Each week hundreds of families around the world take their sons and daughters to Missionary Training Centers (MTCs) and bid them farewell for 18 to 24 months. The MTC is where their sons and daughters embark on the beginning of their journey as a full-time missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Once they enter the MTC, they are expected to devote all of their time and attention to preparing to teach others about Jesus Christ. Some will remain at the MTC for as short a period as two weeks, whereas those who are learning a foreign language will remain at the MTC for nine weeks, before departing to their assigned mission.
Approximately one in four Americans speaks a foreign language. However, because Mormon missionaries serve in many different parts of the world, the percentage of Mormons who are fluent in other languages is higher than average. Not only are they fluent in other languages, but they are taught languages at a more accelerated pace. For example, a Mormon missionary assigned to a mission where he or she will speak Mandarin Chinese spends a total of nine weeks studying and learning the language at the MTC, whereas the U.S. military has an intense 64-week course in Mandarin taught at the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, California.
How does the Church teach foreign languages with great effectiveness in short periods of time? A June 2014 National Public Radio (NPR) report shares this insight: “They accomplish it through intense classroom instruction from teachers who are former missionaries, daily practice in realistic teaching situations, and learning by and following the Holy Spirit. As one missionary tells NPR, “Everything we do is trying to learn by and with the Spirit.””
The MTC in Provo, Utah teaches 56 languages. Thirty-one of those languages require a maximum of nine weeks of study and training. Twenty-six of those thirty-one languages are Asian or Eastern Bloc languages. The Church also has 14 international MTCs that teach seven foreign languages. International MTCs also provide native language training in 17 languages for missionaries not learning a second language. Each instructor is either a native speaker or is fluent in the language because of his or her missionary service.
To learn the language that they will be speaking to teach the gospel, missionaries study the language for 6 to 8 hours a day. After a few weeks of study, they are asked only to communicate in the language they are studying. They are also encouraged to pray, read the scriptures, and even think in the language they are learning.
Speaking of the challenges that missionaries face in learning a foreign language, President Thomas S. Monson has commented that he “marvels at the devotion and total concentration of these young men and women as they grapple with the unfamiliar and learn the difficult.” In a 2013 interview with The Salt Lake Tribune, Col. Derek Tolman, commander of Utah National Guard’s linguistic unit, remarked that MTCs are “excellent at teaching the fundamentals in a short time. The students are highly motivated, and the learning curve is amazing.”
In addition to language instruction, teachers also provide cultural training to help missionaries make a smoother transition into their assigned foreign country.
Missionaries for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are called to serve in many different locations throughout the world. Some are called to serve in areas not far from their hometown and are able to teach in their native English, whereas others are called to serve in faraway lands where they must learn not only a new language, but a new culture and lifestyle as well. Such was the case for Tylan Glines, Connor Peck, Davis Blount, Jake Mingus and Sumner Mahaffey, five returned missionaries for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who served their missions in the Philippines. Although their missions may have been challenging at times, the life lessons that they learned and their new-found knowledge has made a major impact on their lives.
The Idea of Making a Video in Bisava is Born
The five young men served in the Philippines Cebu Mission where they learned to preach the gospel in Bisava, a dialect of Cebuano. The Filipino people that they interacted with were astonished that they had taken the time and effort to learn their language which was a rarity. This gave Mahaffey and Mingus, who were companions at one time during their mission, the idea about making a short, single video of them speaking Bisava. Later, at a mission conference, they presented the idea to Glines and Blount, who were also companions at the time, and Peck. They all agreed that it was a great idea, but with a year left on their missions, they decided to shelve the idea until a later time.
In 2014, after returning home from their missions, they decided to revisit the idea of creating a video in the Bisava language. The first video that they made was an introductory video where each of them took turns introducing themselves, and talking about their interests and hobbies. The entire video was in Bisava.
