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If I were a well-off senior with a willing spouse, and I still did the whole LDS thing, I would totally serve two missions.

I don't know. I think it's becoming pretty clear that the lds Senior missions are, for the most part, not non-profit or service-oriented, or even proselytizing efforts. They seem to be simply efforts to avoid paying salaries for legitimate labor and skills. I have had so many lds relatives carefully try to describe their senior missions in a way that reflects positively on the lds church and it's becoming more and more difficult for them.

One couple went to a mission home, it turned out that they wanted the retired nurse in the couple to provide all medical aid for an entire mission, apparently so they could avoid sending (and paying for) missionaries to receive medical care, in my opinion. Also in my opinion, it was overreach to ask a nurse to provide all of this care. The spouse had little to do. Another couple repeatedly served missions where they maintained commercial, park type facilities used mostly for the recreation and vacation time of lds upper leadership families. And by maintained, I mean back-breaking work that should be done by a paid staff, not an elderly couple, especially not one who also used their own money for supplies, because they were repeatedly denied an adequate budget. A third couple involved someone who retired from work for the lds church, at which time the couple was immediately called to 'serve' several lds missions to do the exact same work as the retired person, with the spouse then providing staff services for that person. They paid for the privilege of continuing to provide the lds church with the services of the retired person, and their spouse as staff. At least half of these missions I've heard about involve working for the lds church, NOT for their non-profit side, but for their profit based ventures.

These are all just examples from my family, so I'm having a difficult time seeing the actual service value of an lds senior mission. It feels more like simply a money saver so the lds church can continue hoarding, and not an opportunity for service to one's fellow human beings, religious or otherwise.

Moksha wrote: ↑

Sat Mar 25, 2023 5:36 am

Seniors with skills can be a no-cost alternative to high-cost labor.

The cost saving for high-cost labor can be applied to expensive gold fixtures in the Intergalactic Space Ship Nauvoo. It is interesting to view the skilled labor requests available to LDS seniors. These are definitely not missions that Church teenagers could handle.