material with the talk. I will put the sequence of links on my Home Page when they become available and the links will also appear on the Foundation website. Meanwhile I have posted a link to the live stream on my Home Page. Check back regularly if you want to see the presentation with integrated PowerPoint detail. Because such a presentation, due to the very nature and intensity of the detail, cannot include all the background references, should anyone need a specific reference to a point, please email me and I will be happy to provide it.

October 2010: I have been working on TMD Volume 4 and developing a final draft which will hopefully result in publication in January 2011. I will post details on my Home Page when things are finalised. What prompted the new book was a realisation that the Mormon Church teaches its lies to investigators and suppresses the truth in missionary discussions. A review of the missionary lessons reveals how and why this is cleverly achieved. The truth would drive investigators away before even considering the Church.

Over the last year or two, a couple of friends have been pursuing the Church in the U.K. for copies of documents to which they are legally entitled. Rather than just comply with British law and send copies of the documents (which would cost the Church nothing), they naturally refused for various reasons ranging from confidentiality; entitlement; couldn’t locate them; they are in the States and no longer ‘available’ here; they comply with European Law rather than British law etc. My friends appealed to the ICO (Information Commissioner’s Office) for information and advice and their entitlement was firmly established. Some documents have now been obtained but a few are still outstanding. We await final details of the case which has been lodged with the ICO.

Meanwhile, much of the response material came from Church appointed lawyers rather than Church admin staff, and we thought it must be costing a lot of money which was being wasted for no reason whatsoever. One of my friends discovered the following video of a talk given by a Church lawyer at the J. Reuben Clark Law Society Conference early in 2010. This is a transcript of part of it.

In the last month in the UK alone I think we've spent... err, well, for two individuals... two former members of the church who don't want to leave the church alone but want to be aggravants to us... have filed complaints with the regulatory authorities in the UK and I've spent close to 80,000 dollars in legal fees to respond to these. They're demanding copies of their membership records, of course they were disciplined so now they're demanding copies of their disciplinary courts... proceedings... so... councils. That's a problem we're facing... and that's just in one little... it's not a little country but it's two individuals and look at the cost and the aggravation it's caused us. So we're going to see more in the data privacy area... that's why I mention more disclosure in the content and information.

The First Presidency feels that that (disciplinary records) is very privileged... and we cannot disclose that unless we get First Presidency approval. That's how sensitive this type of information is with respect to the Brethren, so this is a big deal for us as we go around the world. (Addressing Issues for Good Around the World - William F. Atkin).

http://www.law2.byu.edu/news/item.php?num=676  

So, the Church spent close to $80,000 of tithing money in one just month on legal advice which my friends had already provided in copies of legislation obtained directly from the ICO. All the Church had to do was send the requested paperwork and spend no money at all. They will comply because the law demands it and they cannot do otherwise. It may also cost them a lot more money. And these are men who are supposed to represent God, honesty and integrity, and have the power of discernment. All they really needed was just a little common sense and reason. Modern Church leaders appear to lack that just as much as they lack any more integrity than Joseph Smith and his cohorts had. There is none. It is faithful tithe-paying members who have to finance the arrogant stand that Church leaders take on such issues. They always did think they were above the law. Nothing changes in Mormonism.

September 2010: During July and August, I reviewed all three volumes of TMD and added a few snippets, altered a few aspects to better explain them, and with the assistance of my friend, John Bleazard, who has kindly reviewed each book for me, amended some (hopefully) final spelling and grammatical errors. The Third Edition of Vol. 1 and Second Editions of Vols. 2 & 3 were published on 1^st September 2010. Contrary to my earlier decision not to write anything further, something has transpired to make me change my mind and I will mention more about that in a month or two. Suffice it to say for now that there will after all be a ‘Volume 4’ available early in the new year. Watch this space, as they say.

Meanwhile, I have recently been reviewing and considering some Book of Mormon absurdity…

Joseph Smith claims the following was written between 600 and 592 BCE. In the text, Smith has Nephi see the future apostle, John, who is to write material in the book which will “proceed out of the mouth of the Jew” but he gets caught by his own ignorance about the New Testament. Either that or the visiting angel got it all wrong!

