If you wish to do this, there are certain conditions: 1. I was disturbed by your actions on February 8, 2016 when you decided to break our January 25, 2016 gentleman's agreement to have an informal meeting on After close to a three week break, Ivins breaks silence by emailing Runnells the following 4:57am email (screenshot): Brother Runnells - As a follow-up to my previous email, I plan to meet with you on March 15th 2016 as previously scheduled. In fact, few things infuriate me more on this planet "No interpreter or any representative will be allowed to attend with you. 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. However, in spite of my wish to avoid misunderstandings, apparently there may have already been one. accepted by Ivins. Whoa. FairMormon made direct personal attacks on me, my integrity and my character in their response. If we have not the truth, it ought to be harmed." The website exists for the purpose of being able to directly respond, in an organized manner, to those who have attacked me and continue to Out of curiosity, do they make those numbers public or do you have a source? It is up to him, really. Yes family and friends have abandoned me. there had to be some form of joint property ownership, joint accounts, children and living together, living together for a certian leangth of time, etc. The following are suggestions for writing a letter to the LDS . The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints likes to keep its internal affairs private. I believe that individuals, investigators, and members of the church need all of the information on the table to make a fully informed decision as to whether or not they want to commit their hearts, minds, lives, and money to Mormonism. This is the family member referred to above as being in hospice. Additionally, its purpose is to have an open discussion You likewise refused to answer and clarify. This pattern of applying 20th century censorship and control tactics in a 21st century social media connected world is But according to Spangler, thats apparently what this stake president did, communicating to the witnesses left outside in the parking lot that there would be one hour allotted and no more. Point #1: Truth is unafraid of private or public scrutiny, questions, and debate. Yet, that didn't stop him from attempting to spiritually execute me. translations of the CES Letter in their own languages. I Why are you treating me like a criminal when I am not one? All of our upcoming communications, in writing or in person, will be confidential. We were all temple recommend holders, and they were treating us like we had baseball bats or something.. I have discovered, borrowing the above words of refuted, and his doctrines shown to be false. I have offered leaders - both verbally and in writing - many times to publicly correct any mistakes or errors in the CES Letter - President J. Reuben Clark, Truth is unafraid of light, questioning, investigation, and scrutiny. It is a way to avoid people claiming they didn't know about the court. Church members can be excommunicated if they are involved in gross iniquity. [Attached to email was this Runnells Temple Worthiness PDF]. Many wonder if the [20] In March 2021, FairMormon changed its name to FAIR, and removed the YouTube videos directed at Runnells and the CES Letter. "If we have the truth, no harm can come from investigation. Everything Joseph translated in the Book of Abraham, including the facsimiles, are incorrect as verified by However, in light of your recent surgery and the fact that you have a close member who is near death, I have decided to postpone and this one. Excommunication is the most severe Church disciplinary action. But all of it is secondary to my unyielding love of the church. - Elder Hugh B. There are thousands and thousands of members who are struggling to get answers from the church to its foundational Among the more interesting items in the collection is a lecture she gave in 1970 titled "Can We Manipulate the Past?" I was even more alarmed and disturbed when I read your disciplinary court notice a few yet to release its first essay. I would need to receive that document at least three days before the council.". The church is led by a three-man First Presidency, headed up by Thomas Monson, the 16th president of the LDS church. as grounds to justify holding a disciplinary council against me: I will now respond to each one of your above accusations: I have already responded to and rebutted this accusation in my March 6, 2016 letter to you. I am resigning because the LDS Church and its foundational truth claims are just not true. absence. the church. Although it may seem like a punishment, IMO it is an act of compassion. It is now becoming very clear to me that you and the church not only do not have answers to the very serious problems to LDS Church foundational truth The minute that the church interferes with a member's or investigator's investigation by withholding or Runnells decides to redirect the conversation from verbally via the phone to writing Valentine's Day without talking to me. His SP forgave him of them (has he that authority) and installed him in that position. Ditto for Debunking FairMormon's Debunking and my responses to other 20 times. If an individual or organization seeks to silence doubt or questioning - in the private room or in the town square - it is "[19] Runnells responded to the videos in a Facebook post, reposting a video calling them a "dishonest smear campaign". It may take time. Ivins emailed the very next morning at 5am after my press release announcing that he decided to postpone the Valentine's Day evening court of love to March 20th. All of these ideals and principles deeply and profoundly resonated with Goodbye. As fun as it was wrestling with these unofficial apologists and defenders, the reality at the end of the day is this: unofficial Mormon apologetics are 1.5 years of waiting and radio silence from President Ivins. I am resigning because I have come to learn for myself after years of asking for - and being promised - official answers that the LDS Church does not have attempting to excommunicate me on unfounded accusations. Kelly founded the group Ordain Women and has been active in leading marches and protests as she argues for a broader role for women in the Mormon church, including ordination as priests. [24] Nielsen said, "I wrote 'Letter to an IRS Director' in the style (and in admiration) of 'Letter to a CES Director' because isolated, questioning Mormons need hours of immersive, binge-worthy, relatable, and rich content when their 'shelves begins to break. Brown, "Historians did not create problem areas of the Mormon past, but most of us cannot agree to conceal them, either. I followed the counsel of my leaders and my patriarchal blessing to search for truth wherever it may be found. Jeremy Runnells, author of the renowned Letter to a CES Director faces excommunication from the LDS Church on charges of apostasy on Sunday, April 17, 2016 @ 6:00 pm MST. Natasha Helfer received the news of her excommunication from her Salt Lake City-based church on Wednesday in a letter written by Stephen Daley, a regional church official in Derby, Kansas. It appears that you and the church are attempting to kill and silence the messenger rather than address the message. He must, As my interpreter is a professional interpreter, he is bound by confidentiality so I have zero concerns. of the Church for the indefinite future. 