The Response from the Mormon Church

Q: The Mormon Church issued a statement reported in the Church-owned newspaper, The Deseret News, as "condemning" the book. Did you expect this official response to Leaving the Saints?

Martha: I expected them to react similarly to the way in which they responded to John Kraukauer's Under the Banner of Heaven, but I want to make it very clear that this book wasn't written to bash the Mormon Church; in fact, I believe there are positive things about the Church and I describe them in the book. The Church community was an important part of my life for years, but my issue with the Church is its obsession with secrecy for the sake of public image and at the expense of the individual. I was sexually abused by my father, many others are sexually abused inside the Church, and yet in too many cases the Church turns a blind eye and attempts to cover up what is known to prevent embarrassment. This results in huge pain for many people, and this is what I'm speaking out against.

Q: What sort of responses have you had from Mormons who've read the book?

Martha: Some say they love it, some are very critical, though, so far, folks on both sides say parts of it made them laugh. That part makes me happy. But then there's the hate mail. Oh, well.

Q: Your father is described inside Mormon culture in almost epic terms as having been an "intellectual hero" in the faith. What is your opinion of his legacy?

Martha: I think my father had some terrific political insights, and he could write in a compelling way. His work defending some of the more obscure Mormon doctrines was, in my opinion, an unfortunate use of his formidable talents.

Q: Does it trouble you that you're in effect undermining your father's life-long work?

Martha: My deep belief is that all of us have the same “life-long work”: to learn honesty, courage, and love. To learn, in other words, how to be our best selves. I don’t think my writing this book can in any way harm my father’s real life’s work, any more than people who are critical of my writing can harm my real purpose on Earth.

Q: Can you explain the Mormon Church's heavy investment in your father's work defending Joseph Smith and Mormon scripture?

Martha: Reputable scholars from around the world are convinced that ancient papyri—which Smith purchased from a traveling salesman and claimed to have translated into what he called the Book of Abraham, a document supposedly written by the Hebrew prophet Abraham—are simply Egyptian funerary documents created in the first century A.D. and that, as one of them put it, Smith's account was "a farrago of nonsense from beginning to end." My father was charged with the impossible task of turning that nonsense into something that would appear to be sound scholarship and thereby save the Church from enormous embarrassment. The Church needs his "legacy" to stand, and so my personal story about what happened between my father and me also shines uncomfortable and unwelcome light on my father's work.

Q: That's an interesting idea in the book—the notion that as a "life world" religion, Mormonism controls and influences so many aspects of life, which clearly raises the stakes when independent scholarship proves that Joseph Smith made up something he named "reformed Egyptian."

Martha: I love the depth and breadth with which some Latter-day Saints live their religion. So many Mormons live moment to moment wanting to simply be good—and they are. As I said, I feel blessed to have had tremendous support from some devout Mormons who believed my story and assisted me in getting the help and support I needed. Most don’t even follow the oddities of LDS doctrine, and things like “Reformed Egyptian” have nothing to do with their compassionate, earnest way of life. It’s too bad that some still cling to a literal interpretation of things like Joseph Smith’s “translation” of Egyptian documents.

Q: Leaving the Saints includes some references to Mormon doctrine, but you seem to take it on with a light hand and good humor, and without the need to convince readers of your position.

Martha: I want to emphasize that I haven’t revealed any of Mormonism’s sacred secrets. I know many Mormons may not like my humor, but I find many early Latter-day Saint doctrines and beliefs quite droll. A German mystic once wrote that “laughter is the highest form of prayer.” I believe this, and oddly enough, that’s something I got from my father.

Q: You also write about the so-called “11th commandment” in Mormonism, "thou shalt not commit negative publicity." So you have to assume the church may speak out against your book in some way, don't you?

Martha: The Mormon Church and some of its members have attacked the veracity of Leaving the Saints and me as a reporter of my experience. I’ve always known this would happen; I think I already knew it, in an inarticulate way, when I was five. I can’t control that. I just told the truth as fully and honestly as I could; now I have to let the work speak for itself. It's very stressful to be in this position, and at times I've been frightened by it, but I know it's important to stand up for these issues and to weather the attacks.

Q: Is there a difference between how Mormons and non-Mormons have talked to you about this book?

Martha: Non-Mormons discuss the subjects and themes of the book as if I have every right to describe my experience. Ex-Mormons tend to express worry about my physical safety. Practicing Mormons have said some rather nasty things about me on line, in print, and in person. It was hard to hear that some were encouraging a national letter-writing campaign against me and the book before the book was even available—so presumably, before they’d even read it. If Mormons read the book, they’d see that I respect and deeply admire the aspects of the religion I believe they hold most dear: the dicta to live an honest life, to help others, and to show compassion and forgiveness. One of my sisters told me I would “suffer immeasurably” if I let the book be published. I thought about how immeasurably I would suffer from holding in dark secrets. That would have been much worse.