Converts to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ostracized by their families when they adopted their new religion should be able to sympathize with those who leave the church.
There can be the same sense of isolation from family and friends, said Anne Sargent, a former member of the LDS Church who attended the Ex-Mormon General Conference that concludes today at the Wyndham Hotel in Salt Lake City.
"The process for people who join [the church] and people who leave, when their families are left behind, is much the same," said Sargent. "And I've been through both."
Upward of 60 former members of the LDS Church gathered at the hotel near Temple Square in downtown Salt Lake City this weekend to discuss how to "live in the fold of Mormons without being a Mormon."
And one of the messages imparted was the need for former Mormons to put aside their frustrations at being turned away by family and friends and instead reach out to those they love.
"A lot of people don't get it. They say, 'You've left the church, why don't you move on?' " said Kelly Jean Blanpied, who helped organize the conference. "For most of us though, this [the Mormon culture] is where we came from and where we have ties. We want to be included in the lives of those people we care about."
Excommunicated Mormon feminist Maxine Hanks detailed her personal journey as a way to help others "stay and have a place at the table, as unique as that place may be."
On Saturday, she expressed hope the LDS Church will eventually reach out to ex-Mormons in much the same way it is now embracing a more respectful view of other peoples and their religions.
"We're seeing the church sincerely doing more interfaith work, and it [respecting all segments of Mormon society including feminists and liberals] is only a small step after that," she said.
It is also important for ex-Mormons to accept members of the LDS Church for who they are, Hanks said.
"We shouldn't criticize, try to impose our beliefs or be disrespectful -- all the ways people act towards us," she said. And that means recognizing that members of the church are "just like us. They're doing the best they can."