One of the most nerve-racking experiences a person could have in their life would be to be Mormon and be waiting to find out where they are going to be sent for their missionary work. It could be somewhere wonderful (my brother-in-law was sent to Brazil and loved it) or somewhere awful. I’m sure the LDS sends missionaries out to the Middle East, and that can’t be a fun sales pitch. So if you’re BYU basketball player Chris Collinsworth, getting sent to Sydney must have been as good as you can get: great weather, beaches, no language issues or weird local foods (unless you count Vegamite) to deal with.

I would have thought that the biggest danger for a Mormon missionary in Sydney would have been to get run over by a car, or perhaps to have someone try to be funny and slip some vodka into your water. But apparently it’s a bit more dangerous than that, as the SALT LAKE TRIBUNE reports that Collinsworth and another missionary, David Ferguson, were attacked and stabbed while heading back to their apartments on Tuesday night.

Frighteningly, Collinsworth and his fellow missionary were attacked completely out of the blue, with no known motive. Personally, I can’t image a group of three guys just decided to attack a group of kids that included a 6-9 guy, but that’s just me. Here’s how the DESERET NEWS says the attack happened:

As the 6-foot-9 Collinsworth was busy fighting off the first attacker, a second man then began assaulting him. When Ferguson tried to pull the second attacker away, the third man stabbed and slashed both missionaries with a small knife. During the tussle, the attackers managed to pull Collinsworth’s shirt up over his face and tackle him to the ground. While on the ground, and with his shirt over his face, Collinsworth was kicked and slugged repeatedly.

No suspects have been caught yet, so it’s hard to ascertain a motive yet. But the area the two missionaries were attacked on is called “Little Lebanon” and an AP story says that witnesses have described the assaliants as “Middle Eastern in appearance.” Do with that information what you will.

Give Collinsworth a lot of credit - he’s not letting a little thing like getting stabbed and beaten by a gang of thugs stop him from fulfilling his duty to his church: he’s back at his mission home by Wednesday and is ready to get back to work. Personally, I think it would be OK if the guy took a day or two off.