In v.21 the angel claims John will write “many things that have been” which must of timeline necessity refer to the period prior to 600 BCE. You will be hard pressed to find any such historical detail in John other than in the first five verses of Chapter 1 which speak briefly of the creation – but offer nothing new compared to extensive Old Testament coverage. Likewise, Revelation is entirely futuristic.

1 Nephi 14:18 And it came to pass that the angel spake unto me, saying: Look!

19 And I looked and beheld a man, and he was dressed in a white robe.

20 And the angel said unto me: Behold one of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

21 Behold, he shall see and write the remainder of these things; yea, and also many things which have been.

22 And he shall also write concerning the end of the world.

23 Wherefore, the things which he shall write are just and true; and behold they are written in the book which thou beheld proceeding out of the mouth of the Jew; and at the time they proceeded out of the mouth of the Jew, or, at the time the book proceeded out of the mouth of the Jew, the things which were written were plain and pure, and most precious and easy to the understanding of all men.

24 And behold, the things which this apostle of the Lamb shall write are many things which thou hast seen; and behold, the remainder shalt thou see.

25 But the things which thou shalt see hereafter thou shalt not write; for the Lord God hath ordained the apostle of the Lamb of God that he should write them.

26 And also others who have been, to them hath he shown all things, and they have written them; and they are sealed up to come forth in their purity, according to the truth which is in the Lamb, in the own due time of the Lord, unto the house of Israel.

27 And I, Nephi, heard and bear record, that the name of the apostle of the Lamb was John, according to the word of the angel.

Note that, as in many other instances throughout his writing in the Book of Mormon, Book of Abraham and the D&C, Smith has God or angels ‘correcting’ themselves, apparently to clarify what they have just said. V.23: “they are written in the book which thou beheld proceeding out of the mouth of the Jew; and at the time they proceeded out of the mouth of the Jew, or, at the time the book proceeded out of the mouth of the Jew,...”

This style of explaining things is typical of something created on an ‘as you go along’ basis in English ‘speech’ (Smith was supposedly effectively ‘reading aloud’ what God put in his hat), but not usually in the written word. It is definitely not typical of what someone would write when carefully recording what someone (in this case an angel) has actually said; especially as this was supposedly written in reformed Egyptian hieroglyphs. No known hieroglyphs account for such ‘rephrasing’. They just do not work that way. They are picture-signs used to convey the sound (and meaning) of the ancient Egyptian language and not to incorporate retractive explanations. It would actually be almost impossible for any hieroglyphs, reformed or not, to accommodate such retraction.

If you imagine someone carefully inscribing each hieroglyph on to gold plate, it quickly becomes apparent that the process would not allow for having to retract and re-explain a statement. The very idea is preposterous. However, imagine Smith making it up as he went along, pretending to see the words in his hat; then you can appreciate his constant ‘corrections’ in the way things are explained. If you consider Nephi a real prophet, carefully inscribing details of what an angel told him, then the supposed translated text that Smith provides becomes an impossible consideration.

Also, note that whilst most of the verses are written in the future tense, Smith temporarily forgets to do this and this part is written in the past tense, as looked at from the time of Smith when he wrote it. If Nephi had been writing it, it would have been in the future tense as John was yet to be born and the events yet to happen. The hoax is exposed, as ever, in any number of ways.

Apart from the fact that v.26-27 claim others had seen and written things (pre-600 BCE) which will one day be revealed – who knows when, Smith has Nephi learn that the future apostle John  will write what he (Smith) already knows is in the Bible. It is therefore not difficult to predict what will be in it. However, his lack of knowledge about the history of the New Testament plunges his Book of Mormon claim into deep and problematic water. The book did not proceed out of the mouth of the Jew (v.23-34); it proceeded out of the mouth of the Romans, long after the time of Christ.

Smith (or Nephi if you must) is probably referring to the book of Revelation and possibly the Gospel of John. What Smith did not know was the truth behind those books. He thought John actually wrote them, just as many Christians still do today. However, the fact of the matter is that is not the case at all, proving Smith’s assertions about Nephi entirely false. The apostle John never wrote anything down at all.

