“Why would I go back to that cult?!”
A very dear friend of ours from church is a former Mormon. It was interesting - my wife mentioned the Mormons being a cult, and the gal told her that, as wrong as Mormonism is - she grew up with it and it somehow still hurt her to hear it called a cult. (Even though she agrees that it is!) Although she said that a better way of understanding it is not so much as a cult, but as a “culture” - permeating EVERYTHING in the community and your way of life.
Your comment is interesting, even though I do disagree about her connecting ‘cult’ with culture.
There are three definitions of ‘cult’ and Mormonism fits all three. She is right that there is a huge culture of Mormonism that permeates EVERY PART OF LIFE, but that is a different subject.
What your comment did do, however, is remind me how hard it is to leave Mormonism, because the person leaving has to relearn everything (how to read the Bible, basic theological terms, basic theology), in addition to leaving the culture and often being ostraciszed by LDS friends and family (including divorce).
Coming out of Mormonism can be (and often is) very traumatic and sadly Christian pastors are often ill equipped to handle the issues. Your comments have inspired me to get back to work on a discipleship manual for those leaving the LDS and a guidebook for pastors on how to help those who are transitioning out of Mormonism and into Christianity.