Have you ever received a call to buy insurance from someone who could only have gotten your information from the ward directory? Been asked on a date by someone you don’t really know personally but have seen at church?
Members are asked to use the ward directory only on ward business. How have you used this little gold mine of personal contact information?
[poll id=”236″]
How have you seen others use it? Do you restrict what personal information you include as a result?
Discuss.
Wheat & Tares 
In a singles ward, dating is not only seen as ward business, but a necessary step to the celestial kingdom.
In pre-internet days, I not only used the congregational directory to find the phone numbers of girls I wanted to ask out, I used the stake directory, and the directories of relatives who lived in other districts entirely.
If there isn’t a Mormon equiv of match.com (not counting BYU), I’m surprised. 😀
After growing up in wards from hell, only the bishopric and stake presidency can see my info. Which then makes it all the more curious on how the RS President manage to get a VT list together for me.
I’m pretty sure that the Living Scriptures salesman who showed up at my door and addressed me by name got my info from the ward directory.
He didn’t want to give me his name though. Afraid I was going to turn it over to the bishop, I assume.
I guess it never occurred to me when I was single, that it was problematic for me to refer to the ward directory for a phone number if I wanted to ask out someone I knew from church.
I will confess though, that when I had access to the MLS, I once used it to search a list of single female ward members within a specified age range. I guess I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t overlooking someone. I certainly never contemplated asking out anyone I didn’t already know in real life. It’s not like I called everyone on the list.
I think the intent of the “For Church Use Only” rule is to prevent canvassing and commercial solicitations, not to restrict you from just phoning a specific individual that you wish to have a personal conversation with.
“For Church Use Only” is simply a disclaimer to attempt to put members at ease that they won’t be pestered by every Noni and/or Amway rep in their ward/stake. Happens anyway. Just be polite and say, “no thanks”, and don’t get your “Gs” in a twist.
I must confess that I used the ward directory to call my wife on our first date, I’d only talked to her a few times directly and never got her number otherwise in our singles ward.
I’ve never used it for anything else but finding information out someone, like “what is that Sister’s name?” or the like.
I’m curious to how many wards/stakes still print a directory? Our stake stopped printing it about 3 years ago.
Years ago (pre cell phone day), until the boss put her foot down, our LAN line was under the first name of Bently. We always knew when people called asking for Bently (loved that dog) where they got the information. It was also fun to see them try and carry on a conversation with the dog.
Now a days, it is virtually impossible to keep your indentity private when everyone from cell phone companies, phishers and the DMV is selling your information. This is why God gave us caller ID.
Solution: buy lifelock, use caller ID, have a camera, no soliciting AND Smith & Wesson sign on your door and DON’T answer the door or phone unless you know who it is and you want to to speak with them. With these safeguards in line, who cares if people have your information.
#8 – Being insured by S&W is a good choice. I, like the late Herr Goering, when I heard the word “Kultur”, reach for my Browning (.40 cal S&W, 15-shot mag).
Most of the folks who run through their ward list ‘dialing for dollars’ are annoyances anyway. I’m all in favor of hustling for a buck, but I don’t care for my privacy to be invaded.
About 31 years ago, the “Men” from “Down Under” put it best…”Who can it be knocking at my door? Make no sound…tiptoe across the floor…if he hears, he’ll knock all day! I’ll be trapped, and here I’ll have to stay!”
There is also a ward email list. Our HP group leader used it to send out anti gay marriage propaganda.
He got very upset when I questioned whether he could use the list for political purposes.
He got even more upset when I questioned the assertions in the letter, and replied to the whole list.
I had trouble getting my next TR but the stake pres over ruled the bishop.
One of the High Priest Group leaders who is relatively new in the ward does cruises, and I get a mailer from him every month describing great cruises that I should book through him. Pisses me off since he never talks to me, including emails to ask me to report via email my home teaching to him. I will never cruise through this guys business.