August 2010: Something came to mind the other day; while I was researching an entirely different subject; regarding pigs and dogs in the Book of Mormon. I am not sure where the thought came from but I first noted Ether 9:18. The surrounding verses are also interesting of course, as things mentioned did not exist in the Americas at that time. I have highlighted the ones which provably did not exist. For example, linen (fine twined or not), is made from flax which did not exist there during the Book of Mormon period, as established by all soil core samples ever taken from anywhere you care to mention. There are many other references to animals and crops in the Book of Mormon, but this one is funny because Smith managed to get everything entirely wrong. He was either completely ignorant about such things or he was including a joke at the expense of believers in his fictional narrative.

Ether 9:17. Having all manner of fruit, and of grain, and of silks, and of fine linen, and of gold, and of silver, and of precious things;

18. And also all manner of cattle, of oxen, and cows, and of sheep, and of swine, and of goats, and also many other kinds of animals which were useful for the food of man.  

19. And they also had horses, and asses, and there were elephants and cureloms and cumoms; all of which were useful unto man, and more especially the elephants and cureloms and cumoms. (God forgot to translate the last two, via Joseph Smith’s hat, into English).   

Whatever Smith (or anyone else for that matter) may have thought cureloms and cumoms may have been; as none of the other animals in the above list actually existed in the Americas at the time; undoubtedly they didn’t either. Full lists of animals and crops that did and did not exist in the Americas, compared with Smith’s Book of Mormon claims, can be found in TMD Vol. 2. Chapter. 12.

Against all the odds, out of everything he listed in each area in the Book of Mormon, Smith only got one of the crops and one of the animals correct. Even then, the animal is the dog, which, although referred to a few times in the Book of Mormon, ironically, it doesn’t categorically claim there were any actually in the Americas or that they domesticated any. It is the only animal he mentions at all that actually was there. When nomadic hunter-gatherers crossed the Bering Strait from Asia to North America, at least 12,000-14,000 years ago, they had dogs with them.  

From TMD Vol.2. Ch.12. Pp. 225-26...

      In 3 Nephi 7:8 there is a reference “…like a dog to his vomit, or like a sow to her wallowing in the mire”. (Incidentally; pigs are not dirty; they cannot sweat, so they roll in mud to keep cool). References to the habits of domestic dogs and sows (Smith separately claims in the BOM that they did have swine), infers knowledge and existence of them in America in 30-33 CE. It is perfectly clear that Smith plagiarised the phrase from the KJV – “The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her own wallowing in the mire” (2 Peter 2:22). Not only did domestic sows not exist in the New World in 30 CE, but the phrase that Smith virtually copied from the New Testament was actually written later (the earliest claimed date for 2 Peter being written is 63-64 CE); thirty years after this time, on the other side of the world.

July 2010: Details of the October 2010 Exmormon Foundation Conference are now available. Just click on the following link:

October 2010 Exmormon Foundation Conference Schedule

I will be presenting on the Saturday morning. For those planning to attend, I look forward to seeing you there. The weekend promises to be full of variety and worthwhile information. More importantly, we will be able to mix and meet with hundreds of people who, like us, have discovered and had to face and deal with the devastating truth behind Mormonism. We are not alone in our struggle to come to terms with the truth or in our travels along the road to recovery.

June saw the publication of a book of poetry by my friend Vernon Moyse. Vernon (who, like me, also lives in England), was a Mormon for many years and although gay, he faithfully remained celibate, in line with Mormon theology. Vernon was baptised in 1992 and was excommunicated in March 2010 when he entered a civil partnership with his companion of forty years. He committed no moral sin nor did he violate any commandment or other Mormon mandate that would have required discipline. He simply entered an entirely celibate and perfectly legal arrangement which enabled better management of taxes, pensions and inheritances for both Vernon and his partner. It also added the comfort of companionship plus the safety and security of living with a companion during their now latter years and declining health. (I wouldn’t want to suffer a heart attack or some such when completely alone).

Vernon’s latest (fifth) book of poetry is entitled ‘The Mormon Gay’ and it recounts in poetic form his recent trials and tribulations which led to his exit from the Church. He also includes poems written earlier; expressing his initial euphoria upon discovering what he then perceived as the truth within Mormonism; to give overall perspective to his journey. Here is an ex Mormon who did absolutely nothing wrong, legally, morally or theologically. His relationship always remained celibate in accordance with Mormon theology which determines it is only acting upon such feelings or impulses that is sinful or actionable. Vernon’s only ‘transgression’ was to formally enter a perfectly legal civil partnership which is not a marriage. The arrangement is little different to that of two missionaries cohabiting during their mission. An appeal to the First Presidency to overturn the disciplinary council decision was withdrawn by Vernon before it was considered, when he concluded that the Church could not be true and decided to publish his poems which surrounded the case. The book is available worldwide from Lulu.com (including a download version) and will appear on Amazon et al in a few weeks time.

