Missions & Miscarriages??

[isabellateale]

Hey everyone! So.. There is young man in my ward who is a recent convert. He has a strong desire to serve a mission but is unsure whether or not he is able to. A year or two before he discovered the Gospel, his girlfriend at the time discovered she was pregnant, which later resulted in a miscarriage. I've never come across anybody in this specific situation so when he confided in me, I didn't really have any answer for him. I encouraged him to seek counsel from his Bishop, which he will be doing this coming Sunday. Just out of my curiousity though, I've been trying to find some answers on church websites & I've asked other member's for their opinions but I can't seem to find any information that is supported by Gospel doctrine or resources. So I would love to hear from you all about your opinions or any similar experiences! Also would it be the same outcome for a young woman in that position? Thanks heaps in advance!

[skippy740]

A miscarriage is not an abortion.

Worthiness is determined by Bishops and Stake Presidents and to be aligned with the current missionary service standards.

[MarginOfError]

Having living children will usually preclude one from serving a mission. Prior pregnancies are not an exclusion criterion for missionary service. If memory serves me correctly, not even a prior abortion would necessarily preclude one from missionary service (though this may be treated differently between converts and life long members). Ultimately, the bishop and stake president will make a judgment to the worthiness of the person applying. The Missionary Department will usually accept anyone who receives their recommendation.

[Blackmarch]

Hey everyone! So.. There is young man in my ward who is a recent convert. He has a strong desire to serve a mission but is unsure whether or not he is able to. A year or two before he discovered the Gospel, his girlfriend at the time discovered she was pregnant, which later resulted in a miscarriage. I've never come across anybody in this specific situation so when he confided in me, I didn't really have any answer for him. I encouraged him to seek counsel from his Bishop, which he will be doing this coming Sunday. Just out of my curiousity though, I've been trying to find some answers on church websites & I've asked other member's for their opinions but I can't seem to find any information that is supported by Gospel doctrine or resources. So I would love to hear from you all about your opinions or any similar experiences! Also would it be the same outcome for a young woman in that position? Thanks heaps in advance!

The bishop and/or the stake president would best answer this... However I can't seem to see anything that conflicts with doctrine if he is honestly doing his best to be humble and obedient to the Lord, if he was worthy to be baptized and hasn't fallen away since then into sin then I don't see any reason why he couldn't go on a mission.

Perhaps there might be something with there being an entity that could take legal action against him might influence where he is sent but other than that I have no ideas.