Secret Combinations: Is a Secret Group of LDS Apologists Influencing LDS Missionaries?

[sock puppet]

So the Church is allowing Russian bots to go on missions now?

[Moksha]

Kudos to Landon, RFM, and especially Rebecca for putting that podcast together.

Looking forward to tomorrow's Radio Free Mormon episode, "Jenn Kamp Goes Crazy and Must be Placed in Legal Restraints For the Sake of Those Around Her".

[Philo Sofee]

I see that group's rule 1 Ask Questions! then reads:

don't let doubts fester! Post your question or reach out to Jennifer Roach, Travis Anderson, Ben Spackman, Christopher Davis, Jennifer Roach, Don Bradley, Errol Vincent Amey, D Lawrence Barksdale, Tarik LaCour, Stephen Smoot, Sarah Allen, and Robert Boylan. These folks combined have a vast breadth of knowledge and training, both formal and informal. Also be sure to attend our weekly zoom discussions and take lots of notes!

D. Lawrence Barksdale - One of the founders with Juliann Reynolds and myself of FAIR. So this is where Darryl ended up at..... most interesting.

[Fence Sitter]

I would love for them to come here to answer our doubts.

[Philo Sofee]

I would love for them to come here to answer our doubts.

I discussed it some with Don Bradley on my show tonight.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgVZ2lyQteI&t=225s

[Kishkumen]

When I was a missionary, I earned a modest reputation for my ability to answer tough questions for investigators and even to debate effectively with anti-Mormon pastors, etc. Considering how little I knew at the time, I did a fair job. I can only imagine how much more effective I would have been had I known the stuff the people on this list know. So, I am not seeing anything sinister in this. It may be that it gets shut down because of the problems brought up here and elsewhere. Who called these people to do this? Can the Church be sure it is safe for missionaries to follow the guidance of these volunteers? Is it a problem that they are apparently operating outside the chain of command?

I don't know, but I am not all that concerned about this. We'll see what happens. I would be surprised if there weren't some kind of back channels permission from LDS leaders. We have seen how church funds clandestinely find their way into apologetic coffers. Now we are supposed to think that this collection of apologists is flouting LDS authority in helping missionaries in this way?

I don't buy it.

[Failed Prophecy]

When I was a missionary, I earned a modest reputation for my ability to answer tough questions for investigators and even to debate effectively with anti-Mormon pastors, etc. Considering how little I knew at the time, I did a fair job. I can only imagine how much more effective I would have been had I known the stuff the people on this list know. So, I am not seeing anything sinister in this. It may be that it gets shut down because of the problems brought up here and elsewhere. Who called these people to do this? Can the Church be sure it is safe for missionaries to follow the guidance of these volunteers? Is it a problem that they are apparently operating outside the chain of command?

I don't' know, but I am not all that concerned about this. We'll see what happens. I would be surprised if there weren't some kind of back channels permission from LDS leaders. We have seen how church funds clandestinely find their way into apologetic coffers. Now we are supposed to think that this collection of apologists is flouting LDS authority in helping missionaries in this way?

I don't buy it.

I'm glad to see someone else I agree with.

Take the Mormonism out of this, what is this group essentially? A group of adults starting a Facebook group to try and help each other. People have got to stop infantilizing the missionaries. Sure, in reality they are kids. But, the LDS church has decided that they are adult enough to be its ambassadors. In no other context would people be policing a Facebook group of adults that are not doing anything illegal.

I'm also unsympathetic to the argument that the apologists and missionaries are breaking mission rules. The mission rules are stupid nanny-state rules that everyone on their mission knew was complete nonsense.

[drumdude]

It’s hard to see these missionaries as actual adults when they are treated like children by their church. For example, missionaries are encouraged to rat out their companions if they are caught masturbating. The ban on masturbation at all is a holdover from young men’s; no adult Mormon after their mission is asked anything about masturbation.

Mormon missionaries until recently were not allowed to call home except once or twice a year. They were not allowed to have phones. Their internet access was filtered to prevent them looking at porn.

Compare young adult Mormon missionaries with retired couple missionaries. It’s a stark difference, and that really comes down to the fact that the church treats them like children between young men’s and real adults.

[Analytics]

Rebecca Bibliotheca at the Mormonish Podcast posted the following on July 26:

Like Scripture Central, the church uses them and has plausible deniability. In other words the church is using The Cavalry as an unofficial channel to try and answer impossible questions. There you have it.

Exactly.

[huckelberry]

I would love for them to come here to answer our doubts.

I discussed it some with Don Bradley on my show tonight.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgVZ2lyQteI&t=225s

thankyou Kerry for the good balancing view here. It is slow but Mr Bradley is a thoughtful fellow so I think his understanding of this cavalry is likely quite reasonable. He does not see it endangering missionaries. I wondered from the mormonish video if there were exaggerated fears of secrecy. Missionaries being sent home seemed far fetched to me but I am really outside of the loop on how that danger might work.