MichaelAnthony

I am not exactly certain why I am writing this but I do have a story that I feel compelled to share. I was born in NYC but at a young age my family moved to Utah. I spent ages 13-30 in Utah, primarily Provo. I did all the things, I joined the army at 17, went on a mission later and then graduated from BYU. I got married and sealed in the Temple, served EQ secretary, taught on Sundays. I had a very quintessential Mormon life. At around 29 however things got wonky. My wife had an extramarital affair with another woman. At that moment I felt like a "sucker" and decided I'd seek out my own adventure. In what might seem like a manic episode I left the church formally, divorced and at 30 moved to NYC to pursue my dream of drama school. I church hoped for a bit but then ditched that for pleasures of the flesh. It was a great time, I indulged in alcohol for the first time in my life, was in constant excitement and best part is I met a woman who also shared my hedonistic desires. We get married then COVID happens. She gets introspective one day and decides to revert back to the church she was raised in. I have never seen a 180 like this in anyone. The church is evangelical in nature and very contentious critical and in my opinion uses a lot of shame and guilt. The cautionary part of this story boils down to when you leave the bounds of the church for the world there is no guarantee where you will end up. I married again for superficial purposes and ended up in fairly weak marriage in a church environment I didn't truly choose because the waves of life and even Satan will take you in any direction if you don't already have one. Is the church true? Maybe I am a relativist but the joy I felt in the church, the priesthood power experienced and the immense love of Christ feels real to me. I am no longer a member of the church as I withdrew my records in 2019. The saddest part is that the priesthood lineage I got as a young man, my callings, temple endowment are all gone. Due to lawsuits that had taken place in the 2000's when you request your name withdrawn from the church you can not have records restored. The only way back would be rebaptism as essentially a new member. Feels sad like I cut off my "Mormon lineage". I still love the church and miss it dearly now. Thank you to anyone who is reading this as I realize it's quite long.

I think this is a beautiful question. Please allow me to help as I believe that I have a unique insight. Before you jump to any conclusions or get too nervous I'd ask you to ponder; Do either one of you want to have a religious wedding ceremony. For example does she want to be sealed in the temple with her eternal husband and conversely do you want a wife that you are married to within the Catholic Church? Incidentally this article from LDS living might be helpful: http://www.ldsliving.com/Catholic-Wife-and-Mormon-Husband-Represent-Interfaith-Marriages-Today/s/76549