Re: The LDS Church in a nutshell.
Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2014 6:20 pm
Here's some data on the attitudes of millennials toward some social issues. http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2014/03/ ... adulthood/ To the extent society becomes less religious and more secular, the LDS church, along with all other churches, becomes less relevant.
As for the disparities between church membership numbers and self-reported census data, perhaps I should clarify that these are growing disparities. http://ldschurchgrowth.blogspot.com/201 ... ilian.html
You may be right that LDS theology will change in accordance with society's attitudes, but if history teaches us anything, we can expect such changes to lag about 15-20 years behind the mainstream. In the age of the internet such a model isn't very sustainable: it leaves a track record that is difficult to defend under the popular LDS paradigm of continuing revelation. A conservative organization that consistently digs in its heels and only changes when absolutely necessary is hardly the hallmark of cultural relevance.
Are missionaries truly emphasizing reactivation and retention more, or is that just a cover for the reality of missionary saturation and the unlikelihood of new converts commensurate with the missionary force increase? Are you aware of any missions that have issued new policies or expectations with respect to retention and reactivation?
As for the vast majority of Latter-day Saints not expecting Jesus' immediate return, I think that is an attitude unwillingly adopted out of necessity. In the early days everyone thought it was right around the corner. Even in the late 20th century everyone was looking at the year 2000, and 9/11 plus the Iraq war seemed especially ominous. Each year Jesus doesn't show up, one has to question whether these really are the "latter days." The term "latter" is anything but specific, but here we are almost 200 years after the church was organized...
As for the disparities between church membership numbers and self-reported census data, perhaps I should clarify that these are growing disparities. http://ldschurchgrowth.blogspot.com/201 ... ilian.html
You may be right that LDS theology will change in accordance with society's attitudes, but if history teaches us anything, we can expect such changes to lag about 15-20 years behind the mainstream. In the age of the internet such a model isn't very sustainable: it leaves a track record that is difficult to defend under the popular LDS paradigm of continuing revelation. A conservative organization that consistently digs in its heels and only changes when absolutely necessary is hardly the hallmark of cultural relevance.
Are missionaries truly emphasizing reactivation and retention more, or is that just a cover for the reality of missionary saturation and the unlikelihood of new converts commensurate with the missionary force increase? Are you aware of any missions that have issued new policies or expectations with respect to retention and reactivation?
As for the vast majority of Latter-day Saints not expecting Jesus' immediate return, I think that is an attitude unwillingly adopted out of necessity. In the early days everyone thought it was right around the corner. Even in the late 20th century everyone was looking at the year 2000, and 9/11 plus the Iraq war seemed especially ominous. Each year Jesus doesn't show up, one has to question whether these really are the "latter days." The term "latter" is anything but specific, but here we are almost 200 years after the church was organized...