NY Times In the small but cohesive Mormon community where he grew up, Hans
Mattsson was a solid believer and a pillar of the church. He followed
his father and grandfather into church leadership and finally became an
“area authority” overseeing the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints throughout Europe.
When fellow believers in Sweden first began coming to him with
information from the Internet that contradicted the church’s history and
teachings, he dismissed it as “anti-Mormon propaganda,” the whisperings
of Lucifer. He asked his superiors for help in responding to the
members’ doubts, and when they seemed to only sidestep the questions,
Mr. Mattsson began his own investigation.
But when he discovered credible evidence that the church’s founder, Joseph Smith, was a polygamist and that the Book of Mormon
and other scriptures were rife with historical anomalies, Mr. Mattsson
said he felt that the foundation on which he had built his life began to
crumble.
Around the world and in the United States, where the faith was founded, the Mormon Church
is grappling with a wave of doubt and disillusionment among members who
encountered information on the Internet that sabotaged what they were
taught about their faith, according to interviews with dozens of Mormons
and those who study the church.