Changes

Today I want to discuss two types of changes. These two types of changes are different in their effect, yet at the same time, inseparably linked.

The first type of change is one with which I am certain we are all quite familiar: Changes in our circumstance. In the past few weeks, a couple of major circumstantial changes have taken place in my own personal life, both of which will likely have a profound impact on the remainder of my life.

First, my wife and I learned that we are expecting our first child. I can't think of any happier change that could have come to our lives, and at the same time, I can't think of anything that will have as much impact. Just a few days ago we were able to “see” the baby for the first time through ultrasound. We even saw her little heart beating (yes, we are going to predict it is a girl already).

Second, I learned rather suddenly that I had been selected to begin my dream career within a month. This change will involve us moving from continent to continent, as well as beginning an entirely new chapter in our life.

While these circumstantial changes in my own life are drastic, impacting, and meaningful, they are not unique to myself. All of us face circumstantial changes in our lives. Some such changes are largely based on our own decisions and actions. Others are outside of our hands. Nevertheless, they are something which we all face.

The other type of change is one which is completely up to us: Changes in our character. These character changes can come as a result of circumstantial changes, or they can come simply because we set out to change ourselves. Nevertheless, changes in our character are not always easily obtained, and almost never come suddenly.

The more I study topics related to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the more I have recognized the essential nature of change. Without change, there is little purpose to life in general. In fact, we often use a religious word to describe this principle, though we might not recognize it as such: repentance.

It has been my experience that we human beings have an ongoing love/hate relationship with both changes in our circumstance and changes in our character. On one hand, we welcome positive change, new life developments, etc. We often look to the future, hoping for one day when certain things will be different. Often people even look back, wishing things would change and go back to how things used to be.

On the other hand, we yearn for stability and a feeling of comfort and familiarity. We fall into simple habits and routines with little effort, and desire to cluster with those most similar to ourselves. Some may even wish for change with all of their hearts, but resist it with all of their strength.

I admit that when I first began studying the principles of Mormonism, the one that stood out and appealed to me above all others was this principle of change. Mormon terms such as the “plan of salvation,” “eternal progression,” and “exaltation” are all variations of this process of change.

Now, as I face major changes in my circumstance, I can't help but think about what changes in my character will (or should) follow. What characteristics am I lacking which will help me be a better father? What habits need to be changed in order to make me a better worker?

Change is nothing new to any of us. Even the youngest of us have constantly be confronted with changes in our lives. Some are embraced, while others are avoided. Nevertheless, it is my belief that change is not only inevitable, but it is an essential part of a happy and meaningful existence.

Any thoughts on change?

Mormon Diplomacy Part III: Humanitarian Services

Humanitarian programs are one of the best ways for an organization to improve their diplomatic efforts. Doing so is becoming increasingly popular among all sorts of organizations. In my opinion, however, there is no organization which does this as effectively as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Of course, I may be a bit biased, but, working in the field of international development, I am not completely ignorant on the subject. Today I would like to share a little about LDS Humanitarian Services, including what they do, and what makes them so unique.

Most church members, as well as many others, are aware of the humanitarian efforts of the Mormons. However, I have found that there is little detailed knowledge beyond that awareness. While studying International Development in graduate school, I realized that I too was among those with a very limited understanding of what the Mormons actually do in terms of an organizational development plan, and sought to remedy the solution, a process in which I am still engaged.

My first chance came when I took advantage of an assignment given in one of my courses, which was to conduct an in-depth study of the practices of a major development organization. Dr. Isaac Ferguson, the former director of LDS Humanitarian Services, was kind enough to give me a lengthy interview and gave me tons of information which I was able to transfer into a successful research paper.

Since then, I have continued to learn by viewing Humanitarian Services in practice. As a Peace Corps volunteer, I have been lucky to interact regularly with the full-time humanitarian directors for the Church in both Romania and Moldova, and even have been permitted to participate in some of their projects.

So, what then does LDS Humanitarian Services do? First of all, they focus on five major global initiatives:

1) Clean Water: Helps set up access to clean water for the estimated 1 billion people on the earth who still don't have access to clean drinking water. (For development nerds like myself who want to see how this fits in line with the UN's Millennium Development Goals, see goal number 7).
2) Neonatal Resuscitation: Provides profession training which helps greatly reduce child mortality. A few months ago, a great Neonatal Resuscitation training took place in Romania. (See MGD number 4).
3) Vision Treatment: It is estimated that nearly ½ of the people who go blind in the world (over 20 million people) could have their blindness cured through a simple surgery for cataracts. Thousands of local doctors in developing countries are trained on how to treat these problems.
4) Wheelchair Distribution: This is one of my favorite programs. Just a couple of months ago I was able to be present for LDS Humanitarian Services distributing 80 wheelchairs in the area.
5) Emergency Response: Perhaps what Humanitarian Services is known for best, the Mormons have made a name for themselves both by the level of post-emergency aid they provide, as well as the organization and rapid response they are able to provide.

In addition to these major programs, the the Humanitarian Services general fund allows for thousands of small projects around the world. The manner in which these projects are identified is about as grassroots as you can get. Many funding organizations require those seeking funding to come to them with specific requests. LDS Humanitarian Services, does just the opposite. Humanitarian representatives independently seek out and offer assistance to organizations which they identify as most deserving. Their criteria is based on both need and the level to which representatives feel the organizations are truly providing a positive social change.

