Below is an updated list of the countries with the most Latter-day
Saints without a stake. Membership totals are as of 2023 and
congregational and district totals are current. Estimated membership for mainland
China and Pakistan is provided as official statistics are unavailable. The
number of branches in mainland China is not provided due
to the sensitive nature of the
Church in that country. Previous lists of the countries with the most
members without a stake can be found here.
- China - 12,500 members? - 12 districts
- Malaysia - 11,086 members - 24 branches - 5 districts
- Guyana - 6,834 members - 12 branches - 2 districts
- Pakistan - 6,000 members? - 15 branches, 4 districts
- Belize - 5,631 members - 12 branches - 2 districts
- Malawi - 4,776 members - 13 branches - 2 districts
- Tanzania - 3,969 members - 27 branches - 4 districts
- Armenia - 3,572 members - 7 branches - 1 district
- Romania - 3,103 members - 15 branches - 1 district
- Cameroon - 3,071 members - 16 branches - 2 districts
- Bulgaria - 2,414 members - 7 branches - 1 district
- Eswatini - 2,253 members - 6 branches - 1 district
- Ethiopia - 2,193 members - 8 branches - 1 district
- Poland - 2,178 members - 11 branches - 1 district
- Cook Islands - 1,888 members - 5 branches - 1 district
- Suriname - 1,848 members - 6 branches - 1 district
- Sri Lanka - 1,674 members - 5 branches - 1 district
- Lesotho - 1,562 members - 6 branches - 1 district
- Burundi - 1,541 members - 6 branches - 1 district
- Rwanda - 1,537 members - 9 branches -1 district
As noted in the list from 2023, prospects appear most favorable for the formation of stakes within the next few years in mainland China, Malaysia, Guyana, Belize, Pakistan, Eswatini, and Cameroon as all of these countries have at least one district that is close to reaching the minimum qualifications for a stake to operate. However, additional countries also now appear likely to have stakes organized in the next 1-2 years, including Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, and Suriname. As noted in previous posts, low member activity rates, an insufficient number of branches in individual member districts, slow or stagnant growth, and few full-tithe paying Melchizedek Priesthood holders will likely continue to delay the organization of stakes in other countries for several more years to come.
25 comments:
What are the main advantages/disadvantages of creating a stake?
Malawi I am thinking also has good prospects to get a stake. I am thinking Malaysia is a place where the temple will help people be ready to get a stake.
Temples do not always succeed stakes. In Cintinental Europe and Britain it would have taken longer to get a stake without a temple. The issues in Hawai'i are complex. Although the stKe started with a Hawaiian in stake Presidency, but about two thirds of the initial overall leadership was Haoles, and in some key ways Honolulu Stake was just as much a Utah/Idaho expatriate stake as New York and Chicago also created in the 1930s.
New Zealand gets a stake at the same time as the temple, more or less, but in a different geographical area. The first stake is in Aukland, the temple in Hamilton.
The biggest disadvantage to stakes is thry are fully autonomous under local leadership, with no model for mission president oversight. This means you need spiritual mature leaders over a stake.
Conversely this is also the advantage. It allows for the top decision to be made by someone with more than 3 years experience in the area.
Stakes also free mission presidents to focus on missionary work not Ch7rch administration. In a district it is the mission president who issues temple recommends, sets apart missionaries and I believe is responsible for melchizedek priesthood ordination. Also he oversee church discipline. All these things are done by a stake president. Basically the mission president is the stake president over a district.
The largest and most obvious difference is that stakes have patriarchs, districts do not. Stakes also have high priesrs Quorum districts do not. I am not sure what that means from a practical level, but it is a difference.
Stakes have high councils with 12 members. A district does not need a council, and it does not need to have 12 members. In part because some things done by stake high councils are not done by districts at all, but by the mission.
Stakes contain only branches. The difference between wards and bemraches are less clear. Wards have biships, but Wards the counselors in a branch presidents have all the same functions. Branch presidents counselors cannot issue temple recommends but bishop's counselors can. Bishops need yo be approved higher up than branch presidents.
There may be a difference here or there I missed. There are other places where adoption is allowed, but those are not things that stakes can do and districts cannot. They are based on need and resources,
The temple in Kiev Ukraine was announced before a stake was created. But by the time it was built and dedicated a stake was created.
There are rumors that they will split our district this weekend at District Conference and add the branches to the two nearest stakes. We'll see how that turns out!
Anonymous, I'm curious, if you can tell us which District is that you attend that is rumored to be split between the 2 nearest Stakes? Just for my records to follow up on that this weekend. You don't have to give your name to remain Anonymous as your moniker suggests.
