My Dealings With the Mormons, Part 8

This is part 8 of a series. It begins here.

While we were in Salt Lake City, I received a Facebook invitation to a mission report by one of my friends from high school. Even though I hadn’t seen or talked to him in 3.5 years, I felt the natural curiosity about Mormonism, so I decided to do everything I could to attend. This would be the first time I would experience Mormonism from someone I knew well in a context outside of the religion.

Sunday, at 5:55 p.m., I showed up to Randy’s house for the 6 p.m. gathering. As usual, my punctuality threw people off guard, as their family was still finishing up dinner. There were a few other people who arrived when I did, so I made some awkward small talk and looked at pictures. As the minutes rolled on, more people showed up, eventually including people I knew from high school.

The audience mostly consisted of other Mormons, so the few (maybe 6) of us high school friends were the definite minority. Having had a relatively large experience with the religion, I really appreciated how Randy explained the basic principles while keeping it interesting to those who had grown up knowing these things or had already gone on their own mission.

It started, as expected, with Randy playing a song on the piano. The presentation had two purposes: to show his experiences on his mission to New York and to show non-Mormons what he believes. The format was mostly pictures with narrative, a few videos, and several stories about the people in the pictures.

I must admit, it was nice to see a different side of Randy. For the six years of school we had together, I had never heard him speak so openly about what he believed. This was understandable, as I’m sure most of the people I know have never heard me speak similarly. Also, as I’m sure the majority of the audience understood and was familiar with the topic, it was to be expected. Nonetheless, I really enjoyed listening to someone I knew outside the Mormon context speak so genuinely about the religion.

I came to the presentation filled with questions and comments, but I didn’t really ask any of them. I realized very quickly that the things I had to ask or say were not suited for a large group. They were not beneficial to the audience, only me.

In all, I came to respect Randy a lot more. Even though the religion expects it, it takes a substantial amount of strength and courage in order to go on a mission, especially in the heart of New York City. His personality was well suited for grabbing the attention of the public, as evidenced through knowing him and seeing videos of him in action.

In my observations of the religion, I had never had the opportunity to see what actually goes on in the mission. Being part of a constant partnership forces ideal performance, otherwise there are consequences. Yet the methods of converting, the training needed to go out, the lifestyle and expectations—these are all very interesting to me. In my opinion, it’s just another business part of the Mormon church. Yet undeniably, they are effective in converting.

As usual, this experience raised more questions for me. Uncomfortable with asking them and holding the whole group back, I asked Randy if we could meet up sometime this week to discuss things. Of course, this will mean more parts to the ever-growing saga, but what did you expect?

This post was initially going to be about what Randy had to share, but I ended up being more interested in my opinions of that. If you disagree with this decision, feel free to mention it in the comments and I will add more.

Continue reading here.