According to Blount, although that first video was not earth shattering by any means, it was well received and amassed hundreds of views, which encouraged them to create more comedic videos. Mahaffey commented on what made the video so successful:
It was so successful because they had never had entertainment in their own language. We were trying to put out good, wholesome, clean entertainment to help them, and once we started doing that, we got these messages saying, ‘Thank you so much for making us proud to be Bisaya people,’ and that is what kept us going. We want to make them as happy as they have made us.
The Hey Joe Show Comes to Life
Filipinos are well-known for referring to Americans as “Joe,” and everywhere they went while on their missions they would always be greeted with “Hey Joe!” So, they decided that their channel should be called Hey Joe Show. Peck further commented:
We really, really wanted to go back to see the people and really interact with them, not just through videos but person to person. There’s a big difference. Especially with the kinds of things we wanted to express with the Hey Joe Show, like our love for the country, our love for the people, all those things we really wanted to do in person.
Glines organized Hey Joe Show’s first tour, and in April 2015, the young men returned to the areas where they had previously served their missions and performed five live shows in five different cities. Prior to their first show neither of them really knew what to expect. They had set a goal of at least a couple hundred people showing up for the shows, with realistic expectations of maybe 25 people actually coming to the shows. Much to their amazement, an estimated 5,000 people were in the audience of their first show. Glines remarked, “It was exciting because we love the people so much and to know that we are now even more permanently tied to the country that we love and served with was so exciting.”
In addition to the live shows, the five returned missionaries spoke at firesides and had the opportunity to visit families they had taught and served with on their missions. Glines further commented, “The love is incredible, and I hope we can, by the end of our lives, explain or show the Filipinos how much we love them. The tour kind of did that, but I still don’t think they will ever know how much we love them.”
The Future and Hey Joe Show
Since creating their YouTube channel on 27 April 2014, the Hey Joe Show has garnered almost 60,000 subscribers and over 5 million views, with each video getting anywhere from 7,000-540,000 views, and more than 451,000 likes on Facebook. With the overwhelming success of the show, Tylan, Connor, Davis, Jake, and Sumner plan to continue making videos and hopefully do another tour next summer. Their ultimate goal is to collaborate with charities and schools in the Philippines and perpetually serve the people they love. Beyond the Hey Joe Show, the five Brigham Young University students have hopes for graduate school, marriage, families of their own, and promising careers.
Some friends recently had dinner with a sister missionary serving in Salt Lake City on temple square. She contacted an investigator in another country, commenced teaching the discussions, coordinated the hand-off to local members, and followed up after baptism all from the Internet. This man lived in a country not currently open to proselyting missionaries. With technology and the advancements on the Internet, missionaries are now teaching the gospel in literally every country on earth. As a result, more people are hearing the message and joining the Church.
Technology is a wonderful instrument, but not something everyone understands extremely well. But incredibly, computer software and the Internet are solving that problem, too.
Distributed software today is everywhere. It’s user friendly, powerful, efficient, and empowering. We take advantage of it without even realizing it. Ask a class room of children how many of them could program a website and expect a few youngsters to raise their hands. Likely most of them have a Facebook page, however, which means they’ve already done what was asked without evening realizing it. We take advantage of the new technology because it’s easier and more ubiquitous than ever before.
The Church of Jesus Christ and the Use of Technology
Such is the case for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as well. Technology has considerably changed the way we preach the gospel. That which was difficult and localized is easy and worldwide. Thousands of digital reproductions are completed and posted only moments after live delivery, including video, audio, and text versions, amassing the single largest database of religious information from living oracles on the planet. All these media are made available to the entire world in many different languages free of charge.
Another popular website, FamilySearch.org, provides access to the largest collection of genealogical and historical records in the world. Millions of people use FamilySearch records, resources, and services each year to learn more about their family history. Digital records from over 100 countries spanning hundreds of years are safely stored. Experts claim access to an estimated 3 Billion names from all over the world. Additionally, there are 4,745 family history centers worldwide, where personal help can be had and resources are again available to all without charge, including 24/7 telephone support, live chat, email support, and a massive database of training resources and online troubleshooting database. Recently, FamilySearch participants have been granted personal access to Ancestry.com, FindMyPast, and MyHeritage. All this is provided to participants at no cost.
