Mormon Missionaries: Young Men who Knock Doors, Rike Bikes, Are "Different", and Serve in Faraway Lands

Mormon Missionaries are very popular in the media today. In fact, in the past 2 years, Mormon Missionaries have been all over the media scene. Below are a few examples of how I believe the media and the United States perceive this "peculiar" social group.

First, I believe the single story that these artifacts tell about Mormon Missionaries is that the media and the world perceive that they are clean-cut young men who ride bikes, look happy, try to teach people about Jesus Christ and are sometimes different or weird. Next to each artifact, I will try to explain how the picture or video helps prove and represent the story that is being told about them. 

 

This appeared on the cover of Newsweek magazine and has Mitt Romney's face on the body of a Mormon missionary. I feel this artifact is telling 2 stories. First, all Mormon men have been or will have to be missionaries. People believe that they are "required" to go on a mission. Second, the positive message comes from the caption, "How the Outsider Faith Creates Winners." By associating Mitt Romney with missionaries and Mormons, this article shows that not all Mormons are unknown people living in Utah.

The second artifact are these 2 pictures and video/song from the "Book of Mormon" musical that shows that missionaries serve with 2 people and are almost always in faraway lands meeting crazy people. This also further stereotypes missionaries as clean-cut young men who match and sometimes look a little scared and innocent. They are very excited as depicted in the picture below and are always carrying Books of Mormon. In the video, they are shown to believe their religion fully and it again furthers the stereotype that missionaries are innocent and naïve, but that they want to share their religion with everyone because they believe it is the one true religion.

 

 

 
 

The next two artifacts are an ABC Nightline report on Mormon missionaries and an online article picture where the story talked about Mormon Missionaries and what they do and who they are. The video/picture serve the purpose of telling the world that missionaries ride bikes, knock on doors, work in pairs, and believe they are trying to help people. The video and picture also work together to show that missionaries are in Louisiana as well as overseas.

 

This final artifact is a movie poster for a new movie coming out depicting two Mormon Missionaries who are in Russia and were kidnapped. In the news, it has been reported that 12 missionaries have died this year. This poster reinforces the notion that missions can be dangerous and that these young men don't always have it easy.


 The last 3 artifacts conflict the message that is being sent out in the previous artifacts by showing what the more real-life scenarios and what missionary work is really like. However, the above artifacts is more accurate of how the United States and the world perceives Mormon missionaries. It matters that these messages are sent because people believe the stereotype that is seen, whether it be accurate or not.

The single story about Mormon missionaries being presented as naïve, innocent, clean cut young men who are trying to convince everyone that Mormonism is right is very limiting. It plays right into the stereos that have been around for as long as Missionaries have been around. The way missionaries are presented in the "Book of Mormon Musical" is exactly how the media and the rest of the world views Missionaries. They are seen as solicitous, naïve teenagers who are trying to make you change your religion. The social implications of this message for this group is that it makes missionary work much harder for the missionaries. Everyone they talk to has a perception/opinion already made about them. They are seen as not very experienced in worldly things, with not much exposure to "real life." They are also already viewed as people who will try to change your beliefs in God, which many people resent.

In conclusion, there are some positive aspects of the media covering Mormon missionaries out there, that adequately describe who they are, what they do and why. However, the media has helped fuel the story/perception that Mormon missionaries are young men obligated to go on a mission for their church to convince others that the Book of Mormon and LDS religion is true and that they will do so by knocking on your doors. The perception is that they are young, happy and sometimes clueless, as shown in the "Book of Mormon" musical. Ultimately, I feel that the artifacts I have chosen accurately represent the ratio of accurate and not-so-accurate information out there. Even though the media isn't entirely accurate in its perception of Mormon missionaries, I believe the artifacts above prove and show the story that is being told about Mormon missionaries in society today.