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August 2019
I am 17 years old from Montana. I’d like to start by thanking you for all of your research and provisions of information. They have been most helpful for me when talking with my Mormon friends, and I pray that they will use your information to see the truth!
September 2019
A Call to Repentance. The warning call: Cease & desist your destructive behavior, and repent before it grows too late, lest ye find yourself among these “Lost Souls”:
31 Thus saith the Lord concerning all those who know my power, and have been made partakers thereof, and suffered themselves through the power of the devil to be overcome, and to deny the truth and defy my power—
32 They are they who are the sons of perdition, of whom I say that it had been better for them never to have been born;
33 For they are vessels of wrath, doomed to suffer the wrath of God, with the devil and his angels in eternity;
34 Concerning whom I have said there is no forgiveness in this world nor in the world to come— . . .
(Doctrine and Covenants 76)
PS: It’s never ‘too late’, whilst you draw breath, to repent & save the rest of your family. (& save your deceased husband, by helping in renewing his vows, via proxy work)
September 2019
I have half a bookshelf, at least, of your excellent works and other books
. . . Thank you, Sandra and Jerald, for your decades of work. You helped me out more than you know. God Bless the late Jerald and everyone there at the UTLM.
September 2019
Though I am an Agnostic/Atheist I just wanted to reach out to UTLM and especially Mrs. Tanner. Obviously we are going to approach Biblical studies from a different perspective—I still learned so much from the talks that you have given that are available on YouTube.
It is always easy to spot a labor of love and it is very obvious you are incredibly passionate and well informed on the subject of Mormonism and its conflicts with its inspiration, the Bible.
September 2019
I am 74 years old and have just resigned my membership of 56 years. I was an active temple going member; teacher on both ward and stake level. First the control and manipulation came to my realization. Also I was taught one thing when I joined years ago and found teachings were entirely different years later when I finally gained access to the computer and found web sites such as yours. I LOVE YOUR WEB SITE!
September 2019
I became a Christian at the age of 41 and am now only 43. Studying Mormonism is what brought me into a relationship with Jesus. I attended [a Christian class on Mormonism] and it became a class of evangelism. I went from arguing for the possibility of Mormonism being true to gaining the knowledge and relationship of Jesus. . . . I’ve gained one knowledgeable ex-Mormon friend who loves Jesus and I have studied scripture but it is hard being a Christian and all your neighbors be Mormon.
September 2019
I’m 29 years old, . . . and for several years now, I’ve had a fascination with Mormonism. As such, it was only going to be a question of time before I came across Utah Lighthouse Ministry.
I wish to say that your work is marvelous. The intellectual honesty you have consistently shown, not just on celebrated matters such as the Salamander letter, but your general determination to make sure you always get every fact correct, your principled stance against sensationalism, is admirable. Further, you have always shown yourselves to be ever so gentle, diplomatic, and proper in your outreach to Mormons.
October 2019
YOU are still a HUGE FRAUD.
October 2019
I cannot thank you [enough] for the years of service and dedication you’ve provided, many times under duress and threats . . . At 18 I joined the [LDS] Church in ____ OR; at 19 I was married in the Oakland Temple and things just went down the tube over a period of 21 yrs in a horrible marriage and financial oppressed lifestyle. There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t praise the Lord for His mercy of removing me from the bondage I had been in for 21 yrs. He IS a Merciful God, Who gave his life a ransom for me. I am blessed beyond expression.
November 2019
[Man from Missouri]
I just finished reading an article in issue 133 of The Messenger, . . . You published Ronald Huggins’ article, “Did Early Christians Practice Baptism for the Dead?” I found this article to be the best of its kind that I have read. In a scholarly way, Mr. Huggins presented objective historic information on this practice, and then reflected critically on Mormon scholars’ misuse of this data. I found this article to be very informative, objective and balanced.
November 2019
[Man in Utah]
Thanks to you, Sarah Tanner and cohorts, for publishing the Grammar and Alphabet of the Egyptian Language. I have been studying it for over 40 years. The LDS Church is ashamed of it, because nobody is intelligent enough to figure it out. The truth is, nobody on the planet reads Egyptian hieroglyphs correctly, nor hieratic in the least degree. But I have been able to prove that Joseph Smith was in fact the only man on the planet ever to read Egyptian correctly in our dispensation. . . . I have been able to prove that everything Smith translated was done correctly.
December 2019
I would like to thank Sandra for the years she and her husband Jerald spent uncovering the true history of the Mormon church. The Mormon Stories podcast she did was amazing. It solidified my view that my Mormon life was a farce and needed to end.
