This site examines LDS institutional practices — not beliefs, not members. Everything here comes from court filings, SEC disclosures, investigative journalism, and the Church's own documents.
The Church collects 10% of members' income and discloses almost nothing. Here's what's been uncovered.
Former Ensign Peak managing director David Nielsen filed an SEC whistleblower complaint in 2019 alleging the Church's investment arm had accumulated over $100 billion — concealed from members and regulators.
Members were told the fund was an emergency reserve. The SEC found it was being used to partially fund commercial ventures including a downtown mall.
The Church opened a high-end mall steps from Temple Square in 2012. Retailers include Tiffany and Nordstrom. Church reps initially denied tithing funds were used — that claim was walked back after the Ensign Peak revelations connected the dots.
Full tithe payment (10% of income) is required to hold a temple recommend — the card that grants access to temple ceremonies including weddings. Members who don't pay are barred from attending their own children's temple marriages.
Bishops hold annual "tithing settlement" interviews to verify compliance. Members haven't seen an audited financial statement since 1959.
The Church reports $2.5B in humanitarian aid from 1985–2021 — about $69M per year. Analysts estimate annual tithing receipts at $7–8B. If accurate, aid represents under 1% of annual revenue.
The Church disputes estimates based on tithing. Independent verification is impossible since no financial statements are published.
The Church uses access to sacraments and community as institutional leverage. Here's who gets shut out and how.
In November 2015, the Church updated its Handbook to classify members in same-sex marriages as "apostates" and bar their children from baptism until age 18 — requiring they move out, disavow same-sex relationships, and get First Presidency approval.
The policy was leaked and confirmed the next day. It was reversed in April 2019, described by President Nelson as a "revelation." No apology was issued.
LGBTQ members may hold a temple recommend only if they remain permanently celibate. Members who enter same-sex marriages are excommunicated. The Church officially discourages but doesn't ban conversion therapy — a practice the APA classifies as ineffective and harmful.
Membership councils are closed hearings of male leadership that strip members of all ordinances, callings, and standing. Grounds include "apostasy" — applied to scholars and activists who publicly criticized Church policy.
Members have no right to outside legal counsel, no right to cross-examine, and no independent appeals process. The "September Six" — excommunicated in 1993 for academic writing — remain the most documented example.
Temple recommend interviews cover tithing, sexual behavior, and "support for Church leadership." Members who don't pass are barred from temple ceremonies — including their own children's weddings. Non-recommended family members wait outside.
In 2019, following member pressure, the Church allowed US civil ceremonies before temple sealings without a one-year penalty. Previously, marrying civilly first required waiting a year to receive a sealing.
The gap between Church PR and internal policy. Lobbying records, abuse reporting failures, and the Handbook members weren't meant to read.
The Church operates a 24-hour legal helpline that bishops are instructed to call before contacting police when abuse is disclosed. A 2022 KUER investigation documented cases where helpline attorneys counseled bishops not to report — even in mandatory-reporting states.
In 2023, an Arizona jury awarded $30M to a survivor who alleged this helpline advice suppressed reporting of her abuse. The Church is appealing.
The Church claims political neutrality. In 2008, it coordinated a campaign for Prop 8 (banning same-sex marriage) — letters read in sacrament meetings, members mobilized statewide. LA Times analysis estimated LDS donors provided roughly half of the $22M raised in support.
The IRS investigated and found no violation. The Church later supported the federal Respect for Marriage Act (2022), which legalized same-sex marriage at the federal level.
The Handbook governing all Church policy was classified as confidential for decades. Lay leaders operated under instructions their congregants couldn't access. It was released publicly in 2020 — but standard Sunday curriculum still never references it.
It covers abuse reporting, excommunication grounds, recommend standards, suicide policy, abortion, and medical end-of-life decisions. None of this is taught to members.
The priesthood is restricted to men. Women may not baptize, ordain, or vote on doctrine. Relief Society presidents serve at the discretion of — and are released by — their bishops.
Ordain Women founder Kate Kelly was excommunicated in 2014 for organizing to petition Church leadership for female ordination. Women were later allowed to serve as baptism witnesses — a change presented as progressive while authority structures remain unchanged.
Every claim links to a primary source. We rely on SEC filings, court records, Church documents, and named investigative outlets.