Does anyone know the official reason the church gives for the difference in age that young men and women are sent out as missionaries? Is it just another way to send the message that women inferior to men?

Before it was because the first responsibility of women was to get married and become mothers. So they wanted them to wait until they were old maids, by church standards = 21 to maximize their marriage opportunities and take advantage of being young and bangable.. Also, the age difference was thought by the old farts in the COB to cut down on the fooling around between elders and sisters trapped miles from home in a foreign country. In their opinions, what 19 year old elder would ever be attracted to an old hag sister of 21? I'm very glad my husband, who is two years younger than me, didn't feel that way.

Nowadays, I have no explanation for the age difference. One year isn't that much of a difference - especially when there is going to be time in the mission where half the elders and half the sisters are all 19. They can't possibly expect the sisters to marry at 18 in order to escape missionary work.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/15/2014 12:48PM by CA girl.

They always just say "it works better that way" with out further explaination. I think it is to discourage women from going (especially when it was age 21). Most women have their lives going and don't want to go at that age.

Some countries didn't consider women adults until 21. That is what I heard back in the late 80's

Elder Holland said the reasoning for the age difference between
Elder and Sister missionaries is due to their "observations that
missions go better when women are older than the men"


so any questions? it is an inspired decision. I wonder what observations he is talking about.

The difference in ages is probably to lessen the chance that a young couple of 18 goes through the temple experience at the same time, right before the mission, and says to each other "This is a cult. Let's go get married instead." Staggering the times that men and women go through the temple gives time for it to sink in and solidify for the men first, before the women go through. Then the men persuade the women that it's all ok, because they've had time to get over the shock.

Making the women go one year later is now putting them at a significant disadvantage compared to men, assuming they want to go at all. They have a wasted year where they either do nothing for their education before the mission, or do one year of college and forget it all after two years. The men have it much more convenient with this setup, except for the fact that the men get all the pressure to go in the first place.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/15/2014 09:20PM by raiku.

Come on, everyone knows that in general, 18 year old boys...er ...men are MUCH more mature than women of the same age!


Now move along folks. There's nothing sexist to see here...