Later update: Irrespective of Vernon withdrawing his appeal to the First Presidencey, it seems that the local Stake President did not forward the request and the First Presidency did review and uphold the decision to excommunicate Vernon. It seems that the Mormon First Presidency is not willing to abide by its own 12th Article of Faith: "We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law." Vernon obeyed the law. He used appropraite legislation to enable better tax and pension as well as inheritance advantages. A civil partnership is not a marriage and he did not violate a single Church law or rule that should have called his membership into question. Vernon remained celibate. Thus the First Presidency confirmed their predudice and bias by excomunnicating someone solely on the basis of them availing themselves of something perfectly legal and which in and of itself does not violate any known Church rule. Clearly members now have to be obedient to rules they have no idea even exist.

June 2010: For some reason, my work seems to have become more widely known and recognised than I ever imagined would be the case and I receive emails almost daily from people who have just read or who are currently reading my work, thanking me for the analytical style and rich content. Some people are newly questioning whilst others have been out of the Church for quite some time and adding to their library. Some are descended from early polygamous families and have paid a high price for leaving the fold. I am pleased that without exception, everyone who has read my books and then contacted me has felt my work to have been worthwhile.

Whilst I originally only set out to provide the apostles with evidence of Smith’s fraud and his polyandry, and then continued writing as a form of therapy when so much evidence of the conspiracy and lies continued to unfold, I did not at the time ever anticipate that it would ultimately lead to the publication of three volumes. Even then, as mentioned elsewhere on many occasions, I ultimately published my research in the hope that some of my children may one day find the courage to read my work and come to understand the truth. I hoped that along the way one or two others may also be helped in their quest for the truth. It now appears that my work is being appreciated across the world as people from different countries are reporting that they are finding accurate and fully evidenced answers to their questions about various aspects of the Church in my books. It is gratifying to be of help to those who are seeking the truth.

Meanwhile, during May, the number of ‘testimonies’ against the Church continued to grow as more academics, authors and others contributed their thoughts to the exmormonscholarstestify.org web site I mentioned last month. The witness statements are compelling as they are not just based on faith, such as is the case for the mormonscholarstestify.org web site. The significance of this is that whilst the ‘so-called’ Church member testimonies are no more than statements of personal belief, founded on faith in provable fiction, containing no actual evidence on behalf of any provable truth, the ex-Mormon statements contain real evidence and references which are building into a formidable compilation of actual 'testimony' in the form of 'witness statements' against the possibility of any God ever being involved with the Mormon Church at any stage.

The lies and deceptions perpetrated and perpetuated by the Church are discussed from many different very persuasive perspectives. At the end of May, one such testimony was added by the author, Ed Bliss, who comments that his witness against the Church stems from what is not in the Book of Mormon rather than what is in it. He comments that no Mormon doctrine whatsoever appears there and suggests a single source where Smith may have subsequently located all his new doctrinal concepts after the Book of Mormon was published. The Book of Mormon story itself of course mirrors ‘View of the Hebrews’ which Joseph Smith had ready access to. I would recommend visiting the web site regularly and reading testimonies that appear there: www.exmormonscholarstestify.org

May 2010: During April I was contacted by the host of a web site from Brazil, regarding some aspects on which I have written. It transpires there is very little available for questioning members and investigators of Mormonism in their native language of Brazilian Portuguese. Following discussions, I agreed that a translation of some chapters from TMD Volume 2, involving the Nephi/Moroni contradictions could be undertaken and posted for the benefit of Brazilian Portuguese speaking people. I do hope this will assist in making more information available to the people of Brazil. It is ironic that while I am assisting people to find the truth behind the Church so they can negotiate their way out of their delusion, one of my own grandchildren has just started his mission for the Church in Brazil in order to convert more people into it. A link to the web site can be found, along with a note in Brazilian Portuguese, under the ‘Books/Links/Article’ tab. The translated text should appear on the web site in a few weeks time.

