Missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints serve all around the world, preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ to all who will listen. Elder Jeffery R. Holland has stated, "Every truth that a missionary...teaches is only an appendage to the central message of all time--that Jesus is the Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, the Holy Messiah, the Promised One, the Savior and Redeemer of the World."
This week, we put together a list of 10 facts about Mormon missionaries that may surprise you:
1. Over 1.1 million Mormon men and women have served full-time missions for the Church since its founding in 1830.
2. The number of full-time Mormon missionaries has increased from 43,651 in 1990 to 85,039 as of March 31, 2014. Single male missionaries (“elders”) serve for 24 months, and single female missionaries (“sister missionaries”) serve for 18 months.
3. Before President Thomas S. Monson lowered the age of availability for all male missionaries to 18 and for all female missionaries to 19 in October 2012, the age of availability for male missionaries was first lowered to 18 in Germany, the United Kingdom, Albania, Cape Verde, Spain, Italy and all of South America to accommodate educational and military requirements.