So I was on my front porch painting a few nights ago (in a tank top and shorts), when who should walk by but the friendly neighborhood missionaries. Elder A said "Excuse me, mam, but do you know of any of your neighbors who have recently lost a loved one or are grieving? We want to offer them a message of hope." I said, "As a matter of fact, I'm an Ex-Mormon and I won't be giving you the name of anybody like that, even if I knew one."

Of course they were somewhat taken aback, but then we got to chatting. They wondered how long I had lived here, and I told them going on 7 years. Apparently I was off the radar (until now at least) because I resigned from the church and the house I used to live in was sold.

I told them who my ex was, and they said they had heard of him, and I told them I had been out of the church since about 2001 and all my kids were out as well (I really tried not to gloat). We chatted about people in the branch and how the boundaries had changed. The first branch I went to has been completely dissolved and now the boundaries for both that one and the one I was going to when I quit are a lot larger. And they say the church is growing! HA!

Anyway, I made it a point to mention I was married in the temple and asked them if they knew J.M.S., who was my bridesmaid and J.S.S. who was a friend and a few other people. A lot of my Mormon friends have moved to Utah cause their kids went to YBU and ended up staying out there so they moved to be close to them.

They did get around to asking me why I left. I told them it was too long to get into but suffice it to say that when I joined I didn't know much about the church and the more I learned the less I believed it. I said I was in for a good 20 years and gave it my best shot, but it just wasn't for me. I also made it a point to mention that my ex is probably still a believer, but he just bought a house with his much-younger girlfriend. And if I know her, she's NOT waiting for marriage.

They asked me about the painting and if I wanted help and I said thanks, but no. Before they left, I said..."So, the church has a lot going on right now with the Kate Kelly and John Dehlin thing." Elder B said, "Yes, they've been excommunicated. The church will always have the forces of Satan to fight against." I said I preferred to think of it as the church changing with the times. Then I told them that I was around when the blacks got the priesthood ("long before you guys were born") and that many people in the church fought against that, too. I told them that several of the GAs were against blacks getting the priesthood and they seemed not to know that. I said, "It's all sociology...it's change and growth. Every church has to go through it, even the Mormons."

And then they went their merry way. I have a feeling they may be back. I kind of hope so. I'm in the mood to de-convert a missionary.

Poor little uninformed kids. That's how I see them these days.
I don't think Dehlin was exed.
And yes, they will think Satan is alive and well.
sigh.

Tell them about golden converts or something.

I was riding up the gondola to ski one day and with me was a young snow border from the area and we got in a conversation about religion ------ can't remember how but it was probably me. Told him LDS inc. was a scam and totally false then something inside told me hey you know he is preparing for a mission. I then immediately stopped and asked if he was preparing for a mission and he said yes. I asked him if Truth was important and he said probably but he was not going to let that get in the way of him going on a mission. His family, friends, teachers, etc. were counting on him going. Poor brainwashed kids maybe when they grow up Truth will become more important to them versus pleasing others ------ but I can understand the pressure so I told him he needs to do what he believes he should do.

Good luck with the de-conversion.

DebbiePA Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Elder A said "Excuse me, mam, but do
> you know of any of your neighbors who have
> recently lost a loved one or are grieving? We want
> to offer them a message of hope."
**********************************************************
And there you have it, straight from the horse's....
uhhh.... mouth.

They DO target people who are exceptionally
vulnerable, thinking they'll be easy pickin's.
Reminds me of how predators choose their
prey by zeroing in on the weakest.

That alone is despicable.

Wow, their sales supervisor/trainer got them to ignore even the appearance of finding those looking for truth and are just upfront now that they want to meet the emotionally vulnerable. Cultco sales force is strong in your area.

I think we should try to de-convert as many missionaries as possible. It shouldn't be too hard to inject doubt by tactfully mentioning the major flaws. We should come up with some "de-missionary lessons". heh heh

Ran into missionaries (or should I say they ran into me) in the grocery store parking lot. I had a Univ of Utah hat in the back window of my car (outside of Utah), so I guess they thought I was fair game to chat-up.
Me: sorry guys I know too much
Them: what do you mean?
Me: asked them what they knew about JS and circumstances surrounding the re-establishment of polygamy/polyandry
Them: shrugs, stammering, wrong answers
Me: told them some facts and suggested looking it up in familysearch if they wanted to check on it.
Hopefully they did.

If I ever met them at my house I'd have them come in and chat for awhile first about their background and training, before showing them how little "meat" they actually know. They really are naive children and this was before the 18-year-olds were set loose on the world.

fight fire with fire

The questioner is the one in the position of power. By answering their intrusive questions we are giving up some of our autonomy. Who knows who they will report the info to. Not putting you down for the approach you took, but just pointing out another angle.