1 May 2025 06:05
Canadian Couple Leaves Mormon Church - Ben and Justine Jalaff Pt. 2 | Ep. 2015
In this powerful continuation of our interview with Ben and Justine, we explore their raw and honest journey from deep devotion in the LDS Church to personal awakening, heartbreak, and healing.
They share how their relationship grew during Justine’s school years, navigating early marriage, financial and gender-role challenges, and the burden of trying to live up to faith-based ideals. From motherhood identity struggles to confronting doctrinal issues and discovering their voices during a faith crisis, this episode is full of vulnerable, eye-opening moments.
Highlights include:
Gender roles & pressure in Mormonism
The cost of silence during a faith crisis
The CES Letter, LDS Discussions & uncovering hard truths
Healing from betrayal, rebuilding marriage & reconnecting with family
Their plea for empathy from believing members
Whether you're in faith, out of faith, or somewhere in between—this is a story about agency, partnership, and finding truth together.
Watch this episode on YouTube here.
00:00:00 Introduction00:11:19 Engaged & married in Toronto Temple00:31:26 Expectations & unfairness around gender roles00:50:53 Nothing left for me01:01:47 Denouncing the church’s religious bigotry01:13:16 Ben’s reconnection with his parents & culture01:19:10 Intense betrayal in reading Rough Stone Rolling01:36:14 Ben’s last chance General Conference01:42:31 Shannon drives several hours to talk to Justine in person over her anti-lgbtq post02:04:14 Ben & Justine talk about his deconstruction02:11:32 Ben & Justine learn about cults02:28:43 Justine pleads with her family to understand their family’s choice02:45:40 Ben apologizes to his parents. They got their only son back02:50:04 Plea for active members: we leave for a reason, please have empathy02:56:28 Ben addresses his parents (in Spanish)03:00:06 Thank you Mormonism for what you gave me, but I don’t need you anymore
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At Mormon Stories we explore, celebrate, and challenge Mormon culture through in-depth stories told by members and former members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well as scholars, authors, LDS apologists, and other professionals.
Our overall mission is to:
- Facilitate informed consent amongst LDS Church members, investigators, and non-members regarding Mormon history, doctrine, and theology
- Support Mormons (and members of other high-demand religions) who are experiencing a religious faith crisis
- Promote healing, growth and community for those who choose to leave the LDS Church or other high demand religions
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