After shocking the Aussie rugby world by leaving a promising career in Australia’s National Rugby League to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (often inadvertently called the “Mormon Church”), Lagi Setu is back in full force and more consistent than ever.
Setu became famously known as “that Mormon guy” who gave up his lucrative career with the Broncos as a second-rower to serve a two-year Mormon mission to Nottingham, England, in 2010.
Choosing to be a Missionary Rather Than a Footballer for Two Years
Why would anyone choose to serve a mission over pursuing a promising rugby career?
Latter-day Saints believe that young men (age 18-25) are called by God to sacrifice two years of their lives in Mormon missionary service. The daily life of a Mormon missionary focuses on sharing the teachings of Jesus Christ with local people in the geographical region where the missionary is assigned to serve during those two years. In addition to fulfilling a duty to God, a mission blesses the life of the missionary in many ways. Missionary service strengthens habits of hard work, discipline, interpersonal skills, and increased spiritual awareness.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints also encourages young women to serve a mission for 18 months. At 19 years old, I put my college studies on hold to serve a mission in Scotland. The skills I learned while working closely with other missionaries have been beneficial throughout my subsequent career. More importantly though was the opportunity to put faith into action and teach principals of the gospel of Jesus Christ to many who had not heard of the Savior or did not understand His teachings. My personal testimony of His divinity and mission grew as I shared Jesus Christ’s good news with others and consequently blessed my life with peace and purpose.
Effects of Setu’s Mormon Mission
Though many, including Setu himself, doubted if he would play rugby professionally again, he signed with the Melbourne Storm only 4 months after his return from England.
“Being away on the Mission I think taught me to focus more and that has helped me in my football this year,” Setu said. “At the Broncos I wasn’t consistent. I had good and bad games. Now I do the one per cent things. I understand why you need to be good in every game and play for the team.” 1
Setu’s goal now is to be known as a great, consistent player instead of just as “that Mormon guy.”
“Everyone does just think of me as that Mormon guy and that’s fine, I get it, but I would like [to] be thought of as someone who is playing good footy. I have [a] long way to go but I hope people start to focus on me as just an NRL player. I have a lot of goals in football I want to achieve. This is just the start.” 2