Rumors of 19 year old females going on missions

[jay santos]

Yes; right now. But how will being a RM factor into BYU acceptence?

Maybe the 3.8 GPA/30 ACT student will never have to worry. Maybe. But the fact is that soon 20-year-old RMs will be applying to BYU along with some 18-year-old non-RMs. And with 18-year-old missionaries become the norm, I could see BYU admissions taking the stance: "why is this candidate applying to BYU as an 18-year-old and not putting in his mission papers? Either he's not serious about going on a mission or is unworthy to do so. Either way, we don't want him."

In my view, that's why SPs are part of the ecclesiastical endorsement process for incoming Freshman - to access if a YM is really planning on serving a mission.

Perhaps I'm just up in the night with another conspiracy theory. But I've noticed a trend in BYU admissions. IMO, their goal is to not just accept the most qualified students but to accept the "best Mormon" students who are qualified. Currently, that process is somewhat vague but missionary service will certainly add much clarity. It's kind of an extension of the PEF with aiding foreign students who are RMs (and only those who are RMs, correct?). But now, the church/BYU admissions can use missionary service as a gatekeeper to acceptance to BYU. BTW, I don't like this trend.

If you worry about this, you must worry about a lot of things.

[Paperback Writer]

If you worry about this, you must worry about a lot of things.

Nah. I think my worry list is fairly short. But it has already come up in discussions with my HS sons. My HS Freshman son has asked me if he has to serve a mission in order to get accepted to BYU. I couldn't give him a definitive answer; only probabilities of possible outcomes. And that got me thinking that BYU and the COB could change admission criteria for YM when serving a mission at 18 becomes the new expectation.

[Donuthole]

Sounds a little paranoid.

If you worry about this, you must worry about a lot of things.

You guys are about 10-days late on this assessment.

[jay santos]

My HS Freshman son has asked me if he has to serve a mission in order to get accepted to BYU. I couldn't give him a definitive answer; only probabilities of possible outcomes.

Just tell him no you don't.

[Surfah]

Nah. I think my worry list is fairly short. But it has already come up in discussions with my HS sons. My HS Freshman son has asked me if he has to serve a mission in order to get accepted to BYU. I couldn't give him a definitive answer; only probabilities of possible outcomes. And that got me thinking that BYU and the COB could change admission criteria for YM when serving a mission at 18 becomes the new expectation.

Of my freshman and sophomore year roommates (I did 3 semesters at BYU before the mission, first year in the dorms and then roomed with friends at Crestwood) I was the only one to serve a mission. In fact one of my roommates couldn't go on a mission because he fathered a child in high school.

[Uncle Ted]

Of my freshman and sophomore year roommates (I did 3 semesters at BYU before the mission, first year in the dorms and then roomed with friends at Crestwood) I was the only one to serve a mission. In fact one of my roommates couldn't go on a mission because he fathered a child in high school.

One of my high school mates fathered a child in high school and later went on a mission. Apparently he got the mother to agree (legally) that he had no financial obligation to the child. Of course, this was long before the whole "raise the bar" thing.

[Surfah]

One of my high school mates fathered a child in high school and later went on a mission. Apparently he got the mother to agree (legally) that he had no financial obligation to the child. Of course, this was long before the whole "raise the bar" thing.

This was 97-98. So this was before the raise the bar thing. His high school girlfriend gave the baby up for adoption so he had no financial obligation. He resented his older brother who did far worse things (but have a child out of wedlock) and was allowed to go.

[Donuthole]

This was 97-98. So this was before the raise the bar thing. His high school girlfriend gave the baby up for adoption so he had no financial obligation. He resented his older brother who did far worse things (but have a child out of wedlock) and was allowed to go.

I'm pretty sure there was an unwritten raising of the bar between when Uncle Ted would have been in high school and when you and I became eligible for missionary service. I distinctly remember being told by my bishop and stake president that a young man who had sired a child could not serve a mission. I also remember being asked in my mission interviews with both my bishop and my SP if I had ever sired a child.

[Art Vandelay]

I'm pretty sure there was an unwritten raising of the bar between when Uncle Ted would have been in high school and when you and I became eligible for missionary service. I distinctly remember being told by my bishop and stake president that a young man who had sired a child could not serve a mission. I also remember being asked in my mission interviews with both my bishop and my SP if I had ever sired a child.

Having a child and/or having or paying/consenting to an abortion have long been mission deal breakers. Though I did have a friend whose sister had a baby, put it up for adoption and served a mission. This was in the mid 80s. That is the only time I've heard of a parent serving (disregarding senior couples and sisters, obviously).

[Uncle Ted]

Yes; right now. But how will being a RM factor into BYU acceptence?

Maybe the 3.8 GPA/30 ACT student will never have to worry. Maybe. But the fact is that soon 20-year-old RMs will be applying to BYU along with some 18-year-old non-RMs. And with 18-year-old missionaries become the norm, I could see BYU admissions taking the stance: "why is this candidate applying to BYU as an 18-year-old and not putting in his mission papers? Either he's not serious about going on a mission or is unworthy to do so. Either way, we don't want him."

