My bro-in-law just left for his mission, and now that I'm an adult watching a nineteen year-old "serve" a mission, I'm amazed at just how selfish it is. Months of preparation, buying every last item on the list regardless of the family's financial situation, being supported by church members' contributions, never being able to call home on a whim because you're "serving..."

It all seems very narcissistic to me, very me-centered behavior. "I'm serving a mission, I'm learning all I can, I'm bringing the gospel to others." It breaks my heart that he is subjecting himself to all these arbitrary rules when he has a cute girlfriend at home waiting for him. He can't even call her!

Maybe, like a couple of missionaries in my old ward, he'll punch someone's lights out in frustration and get sent home! Early marriage, temple be blowed, etc. Whatever, he has to work it all out for himself.

His personality was altered. He has become boundary crossing and predatory. He feels like one of the elite because he served a mission. He had to do lots of street contacting, so he is pushy.

Mormonism makes you always "in the right". Everyone else is stupid or a heathen, because mormons are always right, and they have this victimizing persona. What mormons don't realize is, is that they hurt those they have relationships with, because of their uncompromising, uncooperative ways. The church always comes first, and because I'm a mormon, I'm superior.

Sad and very true. Mind you, other vaguely similar organisations can bring that out if people have the (usually hidden) tendency, eg., Scientology, the Military, Tax Office, you name it. Anywhere where implied rightness and/or authority are given or assumed.

Slightly OT, but I watched Hinckley (I think it was) on YouTube calling coloured folk 'these people'. "We love these people, we help these people, we go to Africa and try to make them better". Dear god!

The missionaries are more dupes than instigators IMO. They make a significant sacrifice of time and receive no monetary compensation for their trouble while upper LDS leadership enjoys six-figure incomes.

LDS, Inc. benefits greatly from their army of missionaries. I believe the chief benefit is the strengthening of "testimonies" of the rank and file which helps better secure them as life-long tithe payers. The membership missionaries add (since retention is so pitifully low) is negligible, and if they had to pay missionaries it would be a huge drain on resources and I would imagine they would halt it overnight.

I agree that the rite of passage of being a missionary does glean certain rewards within the organization that can imbue the egotistical missionaries with a sense of entitlement. Anyone who has been on a mission knows the type all too well. But mostly missionaries are exploited by the organization.