Missionary's arrest sparks discussion, fear


pushka
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Let's drill down a little bit:

- Doesn't the missionary application ask about citizenship? (I would think that it would.)

- If so, where does the sin fall if the application is completed incorrectly?

- Or, is it that provisions weren't made to have a religious visa?

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Let's drill down a little bit:

- Doesn't the missionary application ask about citizenship? (I would think that it would.)

?

I honestly can't recall. However there are places where one can put concerns and notes to be considered outside of the standard questions. So if I was worried that while I took and learned German in school I'm not sure I could handle learning any other non-English languages and would really, really not like to have to do so I could put that down. If I couldn't I could mention it to my Bishop and he could pass the word. Or if I was worried about being deported and wanted to stay in the US I could put down I don't want to serve anywhere but in the US.

For instance, I put down that I was sun sensitive. I went to the Spokane Mission and ended up having to wear a hat in the summer anyway, if I'd been sent to Ghana or something who knows what would have happened. :eek:

Edited by Dravin
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Or maybe you should take off your black-colored glasses and take some of your own medicine? There is only one side of the story presented thus far- currently, it is impossible to examine both sides.

I dunno... I think demonstrably proving a bias in a news source is plenty reason to hold off from accepting all of the 'facts' presented in said new source until more information is revealed.

Traveler, in his explanation of the precedence of illegal immigration cases, has a very good point. I'd like to see more information about this before coming to a final decision.

Hordak, YellowLight and Moksha, thanks for answering to Faded's post..you covered what I would have tried to say.

Maxel, it's a pity that there is currently only the 1 side of the story being told, however it does look as if the church leaders have had knowledge of the status of these particular missionaries, in view of how the article mentions the evolving chuch policy on undocumented members, and the comments made by Jeffrey Holland. Whichever way you look at this, the church leaders are at least turning a blind eye to the Missionaries' status, and at most helping them to break the law, it doesn't look very good either way to me.

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Let's drill down a little bit:

- Doesn't the missionary application ask about citizenship? (I would think that it would)

I'm not sure, but it wouldn't surprise me if it did not ask that.

- If so, where does the sin fall if the application is completed incorrectly?

- Or, is it that provisions weren't made to have a religious visa?

I'm not an expert on this, so don't take this as gospel, but it is my understanding of the situation.

I don't believe any country has a 'religious missionary' visa. I believe most of the time missionaries are issued tourist visas, which typically would be for 6 months at the longest, after which they are required to apply for an extension or another visa. In some cases the country makes the person leave and then reapply for a new tourist visa to re-enter. Sometimes it may take months for a visa to be approved, if ever, which would be one reason why it would be encouraged for a missionary to just lay low and not renew a visa application once in a country.

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Maxel, it's a pity that there is currently only the 1 side of the story being told, however it does look as if the church leaders have had knowledge of the status of these particular missionaries, in view of how the article mentions the evolving chuch policy on undocumented members, and the comments made by Jeffrey Holland.

And the real question is: are they doing anything wrong by that? This exact thing was made legal. I stand by the idea that we need more information before anyone can come to a wholly informed decision.

Whichever way you look at this, the church leaders are at least turning a blind eye to the Missionaries' status, and at most helping them to break the law, it doesn't look very good either way to me.

No law is being broken. It does look bad- then again, the Church's history is full of things that look bad at first glance, but when more information is revealed the controversy disappears. This is either one of those times, or a time that tests the faith of the Saints in one way or the other.
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Why is it that anything that contradicts people's perfect view of the church immediately gets labeled as anti-mormon? Take off your rose colored glasses and see things from an outside perspective and you may see both sides of the picture. I am saying, examine both sides before jumping to conclusions.

The media in general has made it standard practice to put a negative slant on all things "Mormon" in their reporting. To be fair, that is the case with all religion these days. But my point is valid. The writer of this article in the Salt Lake Tribune certainly seems to be excited about 'having caught the Mormons breaking the law.' The tone of the article lines up with that assessment.

And you will note that I did not make ANY conclusions. I did not say it was all a lie and all made up. I am saying that I think there is substantial bias in the reporting.

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And you will note that I did not make ANY conclusions. I did not say it was all a lie and all made up. I am saying that I think there is substantial bias in the reporting.

Would there also be bias in failing to report the story, like the Tribune's less read competitor?

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