Why Do Mormon Missionaries Do What They Do?

Why Do Mormon Missionaries Do What They Do?

Wednesday, 5 August, 2010

MANUKAU, New Zealand—Nineteen year old Ross Pokere II is beaming with anticipation of the opening of the new Missionary Training Center in Manukau City.  He will be among the first intake, on 2 September, of new missionaries being trained for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints – frequently called Mormons.  Ross will be entering the Missionary Training Center with Huri Parata, a friend from Wellington.  Ross and Huri are planning to set the standard high for later intakes, and they are committed to give their all towards this goal.

Ross is a resident of Manukau and is second of six children.  His older brother, Warren, is currently serving a Mormon mission in Oakland, California.  Before departing to a training center, missionaries receive a letter of assignment from the president of the Church in Salt Lake City telling them where they will serve for two years (for young men) or 18 months (for young women).  Ross received his letter on 13 April assigning him to the Adelaide, Australia Mission.

The Church’s new Missionary Training Center in Manukau is the newest of 15 training centres worldwide.  It replaces the Missionary Training Center in Hamilton which is closing.  Every week, close to 500 young men and women between the ages of 19 and 25 from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints leave families, friends, school and careers and travel to one of 15 missionary training centers (sometimes referred to as MTCs) around the globe.  In its initial operations, the Manukau MTC will house 60 to 70 missionaries and will graduate 30 missionaries per month.

About 80 percent of missionaries are trained at the Church's largest training center in Provo, Utah. It is home to an average of 2,700 missionaries at a time or 24,000 over the course of a year.

At training centers, missionaries receive religious instruction and language training and learn teaching skills. They also develop a respect and cultural understanding for the areas and countries where they will serve before traveling to destinations in more than 120 countries. Training lasts from three weeks to three months, depending on language needs.

After his mission, Ross hopes to attend Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah.  He is a skilled rugby player and will apply for a rugby scholarship.  His Missionary Training Center experience and the ensuing mission experience will provide him with leadership and organizational skills that will supercharge his education and his career.

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