So I went over to the church last night with my boy so he could do scouts, and I could 'practice' my new membership clerk duties. I actually have keys to the building. I get to the clerks office and it is locked, but the light is on, so I am thinking someone left the lights on. I turn the key, and open it and the Ward Clerk is in there by himself locked in already working on the computer. I guess the ward got a brand new computer and he was straightening out the files from the information dump from the old computer.
So there are baptismal programs and all sorts of minutes from Bishopric meetings and as he is moving and opening up the files to see where to put them, he has a comment about each and everyone.

"No baptizing this person was a complete waste of time, they only remained active for about 1 week."

"This person didn't come back.", etc.

Then he made a statement about how the Ward Council Meetings he has to attend are a complete waste of time.

"You see this list from Ward Council meeting of a bunch of 'focus families' that we are supposed to try and reactivate?, " he said, "Well we have been bothering the crap out of these same families for years. We come up with all these plans and ideas and goals for them, only there is one missing part of the element that won't get on board with it. THE INACTIVE FAMILIES. Oh sure we can be nice to them and invite them to stuff, but I think it's a complete waste of time after a while to try and RAISE the DEAD. This person right here for example actually attends another church, yet we still keep trying to reactivate him, why?"

I agreed with him (which I do actually) It is a complete waste of time to try and reactivate people for 20 YEARS of time. Leave the poor bastards ALONE!!! If they want to come, they will.

Yet, each new Bishop is hot and fired up to get certain families back. He was saying this last Sunday the Bishop asked him in Ward Council meeting to call on one inactive family, and he was like "WHY? I already know what their response is going to be. Why should I waste my time."

I think the poor old fellow is 'enduring to the end' Actually looking at them, most of the Bishopric members don't seem 'happy' It like they are just pushing through because of duty and nothing more.

Clerks seem to get a bit jaded with time don't they? When I served as financial clerk, the clerk who was called to audit me had huge attitude problems.

He showed up and bitched and moaned the whole time about what a waste of time it all was and he even started ripping on the church in general, the bureaucracy, etc. At one point he blurted out half-jokingly that he probably should leave the church. I didn't let on at the time that I already had one foot out the door.

I wonder if by now he really has left or maybe he is NOM. Clerks are in a great position to see how dysfunctional the church really is.