Mormon Life - YSA tag

Y grad aims to build a social network for LDS singles

Tue, 08 May 2012 12:46:00 -0600

source: heraldextra.com

Mormon Life says: The site allows people in the network to not only look for other singels, but to plan and host social events, find housemates or landlords, form groups around shared interests, get recommendations for dating activities in the city where they live, and more. It's hardly a new idea to use the Internet to help 20-something and 30-something single adult members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints meet, date and marry. There are many sites that cater directly to single Latter-day Saints, and many more that have vanished into the online ether over the years.

BYU graduate Josh Hall isn't trying to create another LDS dating site -- Hall, 33, has a much larger ambition than that for the site he's preparing to launch, YSAcentral. He wants to create the ultimate site for LDS singles, the last one that he or anyone else will ever need or use to meet and mingle with like-minded LDS singles. (There's more info at YSAcentral.com.)

Elder Marlin K. Jensen addresses young adults at CES fireside

Mon, 07 May 2012 10:25:00 -0600

source: news.lds.org

Nearly 200 years after Joseph Smith’s First Vision occurred in the Sacred Grove in upstate New York, individuals can still look to the patterns and structure of that holy place as a teacher of important life lessons, Elder Marlin K. Jensen said during a Church Educational System Devotional on May 6. The broadcast—held in a stake center near the Sacramento California Temple—was transmitted all around the world via the internet in more than 40 different languages.

“This general area [the Sacred Grove] is known as the ‘cradle of the Restoration,’ as this is where the Church was born,” said Elder Jensen of the Seventy and Church Historian. “It is picturesque country characterized by rolling, wooded hills, clear lakes and streams, and warm, colorful people. It is also a place made sacred by what happened there.”

I Choose to Be Pure

Thu, 03 May 2012 09:54:00 -0600

source: youtube.com

Mormon Life says: Young adults from six different faiths share why they choose to be sexually pure.

Latter-day Saint mid-singles experience

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 10:25:00 -0600

source: mormonmatters.org

The LDS Church recently restructured its “singles” wards, effectively shutting them off to unmarried people who are 31 years old or above. In many ways, this move formalized even more than previously the “limbo” of sorts that unmarried but still quite young Mormons find themselves in with relation to their church. Do they best fit or will they be most edified in “family” wards or huge “mid-singles” wards that weekly draw as large a crowd as a typical stake conference? Are they to be seen and celebrated as the highly accomplished, dynamic, active creators of meaningful lives that most of them are, or are they best understood as delayed developers, people to be pitied for the spouse and family that they lack? They don’t “fit” the LDS-idealized mold, that’s for sure (even as single-in-one’s-thirties is becoming more and more typical in society in general).

Young Love

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 09:53:00 -0600

source: mormonmentality.org

My dear, sweet, intensely committed-to-the-gospel daughter has been home from her mission for four months now. When she first got home, she decided attending the local single’s branch wasn’t for her. She was much more comfortable attending our family ward, where she spent Sunday meetings hanging out with the sister missionaries. It was lovely and devoted, but seemed to be keeping her in missionary mode rather than transitioning back to the Real World.

YSA stake will be formed April 15 in Virginia

Tue, 27 Mar 2012 11:59:00 -0600

source: deseretnews.com

A new young single adult stake of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will be formed on April 15 to serve members of the Buena Vista Virginia and Roanoke Virginia stakes, including students attending Southern Virginia University.

Although some student stakes exist around the country, the Buena Vista Young Single Adult Stake will be the first of its kind organized outside of Utah and Idaho since the LDS Church phased out student wards and stakes last year and replaced them with YSA wards and stakes.

'There is life after Yale,' apostle says

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 10:44:00 -0600

source: ldschurchnews.com

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland and his wife, Sister Patricia Holland, returned to New Haven, Conn., where they lived for more than two years while he pursued a Ph.D. at Yale University. During that time he served in the presidency of the Hartford Connecticut Stake and she served as Relief Society president of the New Haven Ward.

During their return visit on Sunday, March 18, they spoke to members of the New Haven Young Single Adults Branch, who were joined for this occasion by married students as well. In a separate devotional, they spoke to the New Haven Connecticut Stake's young men and young women of priests and Laurel age, along with their leaders and their parents. Both meetings were held in the New Haven Institute Building on the Yale University Campus, which Elder Holland had dedicated 10 years earlier.

Elder M. Russell Ballard introduces new University of Utah president David W. Pershing to LDS students

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 10:29:00 -0600

source: deseretnews.com

The new president of the University of Utah was formally introduced to LDS students Sunday evening by a member of the church's governing Quorum of the Twelve apostles.

Elder M. Russell Ballard of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was the featured speaker at a devotional of the church's Institute of Religion adjacent to the university campus in Salt Lake City. He used part of his time to present David W. Pershing and his wife Sandy to the congregation of some 3,000 and then asked the couple to speak.

Elder Cook charges young single adults to build the kingdom

Sun, 04 Mar 2012 21:22:00 -0700

source: news.lds.org

While serving his mission to Scotland in the late 1890s, then Elder David O. McKay (who served as Church President between 1951 and 1970) and his companion passed a building where the stone above the door was inscribed with a quotation usually attributed to Shakespeare: “What e’er thou art, act well thy part.”

Recalling this experience while giving a talk in 1957, President McKay said he thought to himself, “You are a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. More than that, you are here as a representative of the Lord Jesus Christ. … Then I thought [about] what we had done that afternoon. We had been sightseeing, we had gained historical instruction and information, it is true, and I was thrilled with it. … However, that was not missionary work. … I accepted the message given to me on that stone, and from that moment we tried to do our part as missionaries in Scotland” (“Lesson 29: David O. McKay—Worldwide Ambassador of God,” The Presidents of the Church: Teacher’s Manual, [1996]).

