None of the above. I am Mormon because my family has been in the church for many generations.

I am a 7th generation Latter-day Saint, so by default I was raised in that faith. However, when I was 18 I decided I needed to know for myself, because I refused to spend 2 years preaching something I *hoped* or *believed* to e true. I got my answer before filling out the mission papers. Since that time, I have witnessed evidenced which confirms my belief in Mormonism.

Judging by your response to Anonymous, I would imagine that you’d call me a “Presuppositionalist.” While I certainly had a testimony of the Book of Mormon before being baptized, that testimony was never particularly strong until years later. I may have told you this before, but my conversion was actually not based on Joseph Smith Jr. nor the Book of Mormon. When, during our first discussion, the missionaries asked me if I would pray about Joseph Smith, I responded in the negative. The conversation, as best I can remember it, went something like this: Missionary: “Once you know that Joseph Smith was a prophet, you’ll also know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God. Will you pray to know if Joseph Smith was a prophet?” Me: “Well, I guess that makes sense, but aren’t there other churches that also believe that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God?” Missionary: “Well… yeah.” Me: “Yeah, I thought that was right. So praying to know if he’s a prophet really doesn’t help me know if *your* church is true; it just helps narrow things down, right? So is there a prophet today, too?” Missionary: “Yes, there is!” Me: “What’s his name?” Missionary: “Ezra Taft Benson.” Me: “Well then, it sounds to me like *that’s* the guy I need to be praying about. Knowing the Church was true when Joseph Smith was alive doesn’t really help me. I need to know if it’s true *now*!” The missionaries were somewhat flabbergasted, but they couldn’t argue with my logic. When the time came, I prayed not about the veracity of some dead prophet’s calling, but the veracity of the *living* one. And the rest, as they say, is history! :-)

I originally joined the church because the evidence of connected to the doctrines of the church demanded a verdict. But I would say I'm a member today because God disposed me to believe it.

I would have to say neither. I was born and raised in the Church by active parents. However when I was called to serve a Mission I truly believed the Church was true, until a Lutheran Minister responded to my testimony about Joseph Smith by shouting, "YOU DO NOT KNOW HE WAS A PROPHET! YOU MAY BELIEVE HE WAS A PROPHET, BUT YOU DO NOT KNOW ANYTHING OF THE KIND! After I recovered from his shouting at me, I suddenly came to the realization that he was right! I didn't KNOW Joseph Smith was a prophet. And as I thought about it I came to the conclusion that if he wasn't a prophet then none of the things he said or did was true either. So I had to make a choice, either stay and teach something I no longer believed, or call the Mission President and ask to be sent home. I decided I should find out for myself if Joseph Smith really was a Prophet or not, before I made my final decision. I became an investigator, I studied, prayed and attended Church every week, just like we ask our investigators to do. I read, "Joseph Smith tells his own story", I prayed for guidance before I read, and I prayed while I read and I prayed after I read. But I got no answer. No good feelings, no bad feelings, nothing happened. So I started reading the "Book of Mormon again". I again prayed, before, during and after reading each day. Morning, noon and night, and as often as I could in between. Three weeks later I still had not received any answer whatsoever. And by then my feelings were that it was all a sham, there wasn't a shred of truth in anything I had been studying and teaching. So one night after finishing the Book of Mormon I decided to pray one more time. And this time I did not ask for a witness, I told the Lord if I did not receive some kind of witness by tonight or the next morning before we were to leave the Apartment, I was going to call the Mission President and ask him to send me home, because I no longer believed what I was teaching. I went to bed early that night,(9;30) and lay on my back with my hands interlocked behind my head, thinking about all the things I had been studying for the past 3 weeks. I soon began to feel a tingling sensation in my feet. I thought my feet were going to sleep. This happened a lot when I was a kid. I just shifted myself in bed and continued thinking. At some point I became aware that this tingling sensation had moved up my legs to just below my knees. But it was not uncomfortable so I ignored it. I then let out a big breath of air and ask out loud, but to myself, "Is Joseph Smith really a Prophet of God?" Suddenly this tingling sensation jumped from my knees up to my waist and increased in intensity. It took me totally by surprise, I did not know what happened. I realized I had just asked a question about Joseph Smith, so I tried it again. And just as before this sensation jumped from my waist up to my chest and grew more pronounced than before. I ask again, "Was Joseph Smith really a Prophet of God?" And this time the sensation leaped to the top of my head and increased ten fold in intensity. I still did not know what was happening, but I loved it and wanted more. But something prevented me from asking that question, all I could say was "Joseph Smith really was a Prophet of God." And then I knew my prayer was being answered. And I could not hold back the tears, I sobbed like a baby. Suddenly a voice spoke to my mind and said.."YES, HUGH JOSEPH SMITH REALLY WAS A PROPHET OF GOD. AND YES THE BOOK OF MORMON DOES CONTAIN A FULLNESS OF MY EVERLASTING GOSPEL. AND YES, HUGH, THIS IS MY ONE AND ONLY CHURCH ON EARTH TODAY". These were the three questions I had been praying about for the past 3 weeks. And I recognized the voice of Jesus Christ as the one who spoke to my mind. I then got an overpowering urge that if I needed any further witness, I should get out of bed and kneel down and pray and Jesus would appear to me in person and speak to me face to face. But then I immediately got another more powerful urge that I had received a sufficient witness. Do I believe Joseph Smith is a true Prophet of God? Do I believe the Book of Mormon is true? Do I believe the Church is true? NO! I no longer just believe, I KNOW these things are absolutely true. My knowledge has surpassed my faith and I cannot doubt these things. Because I have heard the voice of the Lord Jesus Christ, while totally immersed in the spirit of the Holy Ghost, how could I doubt such a witness?...Later