The story of Jerald driving to Missouri to find the truth about Mormon history was inspiring. Thanks for all you do.
December 2019
I give thanks to God for your ministry & faithful tenacity to the truth of the Word. Through your writings I have been able to converse with LDS family & have seen some come to faith in Christ Jesus. May God continue to encourage you with fruit as you move forward in integrity & love.
January 2020
I want to say how much I admire Sandra and her stamina all these years in informing Mormons of the truth of Mormonism! She has been an inspiration to me for truly decades!
I first learned of Jerald and Sandra’s ministry in 2001, at a dinner . . . A woman at the table recommended Mormonism—Shadow or Reality? to me . . . Over the years, I was heavily involved with outreach as I seemed to be surrounded by Mormonism . . . Those experiences and conversations were some of the richest of my life!
January 2020
THANK YOU and Doris Hanson. I sent in formal papers yesterday to be removed officially from LDS church membership. Have been member since 1975. I live in [Utah] and health is not good. I prayed God would keep me alive until I could have my name removed. AND HE DID…… Praise God.
January 2020
I’m just learning about all of this. I was raised in the church, went inactive at 15 & went back to church at 50. I’m 56 now. So glad to be finding this out now. I have watched several of your videos including Mormon Stories. Thank you for the work you do!
January 2020
I just read the 2019 newsletter you sent. WOW! . . . As a former member of the church . . . I do want to say that I have the greatest respect & love for you, as you & Gerald spent your lives bringing truth & reason to a world who didn’t & still doesn’t want it—the inconvenient truth.
February 2020
You and your ministry were such a great help and resource when my father and I left the Mormon Church. I can never thank you enough for all you have done and still do. My father passed away a year ago and it was such a blessing to know he is with our Lord and Savior.
February 2020
I wanted to say thank you to you and your late husband, for all of the work that you have done. I have read many of the publications that you have released, and am especially grateful for people like you who have paved the way for people like me to live free of the ever-growing shadow of the church. I continue on my quest for my own scholarly education on early LDS history, and your work has helped me tremendously.
February 2020
My wife and I just watched an interview of Sandra on MormonStories.org. We want to let you know how much we enjoyed and were impressed by her articulate knowledge. Well done!
We moved into this area [Idaho] three years ago and it has been the work of vanguards like Jerald and Sandra who have helped us learn more about the faith of our neighbors.
February 2020
Hello Sandra.
I just listened to your interview with John Dehlin. I was very impressed with what you and your husband have accomplished. I can tell you are a very intelligent person. You represented yourself well. Thank you so much for all you have done. I’ve been out of the church for a little over a year.
February 2020
Dear Sandra, you sent me some of your free newsletters. To which I am responding because today, being the 9th day of February, I am saved and a born again Christian. I owe you a deep debt of gratitude.
March 2020
I have heard just about every anti argument you can think of, and it does not bother me. I just don’t understand what your purpose is. If it is only to destroy/tear down, it really isn’t doing any good.
March 2020
Hello, Mrs. Tanner.
On Tuesday my beloved mother-in-law passed. She was Mormon and my husband’s entire family is including his brother who is a bishop of the church . . . My husband was very upset during the [funeral] service but he was furious when the stake president was invited to speak and basically did the Mormon Sunday morning church speech for 30 minutes. . . .
It’s becoming more and more clear to him that what he was raised to believe was a cult. He likes listening to you a lot. When I started on my education of Mormonism he said he wasn’t supposed to listen to you lol. We are in Tennessee so as you know you are known all over but even here in our dumpy town. Thank you for reading and doing all you do.
April 2020
I never knew of you as an active member and it’s been many years since I attended regularly. I am a man but couldn’t receive the priesthood and always felt shame during blessings as everyone worthy made their way up front. I couldn’t bless any of my kids and had to ask others in my place. Nothing seemed to go right.
I found out a couple years ago that Smith practiced polygamy and polyandry. I was devastated and for the first time directed an earnest prayer to Jesus for answers. Within a week I started noticing crosses everywhere and my entire worldview started to crumble, things I believed my whole life somehow I knew they were wrong.
I started devouring the Bible and learning about historical Christianity and textual criticism. I’m an ironworker but I get up a couple hours early to study where I’m led and Jesus has come to life for me. I am so happy I’m not alone and I know you understand—your courage means so much to me.
Looking back I have been so blessed. For some reason I was protected from the blasphemy of claiming the priesthood for myself and am aware of many other issues. I’m alone in my faith in my family but am quickly being equipped to defend my faith with reality and scripture.
Originally appeared in:
“Excerpts from Letters and Emails,” Salt Lake City Messenger, no. 134, June 2020, 17-18.