When I was on my mission in Australia in 1983 - 85 we had an incredible number of Vietnamese in Cambodian members on the rolls but none of whom showed up to church. It was my turn to find out why. Melbourne Australia is a large Melting Pot of the whole South Pacific and Asia, at least it was back in the 1980s. It probably still is.
When we yracked them down, they were very polite but could barely speak any English, or pretended not to. We finally convinced a,young Vietnamese man to come to church. In Sunday School he explained why the big gap between SE Asian Mormons and he is the only one to come to church.
He told me that when they saw big Americans in suits knock on their door, they figure the CIA finally caught up with them. The missionaries knew this trick they would use to get numbers.
Because they didnt speak English they'd hold up a napkin and light it on fire and pantomime, "You! if you dont cone with us to church and get baptized!" So they went and got baptized, believing these crazy Americans would literally burn them if they didn't. And many of these same people had seen crazy Americans do just that to their friends and family back in Vietnam and Cambodia
I was in tears by the end of his story, My God haven't these people suffered enough? I appologized profusely and promised him Id never treat a fellow human being like that. Ibtold him to tellanybody he knew who was treated this way to get ahold of me and I would assure them that they had nithing to fear.
Then I got pissed. I decided to investigate this bullshit!
I started interrogating my fellow CULT Brainwashers. They admitted to resorting to such tactics in order to satisfy their MOs insatiable demand for baptisms. He didnt care about teaching he just had to get numbers!
Aussies are not stupid and they are not falling for Joseph's Myth, never were, never are. Most Aussies think Americans are a,bunch of blowhard assholes and my fellow CULT braunwashers were doing everything in their power to reinforce that stereotype. So they preyed upon the most vulnerable War Refugees, survivors of the Killing Fields. And they knew it. Heartless bastards.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/13/2016 12:28AM by koriwhore.

Hi Koriwhore

Although I'm a Melbournian I hadn't heard about that but then I really don't recall any Vietnamese visiting Blackburn Ward. Nowadays Richmond and Springvale are the hubs for many things Vietnamese. Closer to home I'd go to Box Hill if I was in need of a vietnamese dish. My final year in high school was about 1/3 vietnamese and all but one of them had been boat people. I could imagine that some would seem intimidated by suits.

Did you ever do time in the eastern suburbs? Who knows, maybe we met as I got home from Utah SLC North in late 84 so saw missionaries quite a bit until I weaned myself off the mission feeling.

Church is slowly retracting here. My old ward is gone and I know of a number of the old stalwarts that dropped out (some with a bang and others quietly)

Wow, small world Maxxedout. I served in the Blackburn Ward. Actually my companion married the Bishop's daughter and moved the whole fam damily back to UT, where they still live.
My daughter wants to emmigrate to Oz if America makes a certain fascist President. I told her I'd go with her. Lol. Love the country and Aussies, just a little guilty i foisted such bs on them.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/13/2016 01:05AM by koriwhore.

I know of whom you speak - Elder's initials were DW and his wife MW. I believe the ex bishop and his wife moved back to OZ. He was with CES both here and there (USA) but with declining health is now back under care in Tasmania I think. All the family bar one managed to get over to the USA on the strength of that union. I thought DW was pretty good guy but then I only ever saw him as a missionary.

I visited my old mission in late 1987 and he and and his wife kindly let me bunk down for the night as the plane landed late in SLC and it was a long drive out to Rawlins Wyoming (based there for 9months on mission).

Wow. I trained that guy and I was always catching him alone in a back room with his future wife.
Good times.
I had so many missionaries go AWOL on me and end up hooking up with the local Mormon hotties.

I served in Melbourne in the 90's. I don't recall many Vietnamese members at all. They were trying to grow the Chinese branches by them.

I believe the Vietnamese baptisms back in the 80's would be similar to the refugee baptisms in Europe now. Using any tactic to get the dunking goals met.

Hi Blakballoon

We had tongan, samoan and spanish branches in Melbourne and the chinese ward met in the Caulfield chapel IIRC. Doncaster Ward had many chinese. It's been so long since I attended church so I don't know if the chinese ward was closed down and people returned to their home ward (Box Hill and Templestowe have many chinese living there) or what the situation was.

I'm just stunned. A lower low than even the baseball baptism approach.

I have way too many morals to be a good Mormon. I could never treat another person like that, especially just to appease LDS leaders.

That is beyond disgusting; if I had eaten, I would be throwing up.

One of my childhood memories is the Life image of the naked child running, crying, away from her burning village. I will never forget it.

To think that a child like that grew up, fled to a country not on fire, only to be threatened with fire in a language not her own by "men of god," all I can say is, TSCC revealed its fruits.

Evil, filthy, maggot-filled fruit that rot right under the branches which bore it.

I hope those mishies live with the full pain of their behavior. Yes, indoctrinated children, I know, but human decency has a line. Maybe that pain caused them to flee the church as well, and maybe they think twice, now, before crossing lines. One can hope.