The purpose of youth missionary work isn’t to convert the heathens. It’s to convert the missionaries.
Actually not completely true.
The LDS church had a significant number of converts over the years.
Doesn’t seem to have worked in that case.
You may have noticed that Dopers are somewhat atypical.
Assault can also be a verbal attack, particularly if it threatens violence.
Hitting is more likely to end up as battery.
And recent reports suggest that half of LDS missionaries become inactive or actually quit the church within a few years.
I was under the (seemingly mistaken) impression that some sort of missionary work was required of al young adult Mormons.
Does anyone have a rough idea of what fraction of Mormon young adults perform a mission away from home?
ISTM that someone doing one of those missions will have their dedication to the cause either cemented or shredded. Vaguely akin to Amish Rumspringa, the person heading out into the world will get to see the non-Mormon/Amish world as it is, not as their parents taught them it is. Whether they are repulsed or attracted to this new knowledge is individual.
This article https://favs.news/ask-a-latter-day-saint-how-many-men-do-missionary-work/ says that about a 1/3 of Mormon men do a 2-year stint as missionaries
Not long after I bought my home (In Mesa, AZ) two well-meaning nice young missionaries came to my door. I told them that my mom had been born Mormon, but “she got better”. (true) I was much more snarky (rude?) in those days. I probably got a rep in the ward, but no one came to the door anymore, either.
Later I became friends with the LDS neighbors. I never tried to convert them, though.
I’m usually okay with the LDS door knockers. I’ll usually invite them in on the condition that we’re not going to talk about their mission. I’ll usually get them something to drink, and just let them tell me about themselves for a bit. These are usually poor schmucks just out of high school, and getting doors continually slammed in your face has got to do something to your psyche.
The Jehovah’s Witnesses can just go all the way to hell.
Sometimes they don’t even try to proselytize, at least not in words. I remember one time I was helping a friend move, and there were a couple of young men there helping out, too. I had assumed that they were other friends of his that I just hadn’t met before. Nope, LDS missionaries who were out on their rounds and saw an opportunity to help someone out, and so did.
Of course, as far as actual proselytizing goes, spreading the message that LDS are nice people who help others out probably does go a long way.
I knew of a pair of JW’s that knocked at the door of a Catholic bishop. House right by the church and labeled as diocesan offices.
They may be dedicated, but nobody ever said they were bright. Or literate.
I imagine that getting that conversion would earn them extra points back at the Kingdom Hall. Maybe even enough for that HDTV.
My dad used to try to convert the JWs. He knew his bible probably better than they did.
My granddaughter was at a church retreat where the priest who was giving a talk recounted the time he was eating in a food court, but not wearing his collar. Two young men were approaching every table, asking people if they’ve been saved, came to his table. He invited them to sit down, said that yes he has been saved, and quoted several Bible verses to them. One of them said that’s the verses we use too. Then he revealed that he was a priest. They then prayed for each other.
Hehe, yeah. I kind of feel sorry for the JWs and Mormons I’ve ended up talking to. They would approach me while I was outside smoking under my carport, so I couldn’t pretend I was busy doing something, so I’d go ahead and talk with them for awhile. I don’t really know the bible that well, but I was confirmed Presbyterian and got an A in Catholic communicant’s class in jr. high. I always kind of got the feeling that I was doing a better job of talking them out of religion than they were at talking me into one. They were always nice folks, and I don’t think that talking to someone like me was what they signed up for.
A Florida Man doing what we do best: “Drill Bits and Wine”: Man Goes to Jail After Chaotic Visit to Pompano Walmart.
The article title doesn’t really do it justice. That’s only part of what FM got up to.
How could they leave “fracas with the shopper and his cooking pot” out of the title!?
“Forget it Jake; it’s Florida.”