FamilySearch International is the largest genealogy organization in the world. Millions of people use FamilySearch records, resources, and services to learn more about their family history. To help in this great pursuit, FamilySearch has been actively gathering, preserving, and sharing genealogical records worldwide for over 100 years. Patrons may access FamilySearch services and resources free online at FamilySearch.org or through over 4,600 family history centers in 132 countries, including the main Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.
According to FamilySearch, the site was launched 24 May 1999, and more than 3.5 billion names reside in searchable databases. Over 35 million historic records are published online each month. The resource boasts of 1,363 searchable historic record collections online and over 10 million visits per day by more than 85,000 visitors.
FamilySearch.org—Facts and Statistics
Launch Date
24 May 1999
Number of names in searchable databases
Over 3.5 billion
Number of historic records published online each month
Over 35 million
Number of digital images published online each month from original source documents
Over 33 million
Number of searchable historic record collections online
FamilySearch has 6.875 billion historic records on microfilm that are being digitized and eventually indexed. These records contain an estimated 20.6 billion names.
FamilySearch has over 200 digital record preservation camera teams in 45 countries who produce more than 100 million new digital images for free online publication each year.
The FamilySearch Indexing program is available in English, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, and Swedish with more language interfaces and international projects coming.
3. SOCIAL MEDIA
An estimated 80,000+ missionaries also use social media to preach the gospel all around the world. Facebook and Twitter are frequent sources of their message, but these sites are not the only social media regularly updated with Church content. Instagram was recently added to the list of social media used by the Church, which now includes at least the following media channels:
The enormous video project taken on by the Church depicting the life and ministry of the Savior, called The Life of Jesus Christ Bible Videos, combines technology, cinematic arts, and high-quality film making. Dozens of videos online portray significant events in the life of Jesus Christ. Users can sign-up to be notified as new videos become available. Internet technology was first offered to the general public in the last quarter century during the 1900s. The Church was right there using the Internet then and has improved right along with other advancements in this industry. The number of sites and Internet footprint was small then. But today, multiple sites, blogging, video, streaming and HD quality is common and abundant on all of its sites.
Hundreds more online videos, web links, and millions of impressions are made available through these media as they change the world as we know it, making wholesome and uplifting content available to users. Often embedded in the midst of the article or web page where the reference is used, video and audio are becoming prolific and common. This technology has made content more accessible and easier to use than ever before. But you don’t have to take my word for it. You can see, hear, and feel it for yourself.
5. WEBSITES
The Church maintains dozens of websites in many different languages, and new sites are added and updated regularly. A consistent login is made available between multiple websites with some of the most popular receiving millions of daily visitors.
A partial list of the Church-sponsored websites follows:
• lds.org (informational) available in 100 different languages (unofficial count)
And these items mentioned are only the beginning. To these media there are many more technologies to add, including at least the following: temples, schools, universities, missionary work, broadcasts, training, curriculum, genealogy updates, and much, much more.
6. LDSTOOLS
Provides church organization and membership contacts for local congregations from either a computer or the palm of your hand on a mobile device. In some cases it provides photographs and contact information. That content is left up to the local leaders and individual participants. Additional content is being added every day at a breakneck speed with no evidence of slowing in sight.
The Internet stretches beyond space and time to allow us to visit places and be involved in spreading the gospel message far-and-wide in a way we only dreamed about previously. Proximity is no longer a requirement to see and experience many locations all around the earth and enjoy the beauty this world and life have to offer.
Together these technologies allow the Church to share the gospel message to every corner of the earth, and people from all walks of life benefit.
The Use of Digital Devices in Missionary Work
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has released updated information about the growing number of missionaries and the expanded use of digital devices and online missionary work. According to the latest reports, nearly 86,000 missionaries are now serving in 406 missions around the world. With the change in age requirements for both young men and young women who wish to serve full-time missions, the number of missionaries will continue to increase, but is expected to peak at about 88,000 after this year. It is also anticipated that in the late fall, the number will begin to plateau and then decrease and stabilize around 77,000. All the while, Sister missionaries have become a vital part of the discussion in mission leadership councils.
