150 Mormons Quit in Salt Lake City

Until lately Latter-day Saints, 150 people gathered in the home city of the Mormon church to announce their break with the faith on Sunday. “This feels awesome,” said Utah resident Alison Lucas. “I don’t know if I would have had the courage except in a group.” The religion, known for the conformity of its membership, rarely sees such public displays of apostasy. The group signed a “Declaration of Independence From Mormonism” and cited the church’s strict stance against gay marriage as a cause for the demonstration. They also said they were discouraged by views the church holds that they said were racially or sexually prejudiced. The Mormom church claims 14.4 million adherents spread around the globe.