Over 10 years ago, I wrote a post about Online Mormonism. As I recently read it, I was amazed at how much has changed in the past decade. It motivated me to update the post and make it more useful, not only for adults, but for my own kids, who are now actively engaged with a fully digital and online world.
To set the stage I want to breakdown an incredible scripture in Mosiah, where Mormon, after reading the entire history of a group of parents who were converted by King Benjamin, tells us why many of their children fell away from the faith of their parents.
“Now it came to pass that there were many of the rising generation that could not understand the words of king Benjamin, being little children at the time he spake unto his people; and they did not believe the tradition of their fathers. They did not believe what had been said concerning the resurrection of the dead, neither did they believe concerning the coming of Christ. And now because of their unbelief they could not understand the word of God; and their hearts were hardened. And they would not be baptized; neither would they join the church. And they were a separate people as to their faith, and remained so ever after, even in their carnal and sinful state; for they would not call upon the Lord their God.” Mosiah 26:1-4
The Rising Generation, or in other words, children of converted parents, did not believe three things:
- The Traditions of Their Fathers
- The Resurrection of the Dead
- That Jesus Christ will Come
Because they did not believe in those three things:
- They could not understand the word of God
- Their hearts were hardened
- They separated from the church and their faith
Most importantly, almost all of this occurred because they Would Not Call Upon the Lord Their God.
If you are not familiar with King Benjamin, I will give a quick refresh. He was an amazing man. He gave an amazing speech. The people were blown away by his speech. They all called upon the name of God and were converted and remained faithful. Yet, their children struggled and separated from their faith.
It is my strong opinion that all of the tools of the adversary – whether devised by him or man, or circumstance – are set upon a single purpose: to stop us from praying, loving our neighbors and connecting with God through his Holy Spirit and in the name of Jesus Christ. Once we have disengaged from those principles, our lives often move on a consistent descent away from faith.
The goal of this post is to help us prevent that descent away from faith, especially in the context of the digital world.
The first draft of this post had a thousand words about social media, online media consumption, and the problems they create, but after reading it I felt like we have all heard a lot about that and it would distract from what I really felt like I needed to say. If this is something that interests you more I recommend researching the mountains of data that shows the negative impact of being connected to everything in the world all of the time.
Instead, let’s focus on the more simple construct: Throughout our lives we will all experience a consistent set of interactions that have the potential to start a separation from feeling connected to God. The example of the rising generation is a helpful way to frame those interactions.
- Traditions of our Fathers
- Conflict with Church Leaders
- Church Culture Frustrations
- Disagreements with Church Policies – particularly related to LGBT and women’s roles
- Learning new potential uncomfortable things about Church History
- Belief in the Resurrection
- Death of Loved Ones
- Implications of Scientific Knowledge on Religious Belief
- Not feeling as if you have had spiritual experiences confirming there is a God
- Belief that Jesus Christ is Real and will Return
- Feeling as though our prayers are not answered
- Failures and Tragedies in our lives
Although these, and other things, have the potential to start a separation from God, if you have read any of my other essays you will know that I look at these challenges as potential starting points for strengthening our faith instead.
Fortunately, the example of the rising generation gives us some guidance worth considering:
- Understand the Word of God
- First and foremost if we want to combat the conflict in our faith we have to have better understanding. Knowledge is not understanding. Knowledge can be obtained in seconds, whether that knowledge is true, useful, or knowing how to make it valuable takes effort.
- Having a curious spirit is necessary to obtain understanding. If we look at everything around us from the lens of cynicism instead of curiosity then we will have a hard time understanding anything or anyone.
- Evaluating sources of information is a critical part of obtaining understanding.
- Soften our Hearts
- When our faith is in question it brings emotions to the surface – fear, anger, bitterness, feeling betrayed, hopelessness. This can cause our hearts to be hardened toward others, the church, or God.
- We must do all we possibly can to avoid a hardened heart. It doesn’t mean we are not justified to feel those feelings, we just can’t build a wall around our hearts if we are genuinely wanting to engage in the conflict over our faith.
- Remember the golden rule – treat others how you want to be treated.
