Sex confessions and chilling rituals: The secrets of the Mormons revealed in insider testimony

Wendy Diebold, who grew up in the Mormon community, describes secret rituals, pressure to marry young, and intimate interviews with religious leaders. When she left at age 21, nearly all her friends cut off contact with her.

Wendy Diebold, 28, who grew up in the Mormon community in Southern California, recounts her experiences in the church and the heavy price she paid when she left at age 21. According to her, nearly all her friends cut off contact. She describes secret rituals involving symbolic handshakes and special garments, pressure to marry young, and personal interviews with religious leaders where she was asked detailed questions about her sex life. Another woman, Emma Kay, calls life in the church a 'toxic relationship.' The article notes that frightening warnings about throat-slitting and disembowelment were removed from the rituals in 1990. Diebold underwent psychological therapy after leaving and now lives in Fontana, California.