ON the face of it, trawling terraced streets in immaculate suits, crisp shirts and ties, the teenagers look every bit the eager door to door salesmen, writes MARION SAUVEBOIS.

Only the intriguing ‘Elder Stokes’ and ‘Elder Vaitoa’ stamped on their oversized name tags betray their spiritual purpose.

They are not insurance peddlers but zealous Mormon missionaries out to save souls.

“I believe that God wanted me to do this,” declares Elder Stokes, who was born and raised in North America’s Mormon heartland, Utah.

Barely out of high school, at just 19 and 20 years old respectively, Scott Stokes and Palenapa Vaitoa, who hails from the pacific island of Upolu, Samoa, left their homelands for the very first time in spring to embark on a two-year mission to bring new converts to the Mormon faith.

They landed in Manchester on April 9 and travelled to the UK Mission Training Centre in Preston where they spent two weeks preparing for the trying task ahead.

They were then assigned to the Birmingham Mission, one of six sectors in the country, which stretches from Wales all the way to Nottingham.

Elder Vaitoa was posted to Wolverhampton before being called to Swindon a few weeks later.

Elder Stokes started his mission in Swindon.

Although they have now been in the town for several weeks, they could be transferred anywhere within the Birmingham Mission boundary at the drop of a hat.

Every six weeks any of the UK’s estimated 300 missionaries can be moved to a new patch.

Serving a mission is not a decision they made lightly — it has involved diligent soul searching for the young men.

“I’ve wanted to serve a mission since I was little but when I was 14 the reality sank in and I thought, ‘do I want to give away two years of my life?’,” says Elder Stokes with surprising candour.

“All these questions started popping up. I wanted to know if it was all true. I prayed and I believe I got my answer.”

Elder Vaitoa also experienced moments of doubt.

“I wanted to serve a mission but I started asking questions,” he explains. “I couldn’t preach to other people if I didn’t have my own testimony, my own experience of it. So I prayed and when I was 17 I received the witness.”

Although rules have been relaxed over the years, life as Elders, or teachers — a title given to all young missionaries — is not without sacrifice or hardship.

The young men are required to cut nearly all communication with their family and friends. They are only allowed to exchange emails once a week and are permitted just two phone calls a year, usually on Christmas Day and Mother’s Day. Dating is out of the question.

“When I first got here I was homesick and sad — I had all these emotions,” admits Elder Stokes.

“Not that I don’t want to be out here. But I got over it. It helps to have others here who understand.”

Every hour is accounted for and the missionaries’ daily life is regimented.

Every day starts bright and early at 6.30am. They exercise for a half an hour, then shower. Breakfast is followed by the study of scriptures.

At 10am their work starts. Apart from voluntary work which sees them weed, paint, move furniture, help the elderly out in the community or within Swindon’s small Mormon congregation, the bulk of their day is devoted to spreading the gospel and evangelising.

They toil away until 9pm. They finally make their way back to their shared flat and plan the next day’s route and points of faith to be discussed with those they approach on the street until 10.30pm.

They are granted one day of rest on Monday, which is used mostly to catch up on chores, laundry and grocery shopping.

As well as following their religion’s tenets which prohibit smoking, taking drugs, drinking alcohol, tea and coffee, missionaries are bound by stringent rules.

Listening to music — except Church-approved ‘uplifting’ songs — watching television or going to the cinema is forbidden.

They are, however, allowed to play sports. Preaching resumes, even on Mondays, at 6pm until 9pm.

Anything which could detract from their religious purpose is out of bounds. They fully accept this as a necessary term of their spiritual undertaking.

“Naturally we see it as a sacrifice,” says Elder Stokes.

“But in reality it’s more of a blessing. When we come out here we are asked to leave our personal lives behind and put our focus on Jesus Christ.

“You can check emails if it doesn’t interfere with your work. We will only hear our families’ voices four times in two years.”

Walking up to strangers or doorstepping has become second nature and they have learnt to cope with rejection for the most part.

