Oops. Not only can I denouNce my faith, I can spell it too.
OOOPS the dangers of shareing a computer with multiple others. I have not developed multiple personalities. the above post by nonsequitur should be by me instead.
Sorry jane_says no, I have yet to have the pleasure of visting Virginia. I generally don’t try to hide behind annonymity. But the only e-mail I read any more is my work address. Out of a desire to keep my job 
I try to keep my opinions disassociated with them. I am not aware of anything I might have posted that would cause that, but they let me post from work so I go out of my way to keep such people happy.
Well, I act in a local play every summer. The play in question is based on a famous trial that took place, here. Mormon missionaries do all of their regular duties, apparently, but then come out and help with the play as well.
At the beginning of the season they put up the sets and then throughout they help out by playing jury members (when we’re short of audience members who want to play them), and even do some acting.
It’s three nights a week, and not when the standard “recreation” time that has been mentioned is. However, the actors aren’t really paid for it (we get a small honourariem), and it’s more of a volunteer thing. It’s also a non-profit production, so that and the volunteer aspect probably has a lot to do with the Mormon missionaries’ involvement.
nonsequitur wrote:
Compared to serious theology students, I know relatively little, yet I often find that the people who attempt to witness to me know less. Many seem to think that their own pastor thought up Pascal’s Wager, or the evil-as-absense-of-good argument. On the other hand, it has been my experience that Catholics, who are not prone to proselytize quite as much, are generally more knowledgable about theology. I’m not sure what they do differently.
It is also my impression that other Christians are less apt to be gentle with Mormons than secular humanists.
Well obviously I can’t speak for any other religion but the standard LDS approach is, “Here is what we believe, sincerely pray about it and God will reveal that it is true to you.” Boom that’s it. It doesn’t take any theology to give the message. In fact those who have a good background in theology or philosophy are less able to deliver the message as is without embelishment. So the church simply focuses its members on the message. The idea that the LDS church is “The One True Church, with the Fullness of The Gospel,” also tends to make its members ignore the common Christian heritage. I know more than one member who loved the song Amazing Grace until they found out it wasn’t of LDS origin.
Mine as well. My comment was really intended as a joke. You big scary secular humanist blowing the poor little missionaries minds. Mormons have a tendency to bring a little abuse onto themselves. One the one hand they want to be seen as special and different from other Christians. On the other hand they want to be mainstream and accepted. For many this comes out as, “we are just like you, but better.” So it isn’t entirely suprising when other Christians get defensive and make such statements as, “Moromons aren’t Christians.”
Well I am straying quite a bit from the original topic. So I’ll bow out of this thread now. Thanks everyone it’s been a good thread.
You not only strayed a good bit from the topic, you did a remarkable job of softly mocking your faith by saying you “don’t annouce/push” it, all the while gently shaking your finger at other members for the way they express their beliefs as you bow out.
I re-read my early posts and I apologized inappropriately, none of my posts smacked of witnessing. I was careful to answer the op and following question as they were asked.
Abby
As far as being prepared for the work we had to do, I think it is a personal thing.
When I went on a mission, we would get up early and study. For an hour (I think; it’s been a while), we had individual study, where we studied topics of our choice in the scriptures. I chose to read the Bible cover to cover, reading slowly enough to grasp as much as I could. I also took other opportunities, such as during lunch, to gain as much knowledge as I could by studying topics and such.
As time progressed, I gained enough knowledge that I was never stumped or perplexed by a non-Mormon’s questions, or by a Bible-thumper ready to show-off his “vast knowledge” about Mormon beliefs he learned in his Sunday School Bible Bash class.
In fact, I was able to teach a former jew who had converted to Lutheranism, and was “high up” in that faith. He had never found anyone who knew the Old Testament like I did (so many religions ignore it like it does not exist, especially after the 5 Books of Moses)and was impressed when I was able to clarify some of the things with which he struggled in his own religion, such as things that perplexed him in the writings of Paul.
To make a long story short (too late), I think it is a personal thing and the amount of effort one is willing to take that determines the preparedness of missionaries.
Though the modern RCC is not prone to actively proselytize among established Christian, Jewish or Islamic communities, traditional Catholic communities (e.g. Latin America) are right now prime proselytizing grounds of LDS, JW’s, 7DA’s, Pentecostalists, etc.
In facing this “threat” the RCC calls on their non-secret weapon: not Sola Scriptura but giving their props to 2 millenia of tradition, interpretation, and theory… since the “encroachers” will almost certainly use as a prime weapon how X or Y Catholic doctrine is unscriptural. So they have to be really up on their stuff from a defensive stance. ( This has another effect: being SO aware that so much has been written on the issues by so many people smarter than himself, the Catholic debater is less eager to jump in if all he’s got are a couple of Bible quotes. While the equally armed Fundie may think he’s got you.)
Even the “educated layman” who went to Catholic school got one hour every day of religious education which by HS Junior year could get pretty sophisticated… wrapping your mind around such things as papal infallibility and Purgatory. In the “back when” days of Latin and no fish on Fridays, etc., no proper Catholic education was complete without a course in Apologetics: how to defend your faith against the attacks of Protestants, Freemasons and “Free-Thinkers” (Oh, My!).
BACK TO TOPIC, SORT OF:
The LDS missionaries have acquired some kind of folkloric niche in our community here in San Juan. They have become so recognizable: pairs of very cleancut, very sunburnt 
young Anglo men dressed like Dilbert (OK, the short sleeves make sense in this heat – the tie doesn’t) with their name-tags on the shirt pocket. They have gained a very favorable reputation, and are generally far better received than the JW’s .