Hungry Sunday

A conversion to the Mormon Church can be traumatic—especially if one is young, unstable, and in love. Falling out of love after conversion can lead to a falling away from faith. <br /><br /> Converts, it’s often said, make the best members; but actually, less than 50% of Mormon converts make a successful transition from “civilian” life. They hunger for the truth, but the Church also “hungers”—for them. In the process, many are ground up—or spit themselves out. <br /><br /> It’s nobody’s fault—but everyone’s burden. All Latter-day Saints are judged mainly by how well they perform as family members. For the divorced, the single, the mismatched—or the mixed-up—the Mormon road can be rough. <br /><br /> These poems are about one convert’s struggle to remain faithful throughout his life—what the Church calls “enduring to the end.”