While searching for information about the CES Letter, I came across the story of a once faithful member of the Church who once struggled with doubts about Church history and the Restoration.

His slide into disbelief started from simple curiosity about things he had never heard discussed while growing up. Plural marriage, early Church history, and the more complicated parts of the Restoration. But he relied exclusively on critical sources and avoided faithful scholarship. New details pushed him toward darker assumptions. Over time, the spiritual experiences that had once meant so much to him felt empty, prayer no longer felt real, and his testimony gradually collapsed into quiet atheism.

Despite that loss of belief, Leo continued going to church each week with his wife. He still knelt with his family in prayer, even though privately he was convinced no one was listening. He did it because he loved his wife and didn’t want to hurt her or shatter the covenants they had made together. That loyalty, combined with a sudden impression to reach out to historian Steven Harper, created the opening he needed to re-examine the assumptions he had absorbed. That decision became the beginning of his path back to faith.

Through love, sincere study, and seeking learning by faith, he felt the light return. Over time, he regained his testimony.

The reason his story stood out so strongly to me, and the reason I listened to a podcast about an ordinary church member is because… Leo is my friend.

Leo and I grew up together in Bountiful, in the same home ward. He’s a year younger than me, in and was in Sam’s grade in school. He came from a great family with a father who had a powerful testimony. I still remember that when Leo left on his mission, his family took on early-morning paper routes to help pay for his service.

Leo had essentially the same spiritual foundation and early experiences that I had. We had the same bishop, lived in the same neighborhood, and sat in the same priesthood and Sunday School classes. Many of the same teachers helped shape our testimonies.

While Leo regained his faith through study and by turning to church historians who understand the real context of our history, he also had a powerful spiritual experience. This is the vision he describes he had:

“I saw Joseph and Emma moving through a dark room, lighting candles given to them by Christ. They stumbled, bumped into objects, and occasionally set things on fire, yet the room slowly filled with light. Then I was reminded of my own childhood mistakes, and the Lord impressed upon me: ‘Do not condemn my servants for operating with limited light.’”

After his “re-conversion” he started a community to help others like himself who have struggled with unbelief. He started a Facebook group called Uplift Community Fellowship. He invites anyone struggling with faith to join it.

Is it coincidence that this defender of truth was once deeply involved in anti-Mormon spaces—happens to be my friend?

Perhaps.

But I believe it is a tender mercy letting us know of a resource that can help those who struggle to find faith again.

You can watch his full interview here.