For any of knowledgeable about vagrancy and homelessness in Salt Lake City or anywhere in Utah,are devoted church attending Mormons ever homeless for any period of time?Is is easy to say the homeless are non Mormons or I active Mormons who don't receive assistance from fellow Mormons?Us immediate assistance for active Mormons always available from fellow church attendins Mormons?Us it true that a ward bishop or local ward members would never allow people active in a ward to be homeless?It is understandable that a non ?Mormon would either sleep rough or seek assistance from non Mormon social services like the Salvation Army or St Vincent De Paul.

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I can't speak to the question of housing assistance, but I do know about the question of employment assistance. I approached a bishop once to ask for access to the Church Welfare employment databases. The bishop refused because he considered me to be insufficiently active.

However, my activity at the time was predicated on my lack of transportation to Church and the embarrassment of having to beg for a ride from other members every time.

So, arguably, I would otherwise have been an active member, but I was refused help, because I wouldn't abase myself to qualify as "more active".

Now fortunately, I had some money and credit to be able to tide me over until I found employment again, and the bishop's actions made me reconsider Mormonism from the ground up, and ultimately led to my leaving the Church, but I can see how people in other similar situations could find themselves without support and very quickly so, depending on how tenuous their situation was when they were "active".


So, I'd argue that, no, it's not a given that an active member will receive help from the Church, nor that the Church will keep them from becoming homeless.

Tyson

Interesting to hear about your bad experience with the LDS employment assistance program, though I guess that can be laid at the bishop’s feet, rather than the program.

My parents were called to serve in that program here in Utah, and my dad took it as a point of pride that they did what they could for anyone who came in, on the admirably Christian premise that the entire community benefits when people are working, so helping anyone find a job benefits everyone.

My dad was neither BIC nor a Utah Mormon, so I guess he lacked the finely honed sense of moral superiority and retribution so often found here.

I was in an East Coast ward at the time, and the bishop was a transplant from Utah who had to show us East Coast converts and slackers what was what.

He even told me that I wouldn't want one of the jobs in the database anyway because they were for less skilled people than I was, so they'd all be beneath me.

And here I was thinking that going through all routes to find a job was the most important thing I could do while I was unemployed - contacting former coworkers, bosses, family, and friends; using the very few company websites at the time; reaching out to my college alumni groups; going through newspapers; directly calling companies; etc.

Tyson

I consider myself lucky. Other than my Nazi-Mo mom (as Kirby described in his "Five Types of Mormons"), I really never had to deal with the kinds of jerk Mormons that I keep hearing about here.

I guess that is one advantage of leaving early (in college). Had I stayed much longer, I no doubt would have come across some of the jerks.

LOOK!!!!
If it doesn't bring money into the coffers, generally speaking, they just aren;t interested.
when I was in better shape financially I helped feed the homeless in Tucson. I would buy sandwiches and soft drinks then go to wher they gatheres and pass them out.
The health department jumped on my case because I didn't have a food preparation permit. They also didn't care if the homeless starved!!!

I did get some help for a while with some bills and food. The bishop knew my husband and had been in a bishopric with him. My husband had left us. I was not active and hadn't been for about 5 or 6 years.

I have taken note that they oftentimes help those who are on the fringes or to be a missionary and try to get those who aren't mormon or who are inactive back to church by helping them out. They didn't require that I work for them or that I go to church, but that isn't always the case.

I knew of several people who got help and none were active mormon. The single mothers I told to ask for help and who were active mormon were turned down.