politics @lemmy.world tintory @lemm.ee 1 yr. ago

Utah Makes Welfare So Hard to Get, Some Feel They Must Join the LDS Church to Get Aid

www.propublica.org Utah Makes Welfare So Hard to Get, Some Feel They Must Join the LDS Church to Get Aid

Utah’s safety net for the poor is so intertwined with the LDS Church that individual bishops often decide who receives assistance. Some deny help unless a person goes to services or gets baptized.

Politics @beehaw.org tintory @lemm.ee 1 yr. ago

www.propublica.org /article/utahs-social-safety-net-is-the-church-of-jesus-christ-of-latter-day-saints-what-does-that-mean-if-youre-not-one

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20 comments

LDS is just wild and they are growing so fast.
- Doubt those numbers with all your might mind and strength. That is a PR spin from the church. Their census cannot be trusted or independently verified. They are losing the younger generation big time.
  
  Thanks for reminding me I still need to make them take my name off the records. Haven’t set foot in one of their buildings in 15 years and there’s probably a lot of younger folks like me
  
  Their grip of control extends far further than it seems. I need to be taken off the records as well but know it will trigger some sort of notification mechanism and create drama with family. Even when I feel like I'm out from under their thumb there's emotional blackmail that members are willing to smile and shrug off.
  
  That is my own exact reason for remaining on the roster. I am multi-generational Mormon and the whisper network still operates very well. Thankfully I do not live behind the Zion Curtain anymore.
  
  Don't worry they'll get you after you die
  
  Indeed they have a membership retention crisis especially among young men. They've had to merge congregations together and are definitely lying. In order to get yourself off the membership roles and stop getting hounded by the Mormon Church's IRS you literally have to get a lawyer to file paperwork on your behalf. Yes it's really that bad the website is called to quitmormon.com I believe
  
  My wife is still counted as a member and hasn't had anything to do with them in 15 years.
  
  That probably isn't true where I live (not in Utah). Here, there is an LDS church seemingly on every street corner. It's crazy. See a church, go 1 mile south and see another, go 1 mile east, see another, etc. It's really spooky because more often than not, an LDS church is right next to a very wealthy neighborhood.
  
  How can they afford so many buildings and property? Is it a front for money laundering or something?
  
  Yes but because it's religion it's legal for them to break the law
  
  Yes.

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