Around the web this week for stories of interest to future missionaries, missionary moms, returned missionaries, member missionaries, and missionaries of every sort and variety.
- Associated Press “22 Mormon Missionaries Pulled from Ukraine”– After its missionaries out of the Crimean region, the Church has decided to further protect the missionaries by delaying missionaries leaving for Ukraine and taking out all those near where the recent tensions are occurring. “
- Catherine Reese Newton “LDS leader tells Mormons to embrace their history, keep their faith”– President Uchtdorf makes it clear that all of Church History can help grow testimonies and increase faith. “‘There will be times when it may appear that things are going badly for the truth of God, that the evidence of the world contradicts God’s utterances,’ Dieter F. Uchtdorf, second counselor to church President Thomas S. Monson, told the audience in Salt Lake City’s Conference Center Theater. ‘For my part, I have learned to be patient, knowing that, in the end, things will work out.'”
- Janet Peterson “LDS Charities: ‘How Can We Not? These Are Our Brothers and Sisters'”– The humanitarian work of the Church is bringing attention to the Church all over the world. “In a historic first, the work of LDS Charities was featured at the United Nations headquarters in New York City on Feb. 27, 2014. Titled ‘Discovering Mormonism and Its Role in Humanitarian Assistance.’”
- Huffington Post “Mormon Church Building Deconstructed and Donated Entirely to Habitat for Humanity“ – What is one way to spread the message of God’s love while helping your community? The church recently donated an entire building to help the American Cancer Society Hope Lodge. “The Mormon church donated the land and the building to the American Cancer Society in 2011, and the Cancer Society has found a way to positively impact even more individuals by donating harvested building materials to Habitat for Humanity.”
- Genelle Pugmire “LDS anti-bullying video going viral” – A group of teenagers in Provo are taking President Uchtdorf’s conference talk seriously. They star in an anti-bullying Mormon Messages video that is beginning to go viral. “According to Church Public Affairs, ‘Mormon Messages producers originally planned for the film to be part of a youth video series, but they realized President Uchtdorf’s profound message would resonate with people of all faiths. Producers also wanted to address growing concerns over online behavior and the issue of cyberbullying.'”
- Virginia Postrel “Cutting-Edge Feminists of Latter-day Saints” – Bloomberg News Services came out with a story that shows how Mormon Feminism may help attract new members. “Younger members take personal and professional equality for granted and see the church’s distinctive attitudes toward family life as a positive attribute. . . . ‘By instead stressing the importance of parenting, family, devoted motherhood,’ [Carrie A. Miles] writes, ‘and by praising women and their innate virtues and strengths, the Church has found a way to turn its difference with society into an appealing feature.”