But making that first contact at the start of each day still fills Elder Stokes with apprehension.

“You definitely have to get used to it,” he concedes.

“People can swear at you, they slam the door in our faces. Some people have been aggressive.

“The first time I go out to somebody I get nervous. I call the first person the icebreaker. After that I’m not scared of rejection.

“We set ourselves goals; sometimes it’s to talk to 100 people in a day.

“The response has been mixed but if they don’t want to talk to us we let them go. They have agency and freedom to choose.

“If they are receptive we swap numbers or we ask them if they need help with anything.”

“I don’t really get nervous,” adds Elder Vaitoa.

“The fact that you keep going shows your faith. We are messengers of the Gospel. This is not our work, this is God’s work.”

Serving a mission is voluntary so they are each paying their own way. Every missionary is paired with a companion and they are under strict instructions to stay “within sight and hearing of each other” except to use the bathroom.

“It can be hard having no privacy,” admits Elder Stokes. “It teaches you patience and humility. We get on pretty good. It becomes normal after a while and it would feel weird to be on my own.”

Working in pairs also acts as a safety net according to Elder Vaitoa.

“One of us can protect the other from physical and spiritual danger and we encourage and strengthen each other,” he adds with a gentle smile.

“People here have been friendly to us. But they are not really interested in the Gospel.”

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, whose followers are commonly known as Mormons, was formed in the 19th century in the USA.

According to the Church’s website there are more than 15m members worldwide, including 186,193 in the UK. The figure is believed to be 300 to 400 in Swindon.

Mormons trace their origins back to the visions of Joseph Smith.

Smith claims an angel directed him to a buried book written on golden plates containing the religious history of an ancient people — which he went on to transcribe.

In 1830, The Book of Mormon, named after the ancient prophet-historian who compiled the plates was published.

The same year Smith founded what is now known as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or LDS.

Mormons believe that Christ’s Church was restored through Smith.

As well as the Book of Mormon, their scriptural canon includes the Bible and a collection of writings and covenants by Joseph Smith.

The fledgling religion was subject to widespread prejudice and persecution and, in 1844, Smith was killed by a mob in Illinois.

The faith, which is often associated with polygamy, did advocate the practice in its early days and many members entered plural marriage as a religious duty. This saw men wed many wives.

The US Government eventually outlawed polygamy and in 1890 the church released a manifesto disavowing plural marriage.

Today several splinter groups still practise polygamy. Many, including the Fundamentalist Church of Latter-day Saints or FLDS, whose leader Warren Jeffs is currently serving a life sentence for sexually assaulting young girls, have made headlines over allegations of forced marriages and abuse.

But Elder Stokes is keen to distance his faith from these ‘cults’.

He also rejects claims that polygamy was only abolished by his Church under duress from the US Government.

“They didn’t abandon it due to the outlawing of it,” he insists.

“They continued to practise it for 30 years plus. When they abandoned it, it was because they had received a revelation that it was time to stop it.”

What lies ahead over the next 18 months remains a mystery, but they have clear plans for their futures.

Their mission complete, they will each attend Mormon universities, Elder Stokes in his native Utah and Elder Vaitoa in Hawaii.

The former hopes to qualify as a civil engineer. Elder Vaitoa wants to pursue a career as a professional rugby player.

For now, though, it is work as usual.

While converts may be far and few between — some missionaries never succeed in piquing the interest of a passer-by — a mission serves a double, highly personal purpose: to strengthen missionaries’ own belief.

So whether they leave a trail of new followers behind or come home empty-handed as it were, the hours spent enlightening the sceptical and often brusque English public will not have been for nothing.

“The leaders of our Church say that if you convert one person, meaning yourself, it’s a success,” concludes Elder Stokes.

“Success is measured by your commitment.”

To get in touch with the missionaries, call 07800 614595. Swindon’s Mormon Chapel is in Highworth Road, SN3 4QS. For more information visit mormon.org.