- Have a Healthier Ratio of Engaging with The Church
- Our ratios are off. The other night I was with my teenage kids and their friends and I asked to look at their screen time (and my own). We all averaged well over 5 hours per day on our phones. I then asked how many hours we have spent praying, studying, or engaging in spiritual growth. Let’s just say it wasn’t close for any of us.
- If we are sincere in our engagement in the conflict of our faith then we have to adjust our ratios. We have to engage with things that build our faith as often or more than we engage with things that erode it.
So, what does this have to do with the digital world?
It comes back to ratios of consumption. For thousands of years challenges to belief systems has largely taken the same forms – Peer Pressure, Debating, Exit Narratives, Competing Communities. The primary change with the advent of our digital world is the near constant consumption of online content and the resulting decrease in actual time spent living and experiencing the gospel in our community involvement, and in our moments of quiet personal contemplation.
Jesus said, “Where your heart is, there will your treasure be also,” and King Benjamin said, “For how knoweth a man the master whom he has not served, and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from the thoughts and intents of his heart?”
Relationships need time, effort, reconciliation, grace, and evolution to be successful and if the ratios are off then they will drift apart. A relationship with God is not different even if He remains at our side and open to our connection no matter our choices.
Here are a few thoughts on the techniques and things to look for when navigating the digital world of Mormonism.
Peer Pressure
Influencers are the movie stars and rock stars of the digital world. They make millions of dollars per year to create content that can be consumed in 30 seconds or less. Their viral posts have the farthest reach of any group of individuals in human history. This coupled with algorithms that predict our consumption habits creates habit forming scroll that allows these Influencers to fill us with content that puts pressure on us to believe and act. We don’t know most of these people, we don’t know their intentions, we only know they sound like they relate to us and they give us content that strikes a cord and so we engage with it a bit longer. The algorithm recognizes that and queues up a few more hours worth of content it deems to be what we are looking for.
Influencers are not bad as general rule, their content can be useful, funny, and informative. Being aware that algorithms of our consumption predict the content that will come our way and selecting with intention the Influencers we engage with is a practical step we can take when “influencing” the content we consume. It is the modern-day version of choosing your friends.
On a personal front, I actually love the algorithm because I want more Los Angeles Dodger content, Nate Bargatze video clips and I like On shoes and hoodies – so give me all of that you want Mrs. Algorithm.
To that point, the best news about modern peer pressure is that we can control our friend group with much less guilt and personal awkwardness. Unfollowing is a click away and the Influencers we move on from will never even know we are gone! The algorithm will see our choice and start adjusting our content instantly.
The primary thing that hasn’t changed is that we control who influences us and we control how often we get influenced. We must be aware of the community we are engaging in and we must take control over what content we consume and how often we consume it.
Debating
I hate the onslaught of “gentle parenting.” I don’t think this surprises anyone who knows me. I think it might be the dumbest thing I have ever heard of. I think the algorithm knows this because I get a very healthy mix of anti-gentle parenting reels and gentle parenting reels. It is like I am in a court room watching litigation about which is the best form of parenting. If consumed in a vacuum, each of these specific pieces of content would be quite compelling on both sides of the debate.
What I often think about is what about if a person only got one set of that content on a repeating loop everyday for hours per day? I doesn’t take a big leap to conclude what the outcome would be…gentle parenting would be eradicated hopefully (don’t hate me gentle parents. I love you).
You get the point. No one is immune to constant information that supports a point of view with no other information being presented which could be equally compelling. Many people are mature enough to recognize this and so they do their own research and their own testing of which ideas seem best, but ultimately there are many people, especially younger people, that are highly impressionable to the consistent presentation of information.
When it comes to religious belief and political ideas it only enhances the quantity and quality of the content. There is an actual contest of ideas that has billions, if not trillions of dollars on the line for recruiting people to a belief system. The 30 second reel is also the most effective forum for this debating method – not only is there no way to fact check the source, but there is no way to know if there is even a source (it could be made up) or there is no way to know if the content is even made by a real person (AI is scary).
There is no other practical step to take when it comes to debating information in the digital world other than to lessen the value we place on that information, and spend more time engaging with other sources of information to evaluate ideas. It is my opinion that the state of play for information in the digital world will only get more confusing and unreliable over the next decades.
