My “Wicked” Mormon Journey - Abbie Clark | Ep. 1966
Mormon Stories Podcast
Dr. John Dehlin
4.5 • 5.7K Ratings
🗓️ 25 November 2024
⏱️ 204 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this episode, we explore one woman's journey of faith, identity, and self-discovery within and beyond the Mormon Church. From her experiences in musical theater auditions, serving a mission, and navigating family trauma, to struggles with infertility and finding her own path, she shares deeply personal insights. We discuss the cultural pressures of motherhood, the challenges of deconstructing religious beliefs, and the impact of leaving the Church after COVID. Her story also touches on her evolving perspective on topics like polygamy, women's roles, and Heavenly Mother, along with finding empowerment through fitness, creative expression, and fantasy literature. Join us for a candid and heartfelt conversation about redefining purpose, embracing authenticity, and thriving in "Plan B."
00:01:35 Intentions for coming on Mormon Stories00:04:25 The story of her parents00:10:50 Her Mormon adolescence 00:13:25 IRS agents came and asked about her dad00:19:00 Her parents announced their divorce00:28:10 Her dad was excommunicated00:33:50 Her dad’s faith crisis00:40:33 Her adolescent years00:42:20 Acting and singing in plays00:48:00 How did she cope with not having a dad01:00:35 Auditioning for the Musical Theater Program01:06:10 The prospect of serving a mission01:09:00 Her dad went to prison after her mission01:11:30 Her first temple experience01:14:00 The prayer circle01:15:19 Her mission experience01:24:50 Coming home from her mission in 201701:27:26 Meeting her future husband on her mission01:31:30 Her mom got remarried while she was on her mission01:42:20 Different selves in the mission versus out of the mission01:44:45 Marriage classes at BYU about healthy sex01:50:20 Life after getting married01:54:30 How her family reacted to brother coming home from his mission02:03:44 Patriarchal blessing is Mormon fortune telling02:14:20 How she felt being the one that couldn’t have kids02:22:15 They didn’t go back to church after COVID02:29:55 Deconstruction of the idea of Satan02:39:50 We never talk about Heavenly Mother02:43:10 Sad Heaven explained02:51:40 Tom Phillips and the Second Anointing ritual02:58:00 Letter for My Wife, feeling relief that it was all false03:07:40 She didn’t know how to listen to herself or decide what she wanted03:12:20 How she views her identity now than before03:18:20 Challenges in deconstructing and rebuilding
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hello, everyone and welcome to another issue of Mormon stories podcast. |
| 0:03.4 | I'm your host, John DeLinn. |
| 0:04.5 | It's November 20th, 2024. |
| 0:07.5 | And today we're going to be doing an epic traditional Mormon stories interview with |
| 0:13.7 | Abby Clark. |
| 0:14.4 | Hey, Abby. |
| 0:15.0 | Hi. |
| 0:16.9 | Today's interview is going to be about someone who, I think, the last straw of her faith fell like four or five months ago. |
| 0:25.9 | Is that right, Eddie? |
| 0:27.5 | There's all sorts of cool parts of this story. |
| 0:31.5 | There's a BYU component. |
| 0:34.0 | There's a theater, a theatrical component to it. |
| 0:39.4 | Young ambassadors camp in here, but also Abby's father apparently went to prison while |
| 0:45.8 | you were on your mission. |
| 0:46.7 | Is that right? |
| 0:47.2 | Yes, that's right. |
| 0:48.4 | But also Abby was promised inter-patrial blessing to have children, And there's some infertility components to the story. |
| 0:57.2 | And then it's also just sort of for a millennial age, Gen Z age. |
| 1:03.5 | Yeah, right on the cusp. |
| 1:05.1 | Yeah. |
| 1:05.4 | Just what would make a Gen Z slash millennial, a zellennial, what would make a Zellennial sort of walk away from Mormonism just in the past couple months? |
| 1:17.3 | So how's that for an introduction, Abby? |
... |
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