The Non-Date

So I just hung out with a friend from the mission. I say hung out, and not date, for the following reasons:
1. I was the one who planned said hang out session
2. I was the one who drove there to meet him
3. We each paid for our own meals
Other than these three reasons, the following made it seem like a date:
1. We met for a planned activity
2. We talked for hours and had a great time
3. He texted me afterwards and said we should do something again
It makes me wonder though, what exactly is a date? Dating is definitely eroding these days. Instead of a long period of courtship, people just hook up, or hang out in groups until miraculously a guy and girl from the group decide that they like each other and magically start dating. Going on dates with various guys, then, makes you look like a total player...and that is what we do in Provo.
Our church leaders have told us many times that we are never going to find the right person to marry if we don't date different people and get to know them one-on-one before deciding who we want to pursue a relationship with. They define a date like this: a date must be:
1. Planned 2. Paired off 3. Paid for
Even in Provo, people have different definitions of what a date is, which makes you wonder whether the activity you just did was a date or not, and what the other person thought it was.
Basically, it makes for a confusing dating life.