Latter Days

When I left the office today, I saw a couple of guys walking along the sidewalk at the traffic light and knew they were Mormon missionaries. Sure enough, when I went by I could see their name tags: Elder N-----.

When I was still in Chicago, I often wound up riding the bus with a couple of young Mormon missionaries who caught the bus to Hyde Park at the same place I did when I got off the Red Line. One of them was quite outgoing and friendly, but his partner not so much. The friendly one wound up sitting next to me the first time I noticed them. I was reading John Boswell's Same-Sex Unions in Pre-Modern Europe. He glanced at the book and leaned closer.

"Is he for or against?" he asked me.

I explained that it is a history, but that Boswell was certainly for them. I introduced myself as a Catholic priest and asked how his mission was going. We had a nice chat the rest of the way. It turned out that they were staying in the house next to the monastery. His companion looked uncomfortable. He had just started his mission, but the one who did all the talking was near the end of his two years.

I saw them from time to time after that. The friendly one always wanted to know what I was reading, and I suspect I was the only Catholic priest he had ever met. One time he'd see me and I would be reading a biography of Shakespeare or the history of the court of Henry VIII. The next time might be a book on the Eastern Orthodox theology of marriage or a book about famous hoaxes or something about Islam. I'm sure he was a bit perplexed by it all.

Eventually he moved on to other fields ,and the uncomfortable one warmed up a bit when he had more experience. At least he would respond to my greeting when he got on the bus with a newbie.

Twenty-two year old elders.

The Carmelite monastery in Hyde Park had belonged to the Mormons before the friars bought it. Small-world-note: Tom was one of the real estate attorneys involved in the Mormon's sale of the property to the friars.

Also, I don't know if I have mentioned it here, but the friars have closed that community and sold (or are selling) the property. That foundation only lasted about ten years. It was purchased as a house for students, but they haven't had any students for a couple of years, have no students right now and none who would be going on there for at least another two or three years.