Why do missionaries tract?

[SoonerCoug]

I thought my door approach in Russia was extremely effective, but my companions had a problem with it. Here it is:

"Hi! My name is SoonerCoug (I never used the word "elder"). This is my companion Spencer. We are from America. We came to Russia for two years to study the language. We also give people free books about some people who supposedly lived on the South American continent. We just ask for 30 minutes of your time to explain the book to you first. We are not selling anything, and we aren't asking for any money [until the 4th discussion]."

My companions preferred to say things like: "We are representatives of Jesus Christ." That line didn't go over too well. My companions also loved to interrupt my door approach to try to make us sound more religious. It would inevitably get the door slammed on us.

[TripletDaddy]

Sure, but I know the missionaries around here still usually have to resort to tracting during the day. I'm saying it shouldn't be done at all and seems counterproductive.

If the missionaries were free to substitute something that actually helps people in place of something that just pisses people off, it seems like it would be a good thing.

I agree that tracting doesnt seem very effective. I was lucky. In my mission, we almost never had to tract. In fact, I really have no clue how to do a door approach. And my MP did not require us to walk around knocking doors. I think it is a mission by mission thing, as opposed to the Church missionary program requiring missionaries to tract.

Some potential benefits to tracting (while still acknowledging that it is the least effective way of finding):

1. Exposure: the is a reason the world knows the LDS Church by the white shirts and ties. And it isn't from working off referrals.
2. Baptizing: you still get these from time to time
3. Productivity for the unproductive: tracting is a "lowest common denominator" behavior. Regardless of how effective or obedient you are, you always know whether you are tracting or not. You either are or you are not. If missions got rid of this altogether, you would have loads of missionaries that would be screwing around even more than they are now. "Service" would morph into playing basketball all day with investigators and things of the like. I would think that self-starting missionaries that could be left to their own devices to find acts of service and missionary opportunities are probably in the minority, not the majority.
4. Testimony: hard work can build character and testimony. Nothing wrong with going old school every now and then. Even if you don't baptize anyone, you can still strengthen your own testimony. And ultimately, a big part of the mission is doing just that.

Just some thoughts.

[SoonerCoug]

A few months ago, I was at a bar with a hematologist friend of mine. He ordered a beer, and I asked for a diet coke. I mentioned that I'm a Mormon and don't drink, but that I'm pretty secular. His response was: "Yeah, I already knew you weren't a very religious Mormon. You know how I knew? You never came and knocked on my door at 3 in the morning."

Tracting is generally destructive to the Church and its image. And it pisses people off.

[il Padrino Ute]

A few months ago, I was at a bar with a hematologist friend of mine. He ordered a beer, and I asked for a diet coke. I mentioned that I'm a Mormon and don't drink, but that I'm pretty secular. His response was: "Yeah, I already knew you weren't a very religious Mormon. You know how I knew? You never came and knocked on my door at 3 in the morning."

Tracting is generally destructive to the Church and its image. And it pisses people off.

Your friend is full of shit.

Maybe 4:30, but 3:00 AM?

No way.

[ERCougar]

I agree that tracting doesnt seem very effective. I was lucky. In my mission, we almost never had to tract. In fact, I really have no clue how to do a door approach. And my MP did not require us to walk around knocking doors. I think it is a mission by mission thing, as opposed to the Church missionary program requiring missionaries to tract.

Some potential benefits to tracting (while still acknowledging that it is the least effective way of finding):

1. Exposure: the is a reason the world knows the LDS Church by the white shirts and ties. And it isn't from working off referrals.
2. Baptizing: you still get these from time to time
3. Productivity for the unproductive: tracting is a "lowest common denominator" behavior. Regardless of how effective or obedient you are, you always know whether you are tracting or not. You either are or you are not. If missions got rid of this altogether, you would have loads of missionaries that would be screwing around even more than they are now. "Service" would morph into playing basketball all day with investigators and things of the like. I would think that self-starting missionaries that could be left to their own devices to find acts of service and missionary opportunities are probably in the minority, not the majority.
4. Testimony: hard work can build character and testimony. Nothing wrong with going old school every now and then. Even if you don't baptize anyone, you can still strengthen your own testimony. And ultimately, a big part of the mission is doing just that.