Exit Narratives
I bring up this topic to make each of us aware of probably the most powerful and abused form of attack on religious belief. This is not unique to Mormonism, but it is by far the most compelling and common tactic in the digital world. Exit narratives are short and long form explanations of why someone has lost their faith and rejected the church. These narratives often involve depictions of harmful culture stereotypes, long lists of doctrinal or church history concerns framed as though anyone who believes is a blind sheep, and characterizations of local church leaders as condescending and mean spirited.
These narratives are designed and produced like mini-movies or legal briefs with the express purpose of overwhelming our feelings and hitting on doubts, concerns, or frustrations and then pouring gasoline on a small spark. Unfortunately, I know many of the people who have posted and disseminated these exit narratives and plenty of the information is false, some of it is exaggerated for argument, and plenty of it is filled with more judgment than was ever put on them by church members or leaders. Yet, there is information and concerns that are legitimate in their narrative and so they are very influential to someone who is dealing with the challenges that come from having faith.
In my professional life I often interact with disgruntled former employees or partners of their former companies. There are is always information to learn from them, but we have to take some of their narrative with a grain of salt, especially if they feel a need to turn it into a story that creates poison around their former workplace. We take a lot more credence from them when they are gracious about their former situation and yet include information that is useful to learn from. I know many people who have left the church who are amazing people that do not spend their energy tearing things down and practicing the same love and compassion they are asking for. That is typically the sign of someone that you can trust.
Competing Communities
There has always been competition for ideas and for community participation. From Philistines and Jews, to Catholics and Protestants, all the way to Republicans and Democrats. Those are big examples, and before the digital world only big examples had the resources to compete. Now, anyone can be exposed to, join, and preach the gospel for any community, large or small, instantly. The choices are in the millions. This abundance of choice has created a lot of problems. Although, unrelated to this post it is worth watching this video about too many choices.
I think it is critical for us to be aware that as we watch, click, follow, and engage we are becoming part of a community. It really isn’t just entertainment anymore because of the systematic design on the online world, we have to be practical and realistic in our approach to that engagement.
Positive Aspects of Online Mormonism
Our Community is Big and Wonderful
The challenges we face in life, particularly with faith, are fortunately not completely unique. There are so many people online, who share our various concerns, frustrations, challenges, but also are incredibly faithful and thoughtful. They are inspiring and it is important to find them and follow them as well.
There are Good Answers…Most of the Time
Not every question about doctrine, Church history, or cultural concern can be answered satisfactorily for everyone. That being said, I have been asking these questions and feeling these challenges for close to twenty years and I have found so many answers to my questions, often from the incredibly smart and thoughtful people in the church who have put in thousands of hours to understand and teach. When you are feeling overwhelmed, take comfort that you are not alone, that there are answers, and the Lord does want you to connect with Him.
Diversity of Thinking
We can all have different thoughts and beliefs about the gospel. It is ok to feel differently, or to see things differently. We are blessed to have guideposts and guides in prophets and apostles, scriptures and our church community. It is also wonderful to find so many places online that give space for different thoughts, but encourage faithfulness and connection with God.
Great Resources for Online Mormonism Engagement
| Name/Handle | Platform | Focus | Why Follow |
| Faith Matters | Podcast | Faith, mental health, tough topics | Deep, open, spiritually anchored conversations |
| All In | Podcast | Testimonies, real-life stories | Why people stay ‘All In’ despite challenges |
| Listen, Learn & Love | Podcast | LGBTQ+, mental health, faith crises | Gentle and faithful inclusion |
| Leading Saints | Podcast | Church leadership, real challenges | Faithful leadership help, real-world issues |
| Unshaken | Podcast | Faith & culture, history, theology | Thoughtful and honest LDS reflections |
| followHIM | Podcast | “Come, Follow Me” study podcast (Hank Smith & John Bytheway) | “Come, Follow Me” study podcast (Hank Smith & John Bytheway) |
| This Week in Mormons | Podcast | Weekly Mormon news & commentary | Weekly Mormon news & commentary |
| Latter-day Saint FAIR‑Cast | Podcast | Apologetics & addressing criticisms of LDS doctrine | Apologetics & addressing criticisms of LDS doctrine |