Additionally, 6,500 missionaries in 30 missions in the United States and Japan have been pilot testing the use of digital tablets. This technology is now being extended to all missions in North America, Japan, and western Europe which will enable more than 32,000 missionaries in more than 162 missions to have mini iPads for their immediate use for studying and teaching the gospel. Missionaries will be asked to purchase these $400 devices which they can keep after their mission. Assistance will be provided to those who cannot otherwise afford to purchase the device. Approximately the same number of missionaries will become anxiously engaged in missionary work online through such social media venues as Facebook several hours a day.
Some people may consider members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to be a rather “peculiar” or strange people, not only because of some of their beliefs and practices, but because of their devotion to their faith. Devout Mormons, as they are often called, believe that their religion is more than just a Sunday religion. It is something that they uphold and practice every day of their life – at home, at school, in the market place, in the work place, or even in the public square. Wherever they may be, the doctrines and principles that they are taught are a guiding force in their personal life, as well as in their dealings with others.
Living the Life of a Latter-day Saint
Members of The Church of Jesus Christ live normal, busy lives like most other people. They go to work each day, go to school, attend college classes, do grocery shopping, and take care of their homes and families, as well as any other tasks that may be required. As such, each member of the Church gives of their time differently. Depending on life situations, some may be able to sacrifice more time than others. Nevertheless, by comparison there are few Christians who give of their time like Latter-day Saints.
Joseph Smith, the first Prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the “Mormon” Church by the media and others) in Lectures on Faith taught that “a religion that does not require the sacrifice of all things never has power sufficient to produce the faith necessary unto life and salvation.” Although members of the Church do not sacrifice everything that they have, most willingly give of their time each week to attend Church meetings, perform their Church callings, and participate in activities and service projects.
An Approximate Breakdown of Time Sacrificed
Exactly how much time an average Latter-day Saint sacrifices in performing church, family, and community service can only be approximated.
On a daily basis, the average Mormon may spend only a few minutes reading and studying the scriptures. A full-time missionary, however, spends up to 2 hours per day studying the scriptures.
During the week, some LDS youth attend early morning Seminary classes for one hour prior to the start of the regular school day. Other LDS youth, depending on their location, may have Seminary included as part of their school curriculum.
Sundays are divided into three one hour blocks of instruction to include Sacrament meeting, Sunday school, Relief Society for women, Priesthood for men, and Primary for the younger children. There are also other church meetings to attend depending on a person’s calling. It is not uncommon for Stake Presidents, Bishops, and auxiliary presidents to spend up to 20 hours or more in their church callings, whereas someone else in a different calling may spend less than an hour. The time that is spent in a particular calling includes, but is not limited to: leadership meetings and training, presidency meetings, interviews, lesson preparations, planning and attending activities.
• Young Women/Young Men activities: 1-2 hours at activities; more spent individually on Personal Progress and Duty to God requirements.
• Scouts: 1 hour per week at activities; more spent individually fulfilling requirements.
• Primary Activity Days: 1 hour
• Family Home Evening: 1-2 hours
• Date Night: 1-4 hours; many local church leaders have encouraged a weekly date night for married couples.
A report by Utah Valley 360 also outlines how Latter-day Saints may spend their time on a monthly, quarterly, and yearly basis:
Monthly/Quarterly
• Home Teaching/Visiting Teaching: 1-2 hours (depending on the number of families a person has been assigned)
• Weekday Relief Society Meetings: 1 hour
• Child of Record Baptisms: 2 hours
• Scout camp outs: 2 days
• Parent/Children interviews: 5 minutes to 2 hours
Twice Yearly/Yearly
• General Conference: 10 hours (four 2-hour General Sessions, one 2-hour Priesthood Session and one 2-hour Women’s Session) held in April and October of each year.