TV show seeking Mormon singles

Tue, 28 Feb 2012 11:02:00 -0700

source: sltrib.com

Somebody thinks the mating habits of the American Mormon would make for TV entertainment. An ad seeking applicants for something called "Mormon Singles Project" appeared Sunday on the web classified site CraigsList.

Never been on a date? LDS singles' experiences provide tips, skills

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 10:31:00 -0700

source: deseretnews.com

Mormon Life says: There's also a printable quiz to see how experienced you are as a dater. For LDS singles, going out on a first date is a rite of passage. It is viewed as an activity that should be simultaneously fun and purposeful. A February 2011 study of Utah Valley University students indicated that both men and women who dated did so about three times a month.

Surprisingly, the study indicated that about 16 percent of UVU students had not yet dated. Many of them were freshmen.

What is the best advice for the brand-new Latter-day Saint dater?

LDS singles programs: A model for Jews?

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 10:30:00 -0700

source: jewishjournal.com

As I prepare to marry a wonderful girl in the Los Angeles LDS Temple on Saturday, I can’t help but reflect on how my church has striven mightily to bring this about. From singles wards (congregations) at Brigham Young University to singles conferences throughout the world, singles in the LDS dating pool are brought together on a weekly basis to worship, have fun, date, and marry, preferably in a temple. I have not always enjoyed exploring the Mormon singles scene, but am eternally grateful that the church’s singles program encouraged and guided my fiancée and me towards the ultimate goal of a temple marriage. While I love pointing out areas in which Mormons can learn from Jews, in this case I think that Jews could learn a thing or two from Mormons about providing opportunities for singles to marry within the faith.

Mormon student group works to extend campus presence

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 08:43:00 -0700

source: thedp.com

With the construction of a brand new temple scheduled to begin this spring, Penn’s devoted Mormon community continues to extend its place and presence on campus.

The Latter-day Saints Student Association, which became an official student group on campus last December, obtained formal recognition by the Students Activities Council at that time and will soon begin to receive funding for events and programs.

Australian Young Single Adults celebrate the new year at YSA conventions

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 12:16:00 -0700

source: news.lds.org

When New Year’s celebrations are broadcast, the world often watches the events in Australia, which is among the first countries to reach January 1. This year, Latter-day Saint young single adults in at least two parts of the country rang in the New Year at YSA Conventions.

Five-day multistake conventions in both Melbourne and Brisbane, Australia, which took place from December 29, 2011, to January 2, 2012, provided an opportunity for young single adults to get to know each other, share their testimonies, and be uplifted.

Online LDS dating sites grow in popularity

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 13:40:00 -0700

source: universe.byu.edu

Bekka Joner, previously a nanny in Boston, was having trouble meeting male members her own age in her small LDS branch. At the request of her roommate, she decided to create a profile on a dating website. She was specific in what she wanted: a temple-worthy member, tall, college educated. The search gave her five options. One in particular, Michael Joner, stands out to her. She decided to risk sending him a message.

They are now celebrating their fifth anniversary of marriage.

YSA fitness challenge

Mon, 09 Jan 2012 09:54:00 -0700

source: ldschurchnews.com

Early in the morning on a clear, warm New Year's Eve day, they walked, jogged, ran, biked and even rode a scooter in the Ultimate Fitness Challenge – a difficult half marathon that had much deeper spiritual significance for members of a young single adult branch.

Each had a singular goal in mind: To make it to the temple.

Advice from LDS single men to their dates

Mon, 26 Dec 2011 11:14:00 -0700

source: deseretnews.com

Mormon Life says: Pretty basic, but good to hear it straight from men. When researchers at Utah Valley University interviewed students in February about their dating experiences, they never expected the men who responded to offer such supportive advice to the LDS single women they wanted to date.

A question asked of the men in the survey yielded valuable insight: “What are the top three pieces of advice you would give to your future dates that would make the date a better experience for you?”

Single Latter-day Saints are 'some of the noblest members'

Mon, 12 Dec 2011 10:37:00 -0700

source: ldschurchnews.com

Denise Stewart of the Emerson Ward, Caldwell New Jersey Stake, understands the impact that single members can have in an area. In her stake are members from various walks of life. Some come from the inner city and have had difficult lives. Others have recently moved from home and are starting out on their own for the first time. All are striving for something better and are willing to contribute to help build the kingdom of God.

"Some of them have great temptations," Sister Stewart said. For several years she has worked with the young single adults and is currently an institute teacher. She recalled one young man who grew up in the inner city. He was involved in drugs and gangs but then he found the gospel. He has since married and is working to be a seminary and institute teacher.

LDS Institute student service groups dissolving after 'a great run'

Thu, 08 Dec 2011 09:22:00 -0700

source: hjnews.townnews.com

After more than seven decades in existence, the service organizations at the Logan LDS Institute are being disbanded.

The Institute Men's Association and Institute Women's Association will cease to exist at the end of this semester after a decision made by the board of education of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, according to Brad Howell, assistant administrator for Seminaries and Institutes of Religion. Howell said the move gives priesthood leaders within young single adult stakes the responsibility of organizing activities, rather than these two Institute student groups.

'Friends Forever' gather to remember the Washington Ward

Tue, 29 Nov 2011 13:24:00 -0700

source: deseretnews.com

Mormon Life says: This is a fun idea for a singles ward (or any ward, really). A group of friends who last met for a sacrament meeting in the former Washington Ward in downtown Washington, D.C., 36 years ago recently gathered for a reunion in the area.

Many of them attended the ward as young single adults. The reunion included dinners, local tours, slide shows and a visit to the original chapel, now owned by the Unification Church.