Put on a pedestal, kept out of power: How the LDS Church is losing women

(RNS) — The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints says it is bringing in new converts at an extraordinary rate. Its practicing members are among the most religiously engaged people in the country.

By a lot of measures, active Latter-day Saints appear to be doing well.

At the same time…the church is losing nearly half of the people who were raised in it. Even for kids raised going to church every week with families committed to the Mormon faith, 1 in 3 leave.

Both of these stories are true. So what happens between a deeply Mormon childhood and the decision to walk away?

Amanda Henderson speaks with RNS columnist Jana Riess on the declining numbers of LDS women.

This transcript was generated using AI tools and may contain minor transcription errors.

AMANDA HENDERSON: From RNS and the Institute for Religion, Politics, and Culture, this is Complexified , a podcast for the religiously curious and politically frustrated. I’m Amanda Henderson.

By several measures, active Latter-day Saints appear to be doing well. At the same time, the church is losing nearly half the people raised in it. Even for kids raised going to church every week, with families committed…