• Youth Conference: 1-2 days
• Girls Camp: 3-5 days
• Scout Camp: 3-6 days
• Pioneer Trek: 3-5 days
• Stake Conference: 2-6 hours (2-hour general session, 1-2 hour adult session, and other leadership training sessions.
Latter-day Saints also give of their time to attend the temple which could constitute two to three hours per endowment session. The amount of time spent in the temple during each subsequent visit will depend on such factors as travel times, wait times, and what ordinances a person is planning to perform during their visit. Temple ordinance workers serve approximately 6 hours per week for several months or maybe even years.
Latter-day Saints are also service minded people, and could spend anywhere from an hour to 20 hours or more in providing meals for those in need, helping families to move, cleaning church buildings, and assisting in humanitarian efforts.
They also spend a considerable amount of time doing genealogy work. Some may spend only a few minutes each week doing family history research, and others may spend several hours per week depending on their schedules.
As there are no paid ministers in the Church, members are called on from time to time to give a talk/message to the congregation during Sacrament meeting, or other church meetings such as ward and stake conferences. Some members are also called upon to teach various classes. And so, preparation time must also be calculated into the equation.
Missionary service is another major part of the Church with males starting at the age of 18 serving full-time for two years, and females starting at age 19 serving for 18 months. A retired couple may serve a mission for a period as short as 6 months or as long as 2 years. Missionary Presidents and their wives serve for 3 years, and Church-service missionaries usually serve approximately 8 hours per week for 6 months to 2 years.
Latter-day Saints are Willing Servants
Members of The Church of Jesus Christ sacrifice their time in many ways, not out of obligation, but because they believe that when they are in the service of their fellowman, they are in the service of God. Elder Dallin H. Oaks has said, “Our lives of service and sacrifice are the most appropriate expressions of our commitment to serve the Master and our fellowmen.”
Elaine Bradley is the drummer and backup vocalist for the Provo, Utah, based rock band Neon Trees. The band released Habits, its first full length album in 2010, and since then, their first single “Animal” has reached #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on the Alternative Rock Chart. The band released a second album in 2012, and have publicized that a new album will be released on 22 April 2014. The album is called “Pop Psychology.” The band has also planned a tour of Europe and North America, with the tour ending in Salt Lake City, Utah on 16 June 2014.
An Early Love for Music
Elaine says that she has always been a performer. One of the things that she enjoyed doing when she was a little girl was making tapes and pretend to be a radio DJ complete with songs, stories, and commercials. She is the youngest of seven kids and grew up with older siblings playing music constantly. She recalls being exposed to the music of Led-Zeppelin and Depeche Mode at a very early age. She recalls that she and her siblings enjoyed singing together, and they often sang Depeche Mode harmonies while doing the dishes. She further recalls that one of her earliest musical memories was from kindergarten, sitting on the bus, staring out the window and singing “You’re The Inspiration” by Chicago to herself. When she was 7 years old, an older brother gave her a tape of Led Zeppelin which she listened to over and over again.
