#037 -- Attending Church as a Non-Believer w/ Colton Scott

What does it look like to stop believing in the Church but still show up every Sunday? In this episode, we sit down with Colton Scott. A born-and-raised Utah Mormon, returned missionary (Scotland & Ireland), and BYU grad who describes himself as a product of "the Utah factory." Colton shares the story of how his sister's faith transition in 2023 sent him down a rabbit hole of investigation that ultimately broke his shelf, and how he's navigated life as a PIMO (Physically In, Mentally Out) ever since.

In this episode, we discuss:

- Colton's background: mission, LDS Business College, BYU, and growing up in a deeply devout family

- How his sister's faith transition triggered his own investigation (CES Letter, LDS Discussions, and more)

- The things that had been on his shelf for years: the Book of Mormon, the SEC's $5M penalty against the Church, Brigham Young, and LGBTQ issues

- What it was like to tell his bishopric (in two different wards) that he no longer believes, and why both experiences went better than expected

- The tension of being PIMO: staying for community, family, and the 80% he still agrees with

- Baptizing his son while no longer believing, and the harder questions ahead (temple recommends, weddings, priesthood circles)

- Whether attending church as a non-believer means "feeding the beast" and how each person has to find their own tolerance level

- The Church's culture of "all in or all out," and whether that's changing- How Colton's moral compass and standards have stayed intact through his deconstruction

- The autonomic nervous system response to leaving behind lifelong religious habits

- Brian McLaren's four stages of faith: simplicity, complexity, perplexity, and harmony

- A discussion of Jeff Strong's book Torn and Elder Holland's circle moment

If this episode resonated with you, please subscribe, leave a review, and consider supporting the podcast financially — links are below.

You're not alone out there. 🌉

🌐 More episodes & links: https://linktr.ee/latterdaybridgebuilders📸 Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/latterdaybridgebuilders 🎥 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@latterdaybridgebuilders☕ Support the podcast: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/LDSBridgebuilders

👕 Merch Store:https://ldbb-shop.fourthwall.com