Meanwhile, a new web site has recently appeared in response to the Church inspired 'mormonscholarstestify.org' web site. It seems the Mormon Church thinks its members so gullible that if they see that lots of so-called ‘clever’ people believe in it, then it must be true. In order to provide a balance to this, someone who is actually still a member at the time of writing has created an alternate web site at: www.exmormonscholarstestify.org to show that there are equally, many academics, authors, historians and ex Church leaders who have discovered the truth and resigned from the Church for the sake of integrity. Either that or they have been excommunicated for so-called apostasy – that is, for publishing the truth which the Church claims ‘is not helpful’. The ‘testimonies’ of such people are starting to appear and the new site will rapidly build into a sizable ‘counter’ to the absurdity of the whole idea that the Church seems to have about this. I have provided my own ‘testimony’ on the new web site and hope that members will visit there and see just how much of a nonsense idea it is that academic testimonies can provide ‘evidence’ of the truth of the Church.

The fact of the matter is that most of the Mormon academics just ‘testify’ of the truth they believe which in and of itself is completely meaningless. Many of the ‘testimonies’ provided on the exMormon equivalent site are by comparison, filled with real evidence which is so compelling, much would stand up in a court of law if tested. The new web site is a grand idea and a formidable set of ‘witnesses’ to the truth are coming forward. The difference is, they don’t just ‘testify’ that the Church is not true; they provide compelling evidence as to why it cannot be true by any stretch of the imagination. Some are in the ‘expert witness’ category and their evidence should be taken far more seriously than any academic Mormon testimonies that contain no substantive ‘evidence’ at all. Remember; fact trumps faith and in light of conclusive evidence, faith must be reevaluated.

April 2010. I don’t post much to ex-Mormon bulletin boards these days but during March I was intrigued by the discovery that Mormon apologists have effectively, for once, attacked the Church rather than its detractors over an issue that seems completely pointless and does nothing to support the Church or its leaders and everything to discredit it and them respectively. This was achieved by their claim that the heading to a chapter in the Book of Mormon is in fact misleading and that the Nephites did not actually have 'coins' as such after all. As everyone I knew in the Church had always, along with me, believed and accepted what our leaders had stated in writing in the header which ‘explained’ the BOM text, I wondered what on earth they were trying to achieve. I had also written about Nephite coins in TMD Volume 2, so I took the time to write and post an article on some Ex-Mormon web sites about the apologists’ attack, which they conveniently posted as a video on You tube, the link for which is available in my article. The resulting article, along with an extract from TMD Vol. 2 relative to Nephite coins, has now also been posted on this web site and can be located by clicking on the ‘Nephite Coins’ tab above.

Also, ‘The Bible Delusion’ notes have now been updated. I decided not to write a further volume on this subject for various reasons as explained in the article. 'The Bible Delusion' notes now also appear under the 'Books/Links/Article' tab on the sidebar.

March 2010. It seems more and more that the internet is helping people to understand the truth behind the Mormon Church, when until that point they were not even questioning their beliefs. When members are approached by people who have discovered the truth, their findings are usually rejected out of hand. Faith prevails. However, when someone quite accidentally discovers something uncomfortable on the internet and then does some further personal research, the truth seems to more readily dawn on them. They may then approach someone who already knows the truth, to confirm their suspicions once and for all. In the last month or so, remarkably, this has happened to several of my own friends who then approached me. Subsequently, several resignation letters have been sent in and the Church has a few less members than it did.

I wonder how many more people will be added to the list over the years and when the net Mormon membership will actually reduce year on year. My own analysis shows (see TMD Vol. 2) it is starting to level off and considerably more missionaries are needed to maintain the same small annual growth. This is then reduced by a number of people resigning. Of course, overall membership is still exaggerated by all the ‘lost’ members who are counted on record until they reach one-hundred-and-ten years of age, when only then are they considered to have died. Additionally, for the last decade or so, the Church has included 'children of record'; those under the age of eight, previouly not included, to futher bolster the figures. So, who knows, perhaps decline is already underway. Whatever the case, the Mormon Church will ultimately follow in the footsteps of such as the Methodists and Presbyterians who are less popular now and in rapid membership decline. Time will tell. The truth is out there and it is now only a few clicks away.