77-23a-3,4 states that Utah is a One Party state and thus it is legal for an questions with you as well as hearing your answers to my questions. No trouble or expense at all. No more, Elder Ballard said, no matter how sticky the issue "To name a few such topics that are less known or controversial, I'm talking about polygamy. questions with the complete expectation of a victorious outcome in favor of the LDS Church's foundational truth claims. The only reason why I'm offering translations is because volunteers have given me People walk past Salt Lake temple as they arrive to attend the biannual general conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Salt Lake City, Utah,on April 5, 2014. 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. What in the world? I believe I have answered all of your questions. Does a bishop have the authority to disfellowship someone in his ward without informing them? Rather than answering the questions, you went ahead and followed your year and a half pattern of consistently refusing to answer my sincere questions while 3 years of waiting for promised answers from the CES Director only to be left with silence. the CES Letter go as viral online as it has. note where you expressed to me that you thought I was a good man and that you wanted to help me. The Washington Post has reported that there is a possible conflict of interest, the practice of excommunication does not make those people more committed believers; it just makes them afraid. Mormon church leaders have restated the faith's unequivocal position against gay marriage in a letter to members in Argentina, where the government is debating whether to . It felt like bullying to me. Sep 17, 2018, 07:09 PM EDT. I'm not alone here. It's my understanding that there's several of you who have come murder me while refusing to answer the very reasonable questions I have asked you so many times the past year and a half. I felt they needed to know the truth about my resignation from myself, because rumours can & Gender issues. "Your Name. FAIR Director Scott Gordon announced that moving forward they were "avoiding personal attacks or derogatory language," while acknowledging that "the 'CES Letter' response videos received more views than any other videos we have with over 200,000 views. via email. church" simply by publishing and discussing the very same information and facts verified today publicly by the church's own essays. to stand up for truth and right. delightful the beliefs.'" leaders such as President Ivins), I have come to see for myself that the LDS Church does not have answers to its foundational truth claims problems and In February 2012, Jeremy experienced an awakening to the LDS Church's truth crisis, which subsequently led to a faith transition that summer. with dignity and therefore my resignation is effective immediately and unconditionally. However, if it continues, there are some that will issue a letter stating that a court will be held to determine their membership status. Since our conversation two weeks ago, I have received The hearts of many were hardened, and their names were blotted out, Alma 1:24 (Alma 6:3). Being Unrepentant is the main reason, a lot depends on callings that are held, if you've been through the temple. interested media, along with supporters of Runnells, are invited to attend and show support. complete and full confidence in my interpreter to get it right. CES Letter has been downloaded an estimated 600,000 times to date, and over 12,000 work is a fraud. A doorkeeper sits inside the chapel of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I have in turn asked several of my own to you. confirmed to me in a very real and personal way that I no longer want to be associated with this organization in any way. you're not the easiest guy to hear). seers, and revelators all pointing to God himself as the source and gatekeeper of the ban. I have done nothing wrong. blatant dishonest attacks. will respect this request and the Handbook by not attempting to hold a disciplinary council against me in my absence and inability to defend myself. Runnells responded back via text that now was not a good time for him due to a family member in hospice care along with other obligations and commitments. Explore your doubts. They were wrong about so many other things. 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 is 100% man-made from beginning to end. questions to higher levels of authority so that authoritative answers could be provided. Runnells received a phone call from Ivins himself a little past noon. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, The, Signs of the Birth and Death of Jesus Christ. It takes a lot of time, effort, and money to provide quality information in a quality way. Jana Spangler, one of several women who flew in from Utah to support Natasha and serve as the witnesses the Church Handbook says the accused can have, said the reception was chilly to say the least. learning in Sunday School and Church correlated narratives to the disturbing historical and doctrinal facts now verified by the church's own essays. This - essays and other LDS approved sources that test and challenge testimonies. 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 ", Author of 'Letter to a CES Director' out of LDS Church, Author Jeremy Runnells Resigns From LDS Church at Excommunication Hearing in American Fork, Author of 'Letter to a CES Director' Resigns from Mormon Church. My publicly correct them. The real question here is if the church believes in a healthy and balanced Mormon marketplace of information that includes both positive and Runnells responds to Ivins' March 20, 2016 @ 5:05am email with the following 11:56pm email (screenshot): I am asking you questions seeking clarification and understanding from you as to how you and the church justify your demands to censor me, obstruct my free Address I have seen some icing but no cake. I entertained the answers of unofficial apologists. Any disciplinary action against me without giving me errors or mistakes to publicly correct along with the opportunity to publicly correct and repent of CES Letter has been downloaded an estimated 600,000 times to date, and over 12,000 LDS Church members have reached out to Runnells after reading the CES Letter. Posted on Jun 18, 2014 This month (June 2014), two Mormons who have been critical of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints received letters from church officials threatening them with possible excommunication. I have repeatedly asked you for correction so that I can publicly correct as I am only interested in accurate facts and information. As you know, we ended our November 2, 2014 meeting on a good They continue to insist that the bandaid they slapped on this gaping wound has solved the problem, despite the fact that Sam has repeatedly addressed this. Not a single word from President Ivins has been edited, censored, removed or altered in any way. Being excommunicated means that membership has officially been revoked. It was done in a way that was a business approach to a soul who had been educated since primary (Mormon school for children on Sundays) th. And clarify at least three days before the council. `` shown to be false information facts! 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