Mormon missionaries

Since its earliest days, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or Mormon Church as it is sometimes called, has been a proselyting church, sending out missionaries to all parts of the world. Missionary work is constantly talked about in Mormon congregations, with Church members encouraged to share the gospel with their friends and neighbors.

The LDS Church has perhaps the most active missionary program of any world church. As of December 31, 2004, there were in excess of 51,000 full-time missionaries serving around the world at any given time without pay.

Missionary work is a fundamental principle of the Church, and has become one of the most readily identifiable characteristics of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The darks suites and white shirts of male missionaries, called Elders, biking or walking two by two is a recognizable image on the streets of cities both large and small throughout the world. Female missionaries, who also go forth two by two, are called sisters. All missionaries have been assigned by Church headquarters to their area of work, which can be in any part of the world where governments allow them to preach. They contribute to their own support for up to two years, frequently learning another language.

Formal Missionary Service

The formal missionary program for the Church is responsible for sending out over 56,000 missionaries to approximately 330 organized missions around the world. Missionaries are a common sight in many areas, biking, going door to door, talking to people on the street, or doing service in communities small and large. These young men, typically 19 to 24 years old, are not the only missionaries that are fielded by the Church. There are missionaries who are old, young, male, female, proselyting, and service oriented. Missionary service can be full-time, like the young men and young women who proselyte and preach the Gospel in places far from their home, or it can be part-time in the missionary's own local community. These part-time missions are often call stake missions, since they are done within the local church administrative area called a stake. A stake is similar to a diocese in the Catholic Church.

Young Missionaries

In 1974, then Mormon Prophet, President Spencer W. Kimball, issued a call to all young men of the Church, calling them to serve full-time missions. The members responded and number of young men and women serving missions doubled in a few short years, and continued to grow thereafter until today when an average of 55,000 missionaries are proselyting in any given year.

Mormon missionary efforts, however, have had a long history. In 1830, not long after Joseph Smith had published the Book of Mormon and established the Church, the first missionaries were sent out. Samuel Smith, Joseph Smith's brother, was the first missionary. He took the newly printed Book of Mormon and began preaching in the regions of upstate New York. Through this mission, many important future leaders of the Church were converted, including the second Presdient and Prophet of the Mormon Church, Brigham Young.

Since that time, no matter how sever the circumstances, or fierce the persecution, the Church has continued to send out missionaries to all corners of the globe. This fulfills the prophesy of Jeremiah when he said:

Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the LORD, and they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks.

Jeremiah 16:16

Today, every worthy young man of the Church is expected to fulfill a mission. Every worthy, young woman can also serve a mission, and many do. The missionaries and their families are expected to pay their own way, or as much as they can. In circumstances where extreme poverty or hardship may prevent a young person who is desirous of serving from going on a mission, the members of the missionary's home congregations, called a ward, will help out. Missionaries are also aided by a general Church fund set up to assist missionaries. In general, however, most missionaries and their families save up for the expected time. Many young Mormons will have a missionary fund in which they can save money for their future mission.

When young men turn 19, or 21 in the case of women, they can submit their name to the Church to prepare for a mission. Mormon leaders, including the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, prayful consider where missionaries are needed and what applications they have. They then assign each missionary to a particular mission, of the Church. As of 2005, there were over 330 missions worldwide. When the soon-to-be missionary receives his or her call, it is time for the whole family to celebrate.

Depending on where the missionary is called, he or she will report to a Missionary Training Center, or MTC, where missionaries receive intensive language training, study the gospel, and learn how to teach the Gospel. See Missionary Training Centers below for more information. After a few weeks of training, missionaries leave for their mission. Mormons often refer to this as "entering the mission field" The Mission field refers to every place where the Gospel is preached and hence refers to the whole world.

Missionary Training Centers

Before leaving on a mission, each missionary attends a missionary training centers for a short time. These centers help prepare missionaries to teach the gospel and to orient them to missionary life. There are currently seventeen permanent missionary training centers (MTCs) around the world:

• Provo, Utah (USA)
• Preston, England
• Buenos Aires, Argentina
• Sao Paulo, Brazil
• Mexico City, Mexico
• Santiago, Chile
• Bogotá, Colombia
• Lima, Peru
• Guatemala City, Guatemala
• Hamilton, New Zealand
• Manila, Philippines
• Tokyo, Japan
• Seoul, South Korea
• Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
• Madrid, Spain
• Accra, Ghana
• Johannesburg, South Africa

Missionary training centers are like small universities or communities where missionaries learn teaching skills they will need while serving. If the missionary already knows the language of where they are going, then they will normally stay in the MTC for about three weeks. If they need to learn a foreign language, then the training time extends to a period between eight to ten weeks, with extensive language training being added to their studies. In areas where there are not MTCs or in circumstances where missionaries are unable to get to the MTC because of excessive travel expenses, or government restrictions, temporary Mission Training Centers are set up in local church buildings to help prepare the missionaries.