Bare-Chested Male Missionaries Get Calendar Creator Excommunicated
Updated: Leaders of the Mormon church excommunicated yesterday the creator of a beefcake calendar that features male missionaries still wearing their traditional black trousers, but not necessarily their traditional white dress shirts.
Chad Hardy’s 2008 “Men on a Mission” calendar sold nearly 10,000 copies at $14.99 each, reports the Associated Press. Leaders felt the calendar did not project a proper image of the church, according to Hardy, 31, an inactive Mormon who is a sixth-generation member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
He bears the church council in Las Vegas who punished him no ill will: “They did what they believed was right, and I really do feel it was the best decision for both of us,” he says.
Other than to confirm the excommunication, a church representative declined to comment.
The controversial shots can be viewed on a website that sells the calendar.
Updated at 3:20 p.m. to include website link.