She actually became interested in playing the drums around the age of 5, and her parents bought her first real drum set for her thirteenth birthday. She recalls:
I became enthralled with the drums at an early age. I think I was about five when I started banging on pots and pans with wooden spoons. I would ask my parents for drums frequently, but they thought it was a phase that would pass. After several years, and tireless begging, they bought me a Sears’s drum set. It was a bass, snare, floor tom, hi-hat and crash (tiny splash cymbal mounted on the bass drum). I thought it was the coolest thing ever! Frankly, I wasn’t very good, but I played it all the time. Within a year, that little set was destroyed. Then my parents bought me my first real set—a black Tama Rock star with Paiste cymbals. [1]
During her freshman year in high school, she formed a band with some of her friends and she played the drums and sang “until we could find a drummer.” Eventually a drummer was found, and Elaine moved to playing the guitar. She states,
It was during this time period of not playing the drums that I became better at them. That may sound weird, but it’s true. I would listen to and watch our drummer, and then I would air drum to everything in the car or at home. I learned to think of drumming in a way I hadn’t before—as an equal instrument, capable of evoking feeling just like bass and guitar. [1]
Mormonism and the Pursuit of a Musical Career
In a 2011 interview with The Mormon Women Project, Bradley spoke about her childhood and admitted that although she grew up a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, there were many years when she rebelled against the teachings of the Church. She became more fascinated with attaining worldly riches through a career in music, and eventually became involved with drugs. She stated, “I went down the wrong path and stopped thinking about God and the church because I knew that if I did, it would mean something, and I would have to change something,” [2] Concerning her youth and being a member of the Church, she has commented:
Growing up, I never liked being Mormon. I remember sitting in Primary and thinking, “I wish I didn’t know this. Why was I born into this family? My friends are so much luckier than I am because they don’t have all of these weird rules.” I was a rebellious kid. I remember singing “I Hope They Call Me on a Mission” and thinking it was really preposterous because I didn’t want to be called on a mission. That said, I think I felt that way because I knew that the gospel was true. There was this nagging feeling that it was true mixed with my desire for worldly fame and fortune. Growing up, I felt within me this collision of two distinct worlds. I didn’t really make peace with that tension until I was 21 and maybe even to a certain extent until recently.
I remember having a conversation with my mom in high school. We were driving in the car, and she said to me, “I know you want to be a rock star but what if Heavenly Father were to say that’s not what He wants for you?” I told her point blank that I wouldn’t listen. I wasn’t willing. I had the erroneous thought that Heavenly Father did not want me to be happy. Whatever I wanted, He would tell me to do something else just to spite me. Somehow I got the impression that Heavenly Father was laughing at me from heaven. So in response to that fear, I just ignored Him. I always knew that God was there. The gospel made sense to me and spoke to me on a certain level but at the same time it made me angry. I wanted to be ignorant. During high school one of my biggest complaints was that people in the church were not cool. It was very disappointing for me that most of my friends were outside of the church, and most of the people in the church were people I didn’t want to hang out with. Of course, this complaint was just a cover for my fears about God judging me. In general, it was a really difficult time. [3]
It wasn’t until she was 21 years of age and had a discussion about religion with her boyfriend who was a Christian that Bradley finally realized the importance of having a relationship with God. In her recently released “I’m a Mormon” video she explains:
I remember I started researching what the Bible was all about, just very fundamental topics. And so I remember being so surprised and excited that there was this Jesus Christ who was my Savior. So that created the natural desire for me to want to stop drinking. There was never a moment where it was like, ‘This is the last time.’ It just kind of stopped. [2]
Bradley later served an LDS mission to Frankfurt, Germany. Today she continues to live according to the teachings and the standards of The Church of Jesus Christ. As a band, the members of Neon Trees have agreed to refrain from drugs and alcohol. “I really try to include God in my decisions about music and the band. I ask him to open doors or close doors as necessary. I kind of keep an open heart about it, “she said. [2] In the video she also stated, “I find that I feel so much better, and so much more myself, when I follow the teachings of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints than I ever did when I didn’t care about what they were.” [2]
Each week hundreds of families around the world take their sons and daughters to Missionary Training Centers (MTCs) and bid them farewell for 18 to 24 months. The MTC is where their sons and daughters embark on the beginning of their journey as a full-time missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Once they enter the MTC, they are expected to devote all of their time and attention to preparing to teach others about Jesus Christ. Some will remain at the MTC for as short a period as two weeks, whereas those who are learning a foreign language will remain at the MTC for nine weeks, before departing to their assigned mission.
How does the Church teach foreign languages with great effectiveness in short periods of time? A June 2014 National Public Radio (NPR) report shares this insight: “They accomplish it through intense classroom instruction from teachers who are former missionaries, daily practice in realistic teaching situations, and learning by and following the Holy Spirit. As one missionary tells NPR, “Everything we do is trying to learn by and with the Spirit.””