| Times & Seasons | Blog | Philosophy, doctrine, gospel study | Scholarly but personal gospel writing |
| Public Square Magazine | Blog | Culture, apologetics, society | Faith-affirming yet civil and honest |
| Gospel Tangents | Blog/Podcast | History, hard questions, interviews | Faithful historical deep dives |
| Crucible of Doubt | Book | Faith, doubt, nuance | Graceful navigation of uncertainty |
| Planted | Book | Faith after disillusionment | How to stay rooted through trials |
| Bridges | Book | Ministering to faith crises | Support for leaders & families |
| Gospel Topics Essays | Website | https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics-essays | Essays on difficult questions |
| Church History Topics (Saints Book & Beyond) | Website | https://history.churchofjesuschrist.org/section/historical-topics | Amazing source of information on church History |
| Joseph Smith Papers | Website | https://www.josephsmithpapers.org | Complete compilation of all church documents |
| Revelations in Context | Website | https://history.churchofjesuschrist.org/section/revelations | Context around early church history and revelations |
| Saints Book Series | Website | https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/saints | Narrative version of Church History |
| @churchofjesuschrist | Official Church account | Official Church account | |
| @scriptureplus | Instagram/TikTok | Scripture-based teaching and content | Scripture-based teaching and content |
| @true.millennials | Instagram/TikTok | LDS youth content | LDS youth content |
| @tautai.fano_ | LDS storyteller and family content | LDS storyteller and family content | |
| @emilybellefreeman | LDS family/lifestyle content | LDS family/lifestyle content | |
| @faithandbeliefssu | Instagram/TikTok | Faith & belief–focused LDS content | Faith & belief–focused LDS content |
| @jasminrappleye | Instagram/TikTok | Church news, culture, memes | Faithful, witty, honest commentary |
| @mimi.bascom | Modest fashion, lifestyle | Stylish & faithful LDS content | |
| @mrdavebutler | Instagram/TikTok | Faith, storytelling, humor | Relatable and spiritual encouragement |
| @faithmattersfoundation | Instagram/YouTube | Podcast clips, mental health | Faithful and nuanced insights |
| @stephenjones.online | Faith, storytelling, humor | Relatable and spiritual encouragement | |
| @thefaithfulfeminists | Feminist LDS perspectives | Progressive but believing voices | |
| @ldsmodestoutfits | Instagram/TikTok | Modest fashion | Faith-centered fashion inspiration |
| @saintsunscripted | YouTube/Instagram | Tough questions, faith Q&A | Faithful support for seekers & doubters |
Conclusion
Give equal portions to the Lord
I have already mentioned ratios, but pure truth comes in “3’s” and this is probably the most important tip for you and for those you know. Secular knowledge is important and necessary but communing with the Lord is more important. If you want to search the internet, scroll through LDS Influencers, or research secular and historical topics for 2 hours, then study the scriptures, pray, and meditate for 2 hours. More importantly get out there and live and serve within the gospel, love your neighbor for 2 hours. Try to give equal portions to the Lord and you will be surprised how it will help.
Don’t Forget to Pray
Whenever I read the story of the rising generation who fell away, I always seem to come back to They Would Not Call Upon The Lord. This to me feels very much like a willful avoidance of prayer and that is the most catastrophic thing that can exist in our lives.
For if ye would hearken unto the Spirit which teacheth a man to pray, ye would know that ye must pray; for the evil spirit teacheth not a man to pray, but teacheth him that he must not pray.
2 Nephi 32:8
We must find time to pray – pray out loud – pray in silence – pray at church – pray while you are driving – pray when things are hard – pray to give thanks to the Lord – pray before falling asleep – pray to ask for help. Praying is our connection to God and if we stop praying then we will most surely become more separated from God. Scrolling online gives us immediate dopamine and gratification. Praying requires us to quiet our minds and think reflectively and sometimes the rewards of that consistency take years.
One final scripture to conclude about fasting. Today was fast Sunday and it is easy to think of fasting and prayer as separate, but I see them as connected. When you read these words from Isaiah I hope you can feel the hope and beauty they bring when we think about the challenges we face and what prayer and fasting can do.
Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?
Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?
Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy reward.
Then shalt thou call, and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am.
Isaiah 58:6-9
Living the gospel, giving to others, praying, and loving God is the path to enlightenment and answers. We must mix in these actions as priorities in our lives and help our children learn the same things if we want to maneuver through the expanding world of Online Mormonism.
Gospel Essays 