Mormon missionaries could be transitioning to the Internet age

The door-knocking days for Mormons spreading the Lord’s word may be coming to a close, the Mormon Church has started to integrate the internet into its missions. During the traditional, two-year Mormon proselytizing, new missionaries have only been allowed minimal access to the outside world, including their families. But in new test missions, the Church allows missionaries to use technologies like Facebook, Skype, and the iPod touch to better learn the word of the Church and reach prospective members.

The woman that he was trying to reach almost never picked up her phone, and she lived more than 50 miles away. Plus, he had to watch his gas mileage. So Brandon Gonzales, a then-20-year-old missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ and Latter-Day Saints, stationed in Slatington, Pa., looked her up on Facebook. The young Mormon found that she was almost always free to chat online in the mornings, and soon they were chatting every day. He would send her links to church videos and sermons that explained aspects of Mormon faith, family life, or church theology. This was 2010, and, as far as most Mormons knew, what he was doing was completely forbidden.