In my view, that's why SPs are part of the ecclesiastical endorsement process for incoming Freshman - to access if a YM is really planning on serving a mission.

Perhaps I'm just up in the night with another conspiracy theory. But I've noticed a trend in BYU admissions. IMO, their goal is to not just accept the most qualified students but to accept the "best Mormon" students who are qualified. Currently, that process is somewhat vague but missionary service will certainly add much clarity. It's kind of an extension of the PEF with aiding foreign students who are RMs (and only those who are RMs, correct?). But now, the church/BYU admissions can use missionary service as a gatekeeper to acceptance to BYU. BTW, I don't like this trend.

Sounds a little paranoid.

If you knew PBW's stake you might be a little paranoid as well. Although I think his current SP is a pretty good guy as a person, there are a lot of strange policies that have developed over the years in the stake that are pretty much treated as gospel in that stake.

I am not sure how much weight BYU puts into the ecclesiastical endorsement as part of the application but I would guess it has a lot. If a stake president and/or bishop doesn't believe the candidate would be good for BYU then I imagine that BYU may kick that application to the side. If that is the case, the candidate could be effectively "blackballed" if bishop/SP didn't like the YM/YW. I can't see (PBW's) SP J. doing that, however.

I am not sure about this 18 year olds on missions either. A year (away at college) makes a big difference in maturity, IMO. If a young man screws up while away at college and doesn't go on a mission why would he make a good missionary at age 18 or even not screw up while on his mission. This all seems like the church wants to increase the number of missionaries in the field and they are not thinking about the potential damages it may cause to both the reputation of the church and the missionary. It seems if the church simply wanted more effective missionaries they would lower the bar a bit and allow potential missionaries that messed up a bit to repent and go on a mission.

There was a YM in my ward that messed up a bit with a girl before his mission while in HS. The SP told him that he would never go on a mission while he was SP. The YM really wanted to go on a mission but the SP kept telling him no. The YM has since then moved away, married a non-member, and, from I have heard, gone pretty much inactive. The whole situation kind of pissed me off. Maybe the church now needs more missionaries to try to re-activate all the young members the church has driven away.

[statman]

Sounds a little paranoid.

Not really - in the past, a year of 3.0 gpa at UVU/SLCC and "returning with honor" would get an RM into BYU as a transfer student. Now many will be taking their first college courses as RMs with only HS grades. They won't be 'transfers' and so it will be problematic to give them too much leeway just because they are RMs. They'll likely have to go that year to UVU/SLCC and then hope to be able to transfer into BYU after that.

[statman]

There was a YM in my ward that messed up a bit with a girl before his mission while in HS. The SP told him that he would never go on a mission while he was SP. The YM really wanted to go on a mission but the SP kept telling him no. The YM has since then moved away, married a non-member, and, from I have heard, gone pretty much inactive. The whole situation kind of pissed me off. Maybe the church now needs more missionaries to try to re-activate all the young members the church has driven away.

The letter of the law from the Church since raising the bar is that premarital sex disqualifies you from service. There are plenty of Bishops and SPs who ignore it, and plenty who don't.

That standard has been reiterated numerous times since the bar-raising (2002/03?) in conference/PH session talks about being able to get forgiveness but still being excluded from service. A hard-and-fast exclusion for premarital sex is really what the raising of the bar was all about. That would have removed about 30% of the missionaries I served with back in 1985/87 (an estimate based on what I know/assume/guess about my companions pre-mission lives).

[Uncle Ted]

Having a child and/or having or paying/consenting to an abortion have long been mission deal breakers. Though I did have a friend whose sister had a baby, put it up for adoption and served a mission. This was in the mid 80s. That is the only time I've heard of a parent serving (disregarding senior couples and sisters, obviously).

Yes, it was the mid 80's when it happened. I guess they have been raising the bar for some time.

[Uncle Ted]

The letter of the law from the Church since raising the bar is that premarital sex disqualifies you from service. There are plenty of Bishops and SPs who ignore it, and plenty who don't.

That standard has been reiterated numerous times since the bar-raising (2002/03?) in conference/PH session talks about being able to get forgiveness but still being excluded from service. A hard-and-fast exclusion for premarital sex is really what the raising of the bar was all about. That would have removed about 30% of the missionaries I served with back in 1985/87 (an estimate based on what I know/assume/guess about my companions pre-mission lives).

Sounds like there are certain exceptions from being truly forgiven these days and what is stated in D&C 58:42 is pure BS or, maybe, it is just the Lord that doesn't remember them anymore.

[Mormon Red Death]

Sounds like there are certain exceptions from being truly forgiven these days and what is stated in D&C 58:42 is pure BS or, maybe, it is just the Lord that doesn't remember them anymore.

God forgives but the church doesnt

Sent from my SGH-T839 using Tapatalk 2