There is a difference between Mormon missionaries and traditional Christian missionaries. As a former Mormon, understanding these differences will help make sense of your experience at the new church you might attend.
The Differences Between Mormon and Christian Missionaries.
Mormons and Christians use the word “missionary” in somewhat different ways. For Mormons, the word implies the idea of traveling to a specific place for a specific, relatively short, amount of time. A “mission” is a term a person serves. For example, female LDS missionaries must be at least 19 years old and serve for a year and a half. Young LDS men must be at least 18, and serve a 2-year term. Older, retired couples may serve for one to three years. For this term, a missionary is removed from ordinary life and placed elsewhere, in a rigidly controlled, fairly artificial environment. It is essentially an interruption from a person’s normal day-to-day life, family, and friends. Once a person has completed their mission term, he or she returns to ordinary life and typically never does it again.
For traditional Christians, missionary work is more of a vocation. It is a choice and a sacrifice. It may be a life-long calling. It will be lived out as an aspect of ordinary life, like going to work every day. A missionary will relocate to a new community, but may live there for years. He or she will continue to have relationships with family and friends and will set boundaries within their vocation to make time for relationships, hobbies, church life, and personal spiritual growth.
LDS Missions Are Structured, but Christian Missions Have Many Options.
The LDS mission is structured and rigid. Missionaries live by a handbook. Their routine is defined for them: when to wake up, when to go to bed, and when to do laundry. It is very controlled. LDS missionaries always have someone with them for accountability. It is seen as a time of service, but the best service work done might be the few hours a week spent on volunteering to serve the elderly or disabled. Because a Mormon mission is not very much like real life, but is an extremely artificial environment, the only times that some Mormons feel authentic in their service to the Lord are on these volunteer days.
As a Christian, serving is an integrated part of life. A Christian missionary does not change his or her persona and go live in a boot camp environment. However, he or she is usually endorsed by a mission sending agency, which gives accountability and a framework, so they are representing this agency and especially Jesus with their whole life. As a Christian missionary, this calling encompasses a person’s entire life. It is who they are.
Mormon and Christian Missions Vary in Funding.
Most LDS missionaries either earn the money to go on a mission themselves, or rely on their family’s resources to support them. By contrast, Christian missionaries are expected to find individuals or churches who value what you are doing and ask them for support. Finding these people involves approaching others and making them aware of the work God has called you to do. This results in a network of partnerships for accountability and support.
Partners provide prayer and financial support. Usually, they send their donations to an established mission agency, which then pays the missionary’s salary. As a long-term vocation and way of life, it would be extremely hard to fund this calling by saving one’s own money or relying on one’s family resources. A missionary needs the financial partnership of people who believe in and care about them. When Christians understand how these ministries work, they might set aside money not only for a tithe to their local church, but also to support missionaries.
As you transition out of Mormonism, it helps to understand that the Christian definition of “missionary” is very different from the Mormon definition. Mormon missionaries take several months out of their lives to serve, but for Christian missionaries, their entire life is spent serving the Lord.