All aid given through these small projects goes directly to material goods, thus ensuring that all donations are used for their intended purposes. In just the last year in our area alone the humanitarian representatives have provided equipment for a sports club for handicapped people, as well as replacing the transmission on the only van used by a struggling aid organization for children.

A few other interesting tidbits about Humanitarian Services: Some may be familiar with two different names, “LDS Humanitarian Services,” and “LDS Charities.” In fact, these two organizations the same. The name they use depends upon the country in which they work. Countries in which the religious organization of the Church has been officially recognized work under the name Humanitarian Services. “LDS Charities” is the name of the Church's non-profit organization which functions in those countries without official church presence.

Another thing I found very interesting was the fact that no tithing is used in conjunction with LDS Humanitarian Services programs. All funding comes from individual donations, which, for those who have ever made donations to the Church of Jesus Christ, are found on the “Humanitarian Aid” line on a standard tithing slip.

LDS Humanitarian Services is also unique in the fact that none of the public donations go toward overhead costs (salaries, rent, utilities, etc.), and all donations go directly to humanitarian aid. This is possible for a number of reasons. Firstly, operations are run in conjunction with existing church infrastructure (sharing offices, etc.). Secondly, the vast majority of LDS Humanitarian Services “staff” are in fact volunteers. Most of the in-country humanitarian representatives are retired couples opting to serve are missionaries for 1 ½ – 2 years. The small full-time staff which does exist is funded through separate, non-donated funds coming from the Church's for-profit management corporation.

All in all, I have been quite impressed with the Church's Humanitarian Services program. I hope you have found this very brief description of LDS Humanitarian Services to be interesting as well. If you have other questions, please let me know!

Further Reading:

And Who Is My Neighbor
Talk given by Presiding Bishop H. David Burton in the April 2008 General Conference, outlining many of the humanitarian efforts of the Church.

Mormon Diplomacy Part II: Public Affairs

I enjoyed writing about Mormon Diplomacy so much last week, I decided I wanted to write a small series on the subject. I felt it might be interesting to point out some of the Church's major institutionalized diplomatic efforts, as well as discuss some of the diplomatic needs of the Church.

Today I want to focus on what the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints refers to as “Public Affairs.” This wing of Church-sponsored diplomacy has become particularly interesting to me since coming to Romania. This interest, in part, stems from one of the callings I have received in our small branch: public affairs representative. Basically, my job is to help coordinate any and all church media efforts in our area.

As part of my calling, I have been lucky enough to receive some training in the public relations system of the Church. They have a very grand objective: To bring the Church out of obscurity. In other words, they seek to help more people who don't know anything about the Mormons know something about them, and most preferably, something positive.

The calling and trainings have led me to take an even deeper interest of some of the various efforts the Church makes around the world to help promote themselves. Using the power of the internet, I began to search for more information. Being aware of much of what goes on among the Mormons, I didn't expect to be too surprised by what I might find. I couldn't have been more wrong. I have been amazed by the extent and the organization of the Church's worldwide efforts.

Before sharing a couple of examples of these efforts, I wanted to point out two important facts of reality that have helped me understand the purpose of Public Affairs.

1) The first is a reality check. Most people know nothing about the Mormons. Despite the 13 million+ membership of the Church and its presence in most nations, the vast majority of people still know little to nothing about Mormons or their Church.

2) The second is understanding the difference between Public Affairs efforts and the job of the full-time missionaries. While the missionaries certainly do have much influence in representing the Church around the world, their scope is fundamentally different. Their task is that of teaching the religious doctrines of the Church. While they do a tremendous job of this, the truth is that not everybody is interested in learning about what the Church teaches. Public Affairs' direct purpose is not teaching or baptizing religious converts. It's role is purely informative and diplomatic.

Understanding these facts helps us to understand the importance of Public Affairs. While the Church certainly benefits from converts to their religion, it also benefits from genuine friends. These friends are ordinary people from all walks of life who are not members of the Church, but those who nevertheless have positive impressions of the Mormons. Public Affairs efforts promote Mormons as a people and as an organization, and to help people see that “hey, Mormons aren't so bad after all!”

A few of the Public Affairs programs struck me as particularly interesting. The first is an ambassadorial/diplomatic outreach to representatives from other countries serving in the United States. Ambassadors, diplomats, foreign ministers, and other official representatives receive invitations both to attend special church functions in the Washington, DC area, and for visits to Salt Lake City, Brigham Young University, etc. For instance, in 2006, 621 official visitors from 100 different countries came to Utah. In 2007, 562 visitors from 103 countries came. I was very surprised by how many people have participated in this program.

Another interesting and relatively new program is the Church's diplomatic outreach to the United Nations. A few years ago, Olene Walker, former governor of Utah, and her husband Myron, were called as the first “Ambassadors to the United Nations” for the Church. During their time in New York City they met with hundreds of officials from all over the world, and were able to share with them much about the work of the Church. For a more in- depth look at their work with the U.N., check out this video.

These are just two examples of the many institutionalized diplomatic outreach programs promoted by the Church's Public Affairs office. As they continue in their efforts, hopefully we too can all do our part in winning friends for the Mormons. In two weeks, I will talk more about some ways we can do this better.

For further reading, see the following article:
http://www.ldsinternationalsociety.org/isdb/publications/19th.pdf

Next Week: Mormon Diplomacy Part III: LDS Humanitarian Services