West Point Mormon Questions Church & Military Service - Austin Wheeler | Ep. 1987

Austin Wheeler shares his personal journey navigating Mormonism, military culture, and faith deconstruction. He recounts growing up in the church, his early experiences with trauma, and how Mormonism influenced his views on violence and masculinity. After a series of life events—ranging from military service at West Point to his mission in Taiwan—he confronts the toxic elements of both the military and the church, including dehumanization and harmful beliefs. Ultimately, he reflects on how his experiences shaped his disillusionment with Mormonism, his struggles with identity, and the deep questions about purpose and meaning that arose as a result. Show Notes YouTube 00:01:55 Introductions 00:08:55 His parents divorced when he was in seventh grade 00:10:00 He was sexually assaulted by a ward member and doubled down in his belief 00:31:00 How his High School shaped his identity 00:42:15 Prepper culture associated with the military culture 00:58:55 The Mormon culture is that they are going to build you in OUR image 01:20:00 Experiences at the Mormon Singles Ward 01:23:37 Called to the Tawaiian mission 01:36:00 He started a fight club in the MTC 01:45:00 Mormon culture makes a lot of people weird 01:50:35 His mission president thought he was sick because he had sinned 01:53:15 They sent him home for worthiness reasons, not because he was sick 02:03:45 He went back on his mission 02:24:00 Meeting his wife 02:42:00 Authority and obedience in the church and in the military 02:56:20 Opening his mind to the reality that the church had a lot of shortcomings 03:07:10 How did his military career end? 03:19:45 How did his military service end? 03:27:35 Because he was never deployed is he happy or sad? Broken or healed? 03:36:35 If you want to connect with people who have been in the military 03:48:30 Nihilistic views and the emptiness of existence 03:53:20 Final thoughts ___________________ At Mormon Stories we explore, celebrate, and challenge Mormon culture through in-depth stories told by members and former members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as well as scholars, authors, LDS apologists, and other professionals. Our overall mission is to: 1. Facilitate informed consent amongst LDS Church members, investigators, and non-members regarding Mormon history, doctrine, and theology2. Support Mormons (and members of other high-demand religions) who are experiencing a religious faith crisis3. Promote healing, growth and community for those who choose to leave the LDS Church or other high demand religions🤝Help us continue to deliver quality content by becoming a donor todayOne-time or recurring donations: https://donorbox.org/mormon-stories?default_interval=m Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mormonstories Venmo: https://account.venmo.com/u/mormonstories Paypal: https://paypal.me/mormonstories Join this channel to get access to perks:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCx6OgmoqJbOVRq-Lv1P7SzA/joinOur Platforms:🌐Mormon Stories Blog: https://www.mormonstories.org/episodes 🎙️Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mormonstories ✳️Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4sDzk7dRjODTSEqzZKZJzk?si=148b0efc1ccc4404&nd=1 🍎Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mormon-stories-lds/id312094772 🖼️Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mormstories 📱TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mormonstoriespodcast 🎮Discord: https://discord.com/invite/kuX5p6yyjF Contact us:📧 MormonStories@gmail.com📬PO Box 171085, Salt Lake City, UT 84117