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  "path": "/faith/2026/05/17/new-missionary-training-center-provo-mtc-video/",
  "publishedAt": "2026-05-17T19:10:09.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.deseret.com",
  "tags": [
    "20-minute video",
    "Latter-day Saint missionaries practice what they and their ‘Captain’ preach through service",
    "sports broadcasts",
    "84,000 missionaries",
    "a record 385,490",
    "Latter-day Saint growth tops 66% since 2000, after 2025 shattered old record for convert baptisms",
    "the Church News",
    "What's a 'mission trip'? BYU football says term doesn't apply",
    "1 million missionaries",
    "Church of Jesus Christ announces the creation of 55 new missions in 2026",
    "single women 18-29",
    "New leadership roles for women alters LDS mission culture, hints at deep, long-term ramifications",
    "in record numbers",
    "Dale G. Renlund",
    "a social media post",
    "open 55 new missions",
    "‘Picking God over the game’: Hear what players say who put missions before the big leagues"
  ],
  "textContent": "A new 20-minute video takes viewers inside the doors to see what young people do at the largest missionary training center of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.\n\nThe video — released on YouTube with faster cuts than most church videos — lands at a time of historic interest in Latter-day Saints.\n\nLatter-day Saint missionaries practice what they and their ‘Captain’ preach through service\n\nActor and convert Danor Gerald uses the same type of tiny handheld mic in vogue with social media influencers to talk with missionaries as young as 18 years old at the MTC in Provo, Utah, before heading out to assignments across the globe to share the gospel of Jesus Christ for 18 to 24 months.\n\nLatter-day Saint missions are a topic of interest across the United States in sports broadcasts, media reports and reality TV shows.\n\nThe young Latter-day Saints serving those missions have become a bold counterpoint to the trend of youthful Americans turning from religious practice.\n\nThe church now has 84,000 missionaries, close to its historic high in 2014.\n\nConvert baptisms jumped 25% last year to a record 385,490. Nearly 900,000 converts joined the church in the past three years. They make up nearly 5% of total church membership, Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles reported at the faith’s October general conference.\n\nLatter-day Saint growth tops 66% since 2000, after 2025 shattered old record for convert baptisms\n\nThe new video was filmed in November, a product manager for the Church Communications Department told the Church News.\n\n“We wanted to make YouTube content that was engaging and interesting to members and friends, showing them things they haven’t seen before,” Ben Taylor said. “Missionaries are such a visible part of the church, we thought taking folks inside the MTC to show them the process of training to be a missionary would be an eye-opening and enlightening experience.”\n\nWhat's a 'mission trip'? BYU football says term doesn't apply\n\nMore than 40,000 young men and young women train at the Provo MTC each year. The church has 10 other MTCs spread around the world.\n\nMissions allow young Latter-day Saints to grow spiritually as they teach the gospel in what many describe as a life-changing experience, a narrator says at the start of the video.\n\nThe church has sent out well over 1 million missionaries during its history.\n\nChurch of Jesus Christ announces the creation of 55 new missions in 2026\n\nSingle men ages 18 to 25 and single women 18-29 are eligible to serve missions. Married couples and singles over 40 are also eligible. Men serve for two years. Women serve for 18 months.\n\nThe video shows their training from start to finish, including the way they learn foreign languages, work out physically, eat in a cafeteria and practice teaching the gospel.\n\nTraining can last one week or up to two months for those learning a new language. The video was designed to show the entire training experience from arrival to stepping on an airplane to leave for the missionary’s assignment.\n\nThe video will help those outside the church better understand the missionary experience and help prospective missionaries know what to expect.\n\n“We want people to know what the experience will look like, and we want people to feel the excitement of missionary work,” Taylor told the Church News.\n\nGerald asks missionaries to talk about their decision to serve a mission, the sacrifices they are making and what they are learning.\n\nNew leadership roles for women alters LDS mission culture, hints at deep, long-term ramifications\n\nThe number of missionaries has surged over the past five years, after a steep decline in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.\n\n  * **2018** : 65,137\n  * **2019** : 67,021\n  * **2020** : 51,819\n  * **2021** : 54,539\n  * **2022** : 62,544\n  * **2023** : 67,871\n  * **2024** : 74,127\n  * **2025** : 78,596\n\n\n\nChurch leaders have rejoiced over the surge of faith among young members, who also are attending the faith’s seminary classes for high school students and institute classes for college students in record numbers.\n\n“What we are witnessing today is more than growth in numbers,” Elder Dale G. Renlund of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles stated Monday in a social media post. “Across the world, missionaries are demonstrating a deep devotion to the Savior and a sincere consecration to his work. An increasing number express that their fundamental reason for serving is their love for Jesus Christ and their desire to join him in his work — an inspiring reflection of the faith and commitment that characterize today’s missionary force.\"\n\nThe church will open 55 new missions across the globe on July 1 to make room for the growing number of missionaries.\n\n‘Picking God over the game’: Hear what players say who put missions before the big leagues\n\nThe following chart shows the increase in convert baptisms over the past eight years.\n\nYear| Convert\nBaptisms| Pct.\nChange\n---|---|---\n2018| 234,332| 0.3%\n2019| 248,835| 6.2%\n2020*| 125,930*| -49.4%*\n2021| 168,283| 33.6%\n2022| 212,172| 26.1%\n2023| 251,763| 18.7%\n2024| 308,682| 22.6%\n2025| 385,490| 24.9%",
  "title": "New video takes viewers inside a Latter-day Saint missionary training center"
}