Wife of MP blogs about the missionaries.....

[Guest]

-

[_sock puppet]

Like Mayan Elephant I really wonder why the Church doesn't just move to service missions already for the good of the world and of the missionaries themselves. If Monson was prophetic at all now would be the perfect time, especially considering the fact he never even served a mission himself.

It would be a masterful stroke of genius--it would be divine.

[Guest]

-

[_Jesse Pinkman]

Which probably means we'll have to wait at least 200 years for the Prophets, Seers and Revelators to work it out. I agree though it would make such a difference. Win for the LDS Church, win for the missionaries and win for the people they help. Much better advertizing than a Youtube campaign of people claiming to be normal and Mormon and I'd much rather see the money going to help people than see it spent on a public relations firm.

Thanks,

Hasa Diga Eebowai

I agree. It would be amazing. And, frankly, I think that, in the end, we would gain more members who would actually be committed to the Church.

[_MrSimpleton]

Shouldn't a mission president and his wife abide by a higher standard-- a standard that precludes gossip?

If you want to call it gossip, you are free to do so. But as you are so concerned about gossip, you will shun all news right? You will not ask anyone "How is so-and-so?"

I see nothing wrong with relaying tough experiences, name were left out. What the hell does it really matter that other missionaries know the name of the person? Do you really expect the missionaries with first hand to swear an oath of secrecy?

[_Tom]

One thing to consider in this discussion: the mission president's wife used real names at times in discussing sensitive matters. For example, she noted in one post that Missionary So-and-so (she provided a last name) suffered from several conditions (which she named). I googled the missionary's name and found his/her blog within minutes.

[_Aoife]

If you want to call it gossip, you are free to do so.

Isn't sharing unnecessary information about the personal affairs of others, without permission, gossip? If she wanted to keep the focus on her own experience, or missionary work, and speak only in the most general terms about what is going on with other people (no specific stories) then I wouldn't see a problem.

But as you are so concerned about gossip, you will shun all news right? You will not ask anyone "How is so-and-so?"

Gossip is a very, very different thing than news. If this MP’s wife adhered to credible journalistic standards, I’d probably be praising her rather than wishing she’d act with more discretion. She might actually be accomplishing something productive and worthwhile.

If I ask someone “How is so-and-so?” I’m expecting small talk-- the kind of stuff people don't care if everyone knows-- like “She’s great, just moved to Toledo and took a job at a school there.” I’m certainly not expecting to hear about mental illness, fertility struggles, or that her son just went to jail for drugs, or ran away from boarding school. If a friend wants me to know those things, they will tell me personally, or authorize someone else to tell me on their behalf. I certainly wouldn’t feel comfortable sharing that kind of information about someone I know—it’s not mine to share and if it's not gossip, I'm not sure what can be.

I see nothing wrong with relaying tough experiences, name were left out. What the hell does it really matter that other missionaries know the name of the person? Do you really expect the missionaries with first hand to swear an oath of secrecy?

I’m not expecting missionaries to swear an “oath of secrecy,” I’m expecting a trusted leader and support figure to not publish blind items on the interwebz about those she purportedly cares so much for. She can still blog about her own experiences, all she has to do is either get permission from the missionaries before sharing about their personal struggles, or just draw a line and keep the focus on her own experience. A missionary’s personal experiences are his/her business to share or not share.

If I were struggling with postpartum depression and a friend blogged about it anonymously-- as in neither her name, nor mine was known-- that would be a very different thing from a scenario where a friend is blogging to an audiences of friends and family about the struggle of "this one friend". While I find both scenarios to be distasteful, the second is especially egregious because she's blogging to people who are one or two degrees away, possibly within the same circles. It's gossip, straight up, regardless of how many times she adds "and I love this friend so much and worry about her all the time."

If every time a new missionary came into her acquaintance, she said "If you're having any trouble, I'm here for you day or night. I may blog about your personal issues, but I'll always redact your name," chances are good that missionaries would censor themselves if they reached out to her at all. Would you reach out for support to someone like that? I sure as hell wouldn't. To me that suggests that she is crossing a line.

[_Jesse Pinkman]

However, although lines were crossed, I think that what was blogged about is worth examination and discussion.

What is it in the missionary program that is causing mental illness to surface in this significant amount of young people?

Are parents being notified before these missionaries are being given these prescriptions for anti depression and/or anxiety?

[_RockSlider]

I'd say sever cases of cog-dis, as their clientele have become very web savvy of Mormonism.

[_Madison54]

However, although lines were crossed, I think that what was blogged about is worth examination and discussion.

What is it in the missionary program that is causing mental illness to surface in this significant amount of young people?

Are parents being notified before these missionaries are being given these prescriptions for anti depression and/or anxiety?

I agree and these are my questions as well. If my son or daughter were put on antidepressants without my knowledge, I would not be at all happy about that.

And as Tom posted above, real names were used in at least one instance and it was easy for him to find out more about the named missionary. So lines were definitely crossed.

Someone on another board posted that they've submitted her blog posts to one of the Denver newspapers. It'll be interesting to see if they'll print anything about it.