1st Generation Members and Retention.
Posted by Matt W. on March 15th, 2007According to the Church’s Member and Statistical Records Division, first-generation members made up 64% of total Church membership as of July 2006 [1] Per David Stewart, 70% to 80% are innactive. [2] The Church currently has 12,560,869 Members. [3]
From the above we can say that there are about 8 million first-generation members on the records of the Church, and about 2 million of them are active, worldwide.
According to the Encyclopedia of Mormonism, Activity among these converts is influenced by (1) the personal characteristics of the convert, such as religious background, age, and marital status; (2) how personally involved the convert was in the investigation process, such as experiencing the Spirit of God and attending Church worship services; and (3) the extent to which the convert developed social relationships with other Latter-day Saints both before and after baptism. [4]
I say we as members can’t do anything about #1. (It would be inethical to discrimante in a baptismal interview based on background, age, or marital status.)
What can we do about #2 and #3?
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References:
[1] see here
[2] Per David Stewart, here
[3] See Here
[4] see here
For #2 we can raise the baptismal requirements. To me it would not be unreasonable to expect a new convert to attend meetings for a month or more prior to baptism. I am not sure what one would do if there were not able to attend for some legitimate reason, or what those reasons might be. I think taking the interview process away from 20 year old missionaries - many of whom do not have a clue about the gift of discernment and are often motivated by baptism numbers - and give this process to the local bishop where I feel it belongs anyway. The bishop would have more of a retention mindset than the missionaries. I would also not be opposed to having prospective converts pay a couple weeks worth of tithing prior to baptism. They should commit to do this anyway right? Why not have them put their money where their mouth is. This seems quite reasonable to me. One of the primary things which keeps new members from receiving the priesthood and going to the temple is not paying their tithing. All this might lead to less baptisms but more retention.
for #3 I am afraid that the best remedy for this is to have members do more finding. This is a tough one. But when members do the finding you will often have some built in friedships that are already established. Real friendship does not happen in a few days in my opinion. A smile and a handshake on Sunday morning is not really enough. Until members do more of the finding we will be baptising a lot of strangers.
Comment # 1 left by Eric Nielson on March 15th, 2007
I posted once on raising baptismal requirements here.
Comment # 2 left by Eric Nielson on March 15th, 2007
Pres. Hinckley has said that every new member needs three things: a friend, a calling, and to be nurtured w/ the good Word.
How well are we befriending these new converts?
How well are we doing our home and visiting teaching to help nurture them?
How well are local leaders doing at reaching out to them and giving opportunities to serve?
Comment # 3 left by Connor on March 15th, 2007
I feel so blessed that I had a lot of mentors in my early days as a convert. I was attending Institute before I even took the lessons as the person who introduced me to the Gospel invited me. One of the sisters in the class took me to Church although I was not in her ward until I was established in the ward. One of the Stake Missionaries was an older lady who really took me under her wings. At the time, I felt like being active was a given as I understood the importance. I had made a choice in my former faith the attend every week despite the fact that my family did not attend regularly. As far as my progression, I now realize how much of it was related to proper teachings of what is expected of a Latter Day Saint.
I think we can make ourselves much more available to converts. It can be a large change for many and require adjustments. I think some people do not fathom the sacrifice required of some people or the major changes that they make. That was not the case for me as my family was very supportive and I really wanted to join. I was very nostalgic for the former Church services of my old faith though. As I am older, I am now so nostalgic for the ties of my former religious schools and feel a huge disconnect by my decision although not all students were of that faith.
I have not done this due to my circumstances, but I think it is good to invite new members to dinner or to Family Home Evening.
I should add that I was painfully shy when I first joined. Somewhere I did get the message that you are to accept callings. This was a real stretch for me. Many people befriended me in the capacity of my callings. I am sure it must have been hard for them at times when I was so quiet. I think I was a little overwhelmed at times with people talking to me as words did not come easy in those days. I appreciated the kindness though.
My first Home Teacher was so great. I remember his firm handshake and the feeling of trust that I felt for him. I also had great Visiting Teachers including the Relief Society President. She read the lesson from the manual and I found myself thinking, “I could do that.” And then, I volunteered to do become a Visiting Teacher. That still amazes me to this day that I would volunteer for anything social in those days.
Well, these are my anecdotes.
Comment # 4 left by Barb on March 15th, 2007
Barbara: Thank you so much. That was wonderful. I too felt really lucky to have such a great start when I first joined the Church.
Comment # 5 left by Matt W. on March 16th, 2007
Wow…somebody figured out how to do numbers on the comments. Cool. (Connor, I’m assuming that’s you. Well done.)
Comment # 6 left by Michelle on March 18th, 2007