February 2010. During the last month I have had several further interesting discussions with people who are coming to terms with the truth surrounding Mormonism. It is still gratifying to have been of some small help to those who are searching for the truth. I was also somewhat astonished when I received an invitation from the ExMormon Foundation asking me to speak at their Conference in Salt Lake City in October of this year. I had not anticipated further travels from England to Salt Lake, since my resignation from the Church a few years ago. Who would have thought that I would return there in such a role as this? It is an honour to be asked and for anyone planning to attend, I look forward to seeing you there and I hope to present well and do justice to the request. 

January 2010. From December 2009, all TMD volumes have been further corrected with some minor layout, spelling and grammatical updates. Signed copies can be obtained direct from the author. Please email for current prices, including forward postage:

jim@themormondelusion.com

Reed Cowan's documentary film, "8: The Mormon Proposition" will premiere at the Sundance Film Festival later this month. It will undoubtedly spark a huge debate regarding the Mormon Church's highly organised influence and huge undisclosed financial support of 'Proposition 8' in California. Follow the link below to see details of the documentary and view the film trailer. It is very compelling.

 8: The Mormon Proposition

17 December 2009. I agreed to donate royalties received via Lulu sales from Nov 5th to Nov 30th to Reed Cowan's project to help complete his documentary film which provides evidence of Mormon Church financial and organisational involvement in support of Prop 8 in California. The Mormon Church did not divulge huge financial support or the highly organised surreptitious lobbying it undertook which ultimately helped to succeed in overturning the previous legal position which in turn took away the civil rights of many individuals who are not associated with the Church. What the Mormon Church did regarding 'Prop 8' appears both illegal and immoral. It is but a small contribution, but the amount raised was £57.80 (Approx $95.89).  A donation of $100 was transferred to Reed Cowan's project today.

October/November 2009. One advantage of POD (print on demand) books such as TMD is that it allows for updating the content at any time. At present, another read through is being undertaken in order to be sure any that outstanding errors are eliminated as far as possible. Those discovered have been in preferred layout and grammar and barely noticeable, but as a perfectionist, I would like the books to read well and to flow as smoothly as possible.

September 2009. I have recently received a number of very kind, complimentary and personal emails from people who have read and appreciated my work. The stories are always similar, sharing empathy and explaining their own pain at the discovery of the truth about the Mormon Church. Invariably, readers had concluded the Church could not be true before they read my books and in my work they found some final and conclusive evidence as to why. I am very grateful for the emails - for the empathy and the thoughts. I wrote my books as a form of therapy following my devastating discovery of the truth the Church conspires to hide from members. I hoped that some of my children who are active Mormons may one day find the courage to read my work. I also hoped it might help others in their discovery of the truth and it is extremely gratifying to learn that it has begun to do so. Thank you to those who have written to me expressing such kindness. I have individually replied.

16 August 2009. A Second Edition of Volume 1 was published today following Jean Bodie's meticulous efforts in proof reading and reviewing the First Edition of the book. The result is better flow and removal of some typos which should now make it a more enjoyable read. There is no material difference to the First Edition other than a few minor historical errors which have now been corrected, and the addition of a little information regarding Mormon temple work for deceased Fundamentalists. Added details appear under the 'TMD Volume 1' tab above, so anyone who has the First Edition can review the addtions to Chapter 16.  

August 2009. During the last few months, I have had emails from several questioning Mormons who found answers in my work which confirmed their doubts. The stories and anguish are real and heart breaking. Also, it seems, whilst they come to know the truth, some are just not ready to face it and deal with it, for the sake of family relationships and in order to retain friends and a social circle. Some have indicated that they are working on an exit from the Church but are meanwhile first trying to gradually and gently help spouses and family members see the truth, while they will still listen, before they make a formal stand. This is very sensible and understandable. Others however, appear to ignore the truth and continue to hide in the delusion, as they want it to be true more than they want to accept the evidenced facts.

Those who do face and deal with the unwanted truth are brave and often suffer severe consequences as family and friends reject them as apostates. I dedicated my first volume to my first deceased wife and my mother, who would both have been devastated had they discovered the truth before they died. My second was dedicated to my children, two of whom rejected the gospel and live 'normal' lives, and six of whom are faithful Mormons who I doubt will ever read my work. The third book is dedicated to those brave people who not only discover the truth, but who then stand up and are counted, regardless of the consequesnces. This is the dedication:

Dedication

This work is dedicated to those who once knew the joy of believing

beyond any doubt that they had found

within Mormonism, the one true religion

only to discover at some later stage they had been deceived.

