New item with service missions

[rongo]

My son's roommate is going to do a service mission. He's able to do a traditional mission, but he and his girlfriend (from the student wards) are going to get married and move into another apartment in the same complex while he completes his service mission. This is good for our family, because our other son will take his place in my oldest son's lease.

This is, of course, very new --- that young missionaries can serve while being married (they are going to be sealed during his service, so he will start his service mission first). His fiance already served her mission. They are choosing this service mission route specifically so they can get married and he can serve a mission.

I guess it's similar to a couples mission --- just several decades earlier than normal.

Edited June 19, 2022 by rongo

[MustardSeed]

Seriously? Wow,  that seems pretty significant. 
 

I love love love the idea of service missions. 

[Calm]

48 minutes ago, MustardSeed said:

Wow,  that seems pretty significant. 

Major even.  I like the idea.

[sunstoned]

They now have a married (young) missionaries option?  I feel cheated. 

[rongo]

2 hours ago, sunstoned said:

They now have a married (young) missionaries option?  I feel cheated. 

Well, there are big differences logistically between service missionaries and proselyting missionaries. They normally live at home, they don't have companions they have to be with, their hours and demands are different. I know some whose Facebooks show them at every new release movie.  So, service missions accommodate marriage a lot more than proselyting missions. 

I also don't think this is widespread, or well-publicized (i.e., I don't think the Church is going out of its way to publicize it as an available option). My son says it's part of a pilot program (per his roommate). We just know that it's been stressful getting the roommate out, because he had wanted to stay indefinitely beyond his lease or even couch-surf, but our younger son and another boy needed to know they have  apartment spots nailed down (a different roommate just moved out). He was going to move back in with family in the Phoenix area pending his mission, and now the change of plans involving renting another apartment in the complex. He doesn't know what his assignment will entail --- and unless his and his fiance's families are loaded, both of them will probably have to work while he does his service assignment to afford the rent. 

Edited June 19, 2022 by rongo

[Rain]

It's that last line that you just said that made me wonder about it.  I know part of my nephews mission was working at DI.  I'm not sure how it worked, but there was something about requiring him to work enough to live on his own (with roommates).  So it seemed like a dual mission with him helping others through DI, but helping him be on his own.  

But there was a lot of touch and go with him being able to make it because of his condition and I don't see a brand new marriage working well with that so it will be interesting to see how the financial part works with this.

[Danzo]

Me and my wife (both returned proselytizing missionaries) were called as service missionaries shortly after marriage about twenty years ago when we were about to have our first child.

[rongo]

5 minutes ago, Danzo said:

Me and my wife (both returned proselytizing missionaries) were called as service missionaries shortly after marriage about twenty years ago when we were about to have our first child.

The difference here is that the situations are very different. He is not being called to a service mission after his proselyting mission; this is his first mission. He will be getting married during his mission, and they will be living in his same student ward complex. 

I asked my son more about this this morning. He (the roommate) insists that it isn't a service mission, it's a "consecrated stake mission" (per the stake president, per the roommate). So maybe this isn't even a formal service mission,maybe it's more of a "gentleman's agreement" to encourage some sort of service and marriage (instead of putting in mission papers)? 

That would actually make more sense to me than Salt Lake encouraging marriage while in the midst of a service mission. I found that thought very surprising. I think Salt Lake would recommend honorable release in order to be sealed instead. 

It sounds to me like it's just a stake assignment because the stake president is encouraging them to get married.