Joe & The Book of Mormon

Joe is a very friendly, social, and curious fellow. Most people pretend they’re not home when their doorbell rings unexpectedly. Not Joe! He sizes things up, and if he assesses the situation as safe, he opens the door.

One day, circa the 1990s to early 2000s, two young men on their Mission from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons) showed up at Joe’s door. Having time, he opened the door, invited in these two young Mormons, and engaged in a great discussion about religion and the Mormon and Catholic Churches. Joe is quite the expert in history and religious studies (having had that stint in the seminary).

After an afternoon of interesting conversation and possibly a debate, Joe invited them to stay and eat dinner with the family. Joe reported that the Mormons greatly enjoyed their time together, and so did he.

For some years following this first Mission, Joe got knocks on the door from other young Mormon men on their Missions. Again, he showed respect, engaged in thoughtful discussions, and invited them for dinner with the family.

Eventually, they stopped showing up at Joe’s door. Maybe the Mormons realized their Missionaries were not going to succeed in converting Joe. Maybe fewer young men were going out on Missions. In any case, Joe was enriched by these experiences.

The Book of Mormon Broadway play premiered in March 2011. Joe saw the play many times and loved it, inspired by his personal experiences with the Missionaries of the Mormon Church. Note that The Book of Mormon is still running on Broadway!

[Editor's Note: Joe didn't just see The Book of Mormon, he saw the very first performance preview ever - which apparently ran over 3 hours long. His son-in-law thought Joe should be the first to see it and gave him his prized ticket (not just because he had to go to Singapore).]