Taking Religious Advice from children

[_quaker]

People can be inspired and taught by people of any age if they are open to it. 19-21 year old missionaries can be as inspiring in their actions and desires as any older more experienced person.

Exactly how and when else will they be able to grow to fill a role they are choosing to pursue if they are never given the chance and responsibility to do so? Do you think deacons passing the sacrament is bad because they don't understand as much as you do? God forbid if anyone is ever given a responsibility that they have never performed before, lest they learn something new.

If take a look at what missionaries are taught to do then you'll notice that most should not be beyond their experience. Personal experience should have taught the missionary something about everything they teach. Family financial stuff, dealing with previous crimes, raising children, and law of chastity problems are not dealt with by missionaries. They should, because they are instructed to, refer them to priesthood leaders and ward members who do have the experience that can be helpful.


Do you even think you would have the perspective you have now had you never been a missionary in your early 20s?

[_Jason Bourne]

After looking at the recent pictures provided by Gaz/Seth/gramps of them as missionaries I was struck with the question of "Who is going to seriously take religious advice from kids?" Do baby faced youngsters make the best religious pitch men? Religion....which focuses so much on tradition and authority, do young men with little life experience make convencing salespeople?

Think of it this way. The leaders of faiths are usually more "seasoned" people. The Pope, EV Ministers (Falwell, Robertson etc etc), Hinckley....what do they have in common? They're old. Even Jesus didn't start his ministry in earnest till he was 30 or so right (bare with me atheist folks...trying to make a point.) The question still stands "who will seriously take religious advice from kids?" Leave aside the question of the material itself.....are most middle aged people (or anyone older than the missionaries) going to take the idealistic sales pitch of a 19 year old seriously?

I would bet that the majority of people are going to be skeptical of kids selling a religious message.

Just a thought...

Perhaps but it has worked pretty well. Here is an interesting tid bit. About 10 years or so ago all the tours at historical sites were given by older senior couple missionaries. Then the Church tried having 21-23 year old sister missionaries do the tours on a selected basis. The number of requests for further visits after someone ha been on a tour more then doubled. So the Church changed all the site tours to be given be 21-23 year old sisters. The older couples still supervise and so some tours but mostly young females are giving them now. I found that intriguing.

What?! You're saying the church is succumbing to the worldly approach that a pretty woman presenting a sales pitch is okay as long as the results are positive? Hmmm....

Well yea, sort of seems like it.

[_BishopRic]

Do you even think you would have the perspective you have now had you never been a missionary in your early 20s?

Ya know, I'll grant that the mish experience grows young boys into disciplined men faster than the norm. I saw an amazing transformation in social and communication skills in my recent RM son. My youngest (soon to be 19) son needs an experience like that, but is not a believer. I thought about sending him into the military, but I would just want him to stay in boot camp. Oh well....

But it also invests the kid in a belief system that discourages open-mindedness...and I think that is not an accident. I'm certainly one who did not open myself up to the possibility that the church claims were not all I had grown up to believe -- because of my investment which included two important years for me and my parents. I'm sure there are many that don't even want to know about the challenging issues today. They're comfortable in what they are doing, and don't want to risk losing that.

[_Gazelam]

Missionaries are not sent out to be apologists for one thing, so age and ignorance are not the issue.

Missionaries are sent out to bear testimony and teach a person how to pray and receive answers to prayer. They teach people how to recognize the Holy Ghost. A Book of Mormon is a perfect tool in bringing people to Christ, since the Holy Ghost is easiest recognized when asked a yes or no question.

When a person prays and asks if the Book of Mormon is true, and gets a very real answer to their prayers, then they have a testimony comparable to the Apostle Peters.

Yes, a mission does do alot for a missionary. Seeing people receive revelations does tend to strengthen a testimony.

[_ozemc]

Missionaries are not sent out to be apologists for one thing, so age and ignorance are not the issue.

Missionaries are sent out to bear testimony and teach a person how to pray and receive answers to prayer. They teach people how to recognize the Holy Ghost. A Book of Mormon is a perfect tool in bringing people to Christ, since the Holy Ghost is easiest recognized when asked a yes or no question.

When a person prays and asks if the Book of Mormon is true, and gets a very real answer to their prayers, then they have a testimony comparable to the Apostle Peters.

Yes, a mission does do alot for a missionary. Seeing people receive revelations does tend to strengthen a testimony.

However, when I see a young kid still wet behind the ears trying to tell me about the nature of God and the universe, I do tend to become a little skeptical.

I do have a question for you, though ....

What if a person prays and asks if the Book of Mormon is true, and the "very real answer" they get is "NO, IT'S NOT TRUE!"?

What then?

[_The Nehor]

Missionaries are not sent out to be apologists for one thing, so age and ignorance are not the issue.

Missionaries are sent out to bear testimony and teach a person how to pray and receive answers to prayer. They teach people how to recognize the Holy Ghost. A Book of Mormon is a perfect tool in bringing people to Christ, since the Holy Ghost is easiest recognized when asked a yes or no question.

When a person prays and asks if the Book of Mormon is true, and gets a very real answer to their prayers, then they have a testimony comparable to the Apostle Peters.

Yes, a mission does do alot for a missionary. Seeing people receive revelations does tend to strengthen a testimony.

However, when I see a young kid still wet behind the ears trying to tell me about the nature of God and the universe, I do tend to become a little skeptical.

I do have a question for you, though ....

What if a person prays and asks if the Book of Mormon is true, and the "very real answer" they get is "NO, IT'S NOT TRUE!"?

What then?

Thank the missionaries for their time and get on with your life.

[_ozemc]

Missionaries are not sent out to be apologists for one thing, so age and ignorance are not the issue.

Missionaries are sent out to bear testimony and teach a person how to pray and receive answers to prayer. They teach people how to recognize the Holy Ghost. A Book of Mormon is a perfect tool in bringing people to Christ, since the Holy Ghost is easiest recognized when asked a yes or no question.

When a person prays and asks if the Book of Mormon is true, and gets a very real answer to their prayers, then they have a testimony comparable to the Apostle Peters.

Yes, a mission does do alot for a missionary. Seeing people receive revelations does tend to strengthen a testimony.

However, when I see a young kid still wet behind the ears trying to tell me about the nature of God and the universe, I do tend to become a little skeptical.

I do have a question for you, though ....

What if a person prays and asks if the Book of Mormon is true, and the "very real answer" they get is "NO, IT'S NOT TRUE!"?

What then?

Thank the missionaries for their time and get on with your life.

Oh c'mon, Nehor, give me a little fun .... :-)

Anyway, you know where I was going.

Is a testimony that the Book of Mormon is not true any less valid than a testimony that it is true?

And, to uses Gaz's words, would that also be a "testimony comparable to the Apostle Peters."?

[_Gazelam]

To my knowledge, this doesent happen. The Holy Ghost does not go around contradicting himself.

[_BishopRic]

To my knowledge, this doesent happen. The Holy Ghost does not go around contradicting himself.

That's why you guys that think he said the Book of Mormon is true are getting your wires crossed!

:-;