When John got his mission call to Bolivia, it was like a joke come true. Before the letter came, he and his friends had a running gag that he’d be sent there — because it’s the cliché worst-possible foreign mission (see here for a coincidental example). Then he really got sent there. And, as a ...
Apparently the Mormon missionary look is in this year for Halloween, making Time’s top ten topical costume list. Anyone planning on dressing up? I’m out; too many bad memories. If we were smart, we’d start selling customized name tags here at MSP to make a profit off the interest in Mormonism. Interestingly, the articles about ...
It seems that some folks have been playing with the mishies this past week! (Not to mention old mission friends and baptism in general.) They’re fun, aren’t they? Here’s hoping this meme will catch on. The other big theme this week was Mormons and passive-aggressive behavior. That and alternative beliefs (once you’ve given up Mormonism). ...
Then why should missionaries be able to proselytize on a bus? Makes sense to me. Apparently it makes sense to Stagecoach bus lines in Lancaster England as well (hat tip to Peggy Fletcher Stack at the SLTrib for posting about this). There are some choice quotes from the article. For instance, the guy interviewed for the ...
There have been a lot of news stories lately claiming it is the “Mormon Moment.” This claim is based on things like the Broadway play, The Book of Mormon, Glenn Beck’s rise (and fall), and the two candidates for the Republican nomination for President, Romney and Huntsman, getting lots of attention. These all seem like ...
You may recall that recently Switzerland recently stopped the practice of routinely issuing visas to [foreign] Mormon missionaries (i.e. mishies from outside the EU). And — if you’re like me — this may have left you full of questions like: What will the CoJCoL-dS do??? Do they have enough European mishies to keep the mission ...
When I was invited on to post at Main Street Plaza, I was asked to explain why it is I go to the trouble, as a committed member of the LDS Church, to debate with those who are hostile to the LDS Church in some way. This article is a part of my answer to ...
The Deseret News recently re-posted a story from the Mormon Times on members being missionaries that included 10 tips. Here is my translation of the 10 tips: “Be a friend” = Pretend to like people so they will think you’re nice and they will want to know “why” you are nice. Then spring your religion ...
An LDS mission strange and fascinating experience. Up until recently, though, it’s been tricky for people to get an idea of what a Mormon mission is really like without serving one. Part of the problem is that Mormon journals are supposed to be faith-promoting, in order to potentially serve as scriptures, like Nephi’s. “Get a ...
Food storage is a good example of the divide between liberal and conservative schools of thought. Not all LDS believe in keeping a three months’ supply of food, of course. While it’s been discussed as recently as 2007, I think food storage was always a “soft” commandment. Like journaling and genealogy, some LDS keep a ...
This post, by Ardis E. Parshall, has gotten some play recently, here at MSP and elsewhere. Since numerous people linked to it, I thought I’d stop by to see what all the fuss was. Basically she talks about her awful mission experience and then concludes that there is nothing that can convince her that the ...
God loves Mormons and He wants some More Trey Parker & Matt Stone discuss Mormonism at TAM5: “When you read the beginnings of Mormonism, when you read the Joseph Smith story, you’re just like ‘Wow … wow, really?’ The idea of anybody like Joseph Smith, who can get people to give him money and let ...
On a sunny winter day of 1985 or 86, I was waiting in the entrance of the Nuremberg train station when an elderly gentlemen with an Austrian accent addressed me: “When I see how beautifully Nuremberg has been rebuild, I feel encouraged that one day our Germany will be united again too.” That was an ...
You’ve probably all seen the news coverage recently noting that there is an increasing debate in Utah about illegal immigration. Mormons seem to be leading the charge in Arizona and Utah (not necessarily as Mormons, but these politicians happen to be Mormons) to restrict the rights of illegal immigrants. But the Mormon Church won’t reign ...
Did anyone else catch the latest change to proselytizing in the US? Mormon missionaries are now surfing the web looking for people. Baptism numbers must be way down if the LDS Church is allowing missionaries to spend time online searching for converts (of course, with a companion looking over their should the whole time). According ...