Just some thoughts.

Yup. I think #3 nailed it. Even the productive self-starters have uninspired bad days and tracting at least ensures that they're doing something.

[Katy Lied]

Because our mission to the world is to bring the gospel to it. A systematic method to doing this is tracting.

Panglossianly yours,

KL

[tooblue]

Good question. I refused to tract and did just fine.

[Solon]

I thought the White Bible states that tracting is the least effective form of missionary work? We were taught that somewhere. It isn't like the Church is that wild about tracting, either. I think everyone would be thrilled to work solely off referrals.

There are, according to the white bible, two things that are less effective than tracting. They are: "street contacting" and "talking to everyone."

We did plenty of tracting and street contacting, but I never tried "talking to everyone." We were more effective than that.

[The_Tick]

I only baptized one person in 2 years from tracting. It was in my 3rd month.

I am still married to her 12 years later.

No shit.

I believe in following through on fellowshipping.

[Levin]

I thought my door approach in Russia was extremely effective, but my companions had a problem with it. Here it is:

"Hi! My name is SoonerCoug (I never used the word "elder"). This is my companion Spencer. We are from America. We came to Russia for two years to study the language. We also give people free books about some people who supposedly lived on the South American continent. We just ask for 30 minutes of your time to explain the book to you first. We are not selling anything, and we aren't asking for any money [until the 4th discussion]."

My companions preferred to say things like: "We are representatives of Jesus Christ." That line didn't go over too well. My companions also loved to interrupt my door approach to try to make us sound more religious. It would inevitably get the door slammed on us.

Even more annoying than being solicited at my own doorstep is being solicited under false pretenses. That really pisses me off.

[TripletDaddy]

Even more annoying than being solicited at my own doorstep is being solicited under false pretenses. That really pisses me off.

Had an Eddie Murphy experience, did you?

[BYUHoopster]

This is the exact thing I heard from every missionary I trained (5 in all); that we shouldn't waste our time tracting because it is less effective. This may be true in some missions and based on the numbers likely most missions but not in mine. I was state side Spanish speaking and tracting was the most effective finding method in my misison and was over 70%.

Of course, none of my new missionaries were convinced so I allowed them to have their way and choose whatever method they wanted to, to find new investigators. We would consistently come up empty or at most have 1 new investigator after 2-3 days of their method before they would give in and suggest we tract.

I also think I had the most effective door approach that got me in a ton of doors. Simply, "Hi, we're missionaries, can we come in?" I doubt this would work in english speaking middle to upper class USA but it worked wonderfully with the Spanish speakers in California.

[Levin]

Had an Eddie Murphy experience, did you?

Don't even ask!

[SoonerCoug]

Even more annoying than being solicited at my own doorstep is being solicited under false pretenses. That really pisses me off.

Those weren't false pretenses as far as I was concerned. That was the truth. It's ridiculous for missionaries to call themselves representatives of Jesus Christ, etc. It's so much better to just give people the book and let them make up their own minds without being pushy or claiming divine authority.

This reminds me of a Russian neurologist that I baptized. They invited me over for a birthday party, and I gave her the BOM to read. Well, she read it in about 3 days, and she also made a GIANT list of all her complaints about the book (starting with the "spirit" telling Nephi to chop off Laban's head and put on Laban's clothes, which miraculously didn't seem to be drenched in Laban blood). When she was finished telling me about her list of complaints, I just said: "I totally agree. That stuff is crazy, isn't it." Then I explained what it means to be a borderlander, and she got baptized a few months later.

Reasonable people appreciate sanity.

[SeattleUte]

Tracting would be completely tastless where I live. Nobody except maybe a close neighbor you know extremely well just comes and knocks at your door without prior arrangement. It's unheard of. We don't even answer our door for strangers. This would be least of all tolerated from a religious sect.

Anyone tracts at my house and they'll get the heel of a cold beer bottle across the brow.

Tracting is hideosuly counterproductive. We didn't do it in our mission. Tracting was villified as a fool's errand. And this included in poor barrios where most people didn't even have windows and were sweethearts. You could just walk up, poke your head in, and say, "Hermanito! Que tal?

It used to really annoy me when home teachers would come unannounced. I used to wonder who they thought they were.