To those who had to reluctantly face and deal with

the unwanted and at first unbelievable

but ultimately undeniable truth.

Many who discover the truth, consciously decide to ignore it,

reverting to their delusion for the supposed sake of family and friends;

crawling back into and hiding in the ‘Matrix of Mormonism’, ignoring reality.

To those brave people who acted on the truth;

experiencing the unimaginable suffering, trauma

and consequences, which affect relationships within family

and a circle of friends; standing up and being counted

for the sake of integrity –

 I dedicate this work and wish them a speedy, effective and complete

recovery from Mormonism.

July 2009. Volume 3 published 18 July 2009.  

June 2009. I had the pleasure of meeting Jean Bodie this month. Visiting family in England, Jean and her husband Jim found time for us to spend a lovely day together before their flight back to Canada where they live. Jean has been diligently helping with proof reading and editing my work and to meet her in person was an absolute delight. It is strange how different paths cross throughout our lives. Jean also discovered and had to face the awful truth about the Mormon Church and like me has been dealing with the trauma ever since. Her assistance in ensuring my work is as accurate and effectively written as possible has been invaluable. We are nearing the end and Volume 3 will be out soon. 

May 2009. TMD Volume 2 is now available to purchase from Lulu.com and will shortly become available from Amazon and other outlets. My grateful and heartfelt thanks once again go out to Jean Bodie who kindly offered to proof read and help with the final edit of Volume 2. This extremely difficult journey has been made easier at the publishing stage with Jean's kind help, eagle eye and sense of proportion. I have deeply appreciated Jean's hard work which has resulted in a far better finished product than would otherwise have been the case.

April 2009. I am grateful for the positive feedback regarding TMD Volume 1 and particularly want to thank Jean Bodie for her careful reading and minor corrections which will appear in the next edition.

March 2009. I recently had a polite and interesting exchange of emails with an active member of the Mormon Church. One misconception he had was that authors such as myself write the material we do in order to make money. Just to clarify matters, very few authors make much of anything financially from their efforts. It's a bit like being a recording artist. Very few make substantial returns. Most never 'make it' so to speak. In this 'limited interest' genre, no author is ever likely to recoup the costs of the time, research and publication of their work, nor in my experience is it their objective. Authors have to sell a great many books to actually gain financially and books on Church history do not exactly make any 'best seller' lists, even when written by more prominent authors. There is relatively little interest outside the community who have left the Church and those who are seriously questioning their faith.

It takes years of research to produce such work and in my case I doubt very much that I will ever get back even a small percentage of the costs I have incurred. The motivation (and I am sure this applies to most if not all others who write such material) is purely and simply a compulsion to publish the truth for those who seek it.

In my own case, it has been my therapy as I try to somehow come to terms with the awful truth that the things I accepted as real in my life were no more than a complete fabrication, established for the sole purpose of satisfying the appetites (money, power and women) of Joseph Smith. My hope is that one day, some of my family may find the courage to read my work, learn and accept the truth. I hope a few others may also benefit from my writing along the way.

To recoup the costs of three years of full time research and writing would require sales of many thousands of copies of my work. Realistically, some people may be surprised to learn; many books such as this, sell no more than a few dozen to perhaps a few hundred copies. Few get into the low thousands and none sell more than that. With just a few dollars per book in royalties, it is easy to calculate the amount an author may expect in return for his or her efforts. Please be assured that writers of Mormon history who expose the truth are motivated by anything but money.

Another interesting thing mentioned by this member was that he could accommodate the lies concerning early polygamy and also the lies after the Manifesto, accepting there really was a 'greater good' behind it all. This I simply cannot understand, but clearly he is not alone in his ability. This is not a measure of faith, it is evidence of a very deep seated delusional state. Personally, I could never have accommodated any such thing as a member of the Church and I hold Church leaders to the same standards 'expected' of rank and file members - i.e., Articles of Faith 12 & 13 - to say nothing of the standard I hold any God to, Mormon or otherwise.

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