Missionary Tags

Given the churchwide changes to the stake mission in 2002, an entire section of the 1998 Church Handbook of Instructions was out of date. As such, the Church has issued an insert to replace the section on stake and ward missionary work.

The following two things stuck out:

1. Ward missionaries are not required to work a specific amount of time per week


2. Ward missionaries are not required to wear name tags

When I was a ward mission leader, I was expected to put in 10 hours of missionary work per week and I was to wear my name tag. The thing that really got me was the name tag.

You see, we did not have a vehicle, so we walked to church. My daughter, my wife and me all dressed up in my suit and missionary tag. I always wondered what persons were thinking who passed by us and saw a clean cut, young man in a dark suit and a missionary name tag walking with a beautiful woman and a baby girl.