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+Nephi
diff --git a/content/posts/why-i-let-go-of-the-rod.md b/content/posts/why-i-let-go-of-the-rod.md
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+---
+date: 2025-11-08
+description: "A brief retelling of my experience leaving the Mormon faith."
+image: ""
+lastmod: 2025-11-08
+showTableOfContents: false
+tags: ["religion", "life"]
+title: "Why I Let Go of the Rod"
+type: "post"
+---
+
+## First Nephi
+
+I recognize it's important to establish some things before heading out any further because the audience I could be
+reaching is extremely broad. So, before I get in to tell my tall tale, lets clear the air so I don't run the risk of
+losing anyone along the way.
+
+- As of the time of writing, it is commonly held preference not say Mormons, and instead say members of the Church of
+Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
+
+- I'm not writing this to persuade anyone. This is my story. If you feel attacked or validated by my experience, I am
+going to put that onus on you, the reader, to draw what conclusions you deem appropriate.
+- My motivation to write this is to have something thought out and prepared when people ask why I left. This request
+typically comes from friends and family still a part of the faith, which I always appreciate. Your brain is left
+whirling a bit when you leave the Church, so hopefully this can clarify things for both of us.
+- If you the reader don't know much about the (more commonly recognized) "Mormon" faith, then this post may be hard
+to follow. It will waste no time explaining concepts and assume the reader is familiar with the doctrines, history,
+and positions of the church. I will do my best to delineate between commonly held **facts** and my _opinions_ cite my
+sources.
+- If you the reader take issue with how I've portrayed things, please reach out! I mean it. There's no real way to
+express this through rendered HTML on your lit array of pixels, but its true. I feel strongly it is important to always
+keep these conversations open.
+
+_Hopefully_ I haven't lost you, dear reader, and I want to thank you in advance for any of the effort you take to
+understand and empathize with me. You keep my faith in humanity <3
+
+So, without further ado, lets "begin at the very beginning"
+
+## "Born of goodly parents"
+
+I grew up in a loving home with parents that did their best to give us five kids a great life. I'm the middle kid, the
+glue you might say *smirk. My involvement in the church informed much of my life. My friends were typically the boys in
+my ward's Sunday school class or in my boy scout troop. My views of the world were most entirely shaped by my religion.
+I remember feeling immense privilege and dread thinking that I happened to live in the neighborhood of the family that