Thirty days after returning home from her mission in Berlin, Germany, Katelyn Duncan was engaged.
In LDS culture, being engaged that quickly is not uncommon. But what makes Katelyn’s story unusual is that she is engaged to her former district leader who she met on her mission in Berlin.
It’s been two years since the historic announcement lowering the age requirement for LDS young men and women to serve missions. While that announcement has helped the Church hasten the work, some unplanned outcomes may also be beginning to emerge as the first wave of “age-change” missionaries begin arriving home and prepare for marriage.
Author’s Note: The other day I saw this picture pop up on one of my returned missionary Facebook groups.
I’ve seen it shared a few times since then with people citing Elder D. Ronald Scharf and saying the General Authorities support missionaries marrying those they served with on their missions. I wanted to know the context of this quote and correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m pretty sure there is no Elder D. Ronald Scharf.
Should couples feel the need to justify meeting on the mission? Below I share the stories of some couples I know who met on their missions. Should meeting on the mission be taboo?
The math is pretty simple. Not only are the Elders and Sisters now closer in age, but also there are also more sisters than ever before. According to an article on the Church’s newsroom website, in the first year after the announcement lowering the ages for men and women to 18 and 19, respectively, the ratio of Elders to Sisters jumped from 6:1 to 3:1.
With those kind of numbers it probably shouldn’t be surprising that more and more couples are finding their ‘beginnings’ in the mission field, but the question is, is it right?