But I would love to know which is the District that may be merged this weekend.
Thanks again for reporting it.
Excited about all the news about the Temples of the restoration. Sounds like the new Nauvoo Temple visitors center has its permits approved.
I’m anticipating that once all historical analysis is done with the Kirtland temple, which will probably be a year or two they will announce a renovation and some structural strengthening like they’ve done on most Pioneer tabernacles and Temples. It will be interesting if they take it back to the gray with blue painted mortar lines like was and with the red roof. When they do a renovation I also hope they rebuild The Printing Office that was behind the temple as part of the historical site which had so many significant events happen in it. Which include: Printing of the 2nd edition of BoM, 1st edition of D&C, 1st Hymnal and other newspapers. Also the quorum of the twelve and seventy were first organized in this building and it also housed the school of the prophets. I think they might have to build a Kirtland Temple visitors center like they are doing in Nauvoo. This is and going to be such a spiritual place!
I know the Cleveland Temple will be supporting several stakes but maybe with it being 20 miles from Kirtland it’s considered to be a visiting Temple like the Winter Quarters and Palmyra Temples. Do people tend to travel through Cleveland to visit Kirtland?
And the last Pioneer Temple to get a renovation will be Logan, which I will be excited to see the plans for it. With Manti and St. George buttoned up I assume it will come shortly unless they are waiting for the Smithfield to be completed. Has anybody heard?
On another note about Pioneer Temples, I visited the St George Temple a few weeks ago and it was shocking to see how many people were at the visitors center and temple grounds on a weekday. It’s stunning!
Craig,
It looks like Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne all have similar sized temple districts, so perhaps there will be a need for the other two also at some point. My guess from looking at a map of the Melbourne district is that when a 2nd temple is built, it would be somewhere on the west or north.
Searchthetruth, I agree, I hope they rebuild some of those other buildings in Kirtland.
Of course, another option with the Melbourne temple is to split it by building a temple in Tasmania to serve the two stakes on that island.
New District in the Philippines.
The Pandan Philippines District has been officially created during a combined conference of the Kalibo Philippines Stake and the Antique Philippines District on April 14.
The district is composed of Ibajay Branch, Buruanga Branch (formerly part of the Kalibo Philippines Stake) Pandan Branch, Culasi Branch, and Tibiao Branch (formerly part of the Antique Philippines District).
Members in Antique have long been wanting to become a stake. When I served there in 2011 there were 5 branches, but in the following years they opened three new branches up the coast of Antique. Many were hoping one of them would become ward size so they could become a stake. It appears Antique will have to wait a little bit longer :) .
I give Kirtland at least 15 years for a major renovation, as that is the agreement with the Community of Christ to allow them to continue to use it. Unless there are brief closers for minor repairs a few weeks at a time. Or if there is a need for eminent or urgent repairs
Craig, unless I'm mistaken, anyone who comments with a blogger account has the capability to delete their own comments and any replies to it. When I comment, it shows me a reply and delete option. I apologize if my reply to you on the other thread or here made you feel bad. That wasn't my intention.
The Kirtland Temple has a visitors center. Building a replica of the olorint shop would be a great addition but might take a lot of time and effort.
The Kirtland Visitors Center seemed adequate to me, but there might be ways that is would need to be expanded.
JPL, that’s right there is nice visitor center as part of the Kirtland purchase.
Thanks L. Chris Jones, you are right about the agreement, I guess I was under the understanding that Community of Christ knew some work needed to be put in it. 15 years will be a bit to wait.
It occurred to me that Lima will receive new temples in the same project as Mexico City before São Paulo or Manila, probably now in October. The concentration of Stakes is impressive and the ancient temple is very, very small
A post on Facebook announces that the creation of the Lapu-Lapu Philippines Stake has been approved, and a three-story building will serve as the stake center, generating excitement among everyone anticipating the use of this chapel. Additionally, the upcoming Mandaue Stake (Phils. Cebu East Mission) Conference and the historic creation of the Lapu-Lapu Stake are set to take place on May 18-19, 2024
facebook.com/watch/?v=1433847427228812
A Stake is part of zion . Zion is a big tent set by thousands of stakes.
The Lima Peru Temple is smaller than Detroit Michigan Temple and Birmingham Alambama Temple. So I really think Lima is getting more temples very soon.
Late was in the Honololulu stake when it was formed in 1935. This has caused me to wonder when there was last a stake that now has 2 temples. Mexico City stake when formed probably included both Mexico City and Mexico City Benemerito Temples in its boundaries. I am not sure if Tolucca would have been in Mexico City stake.
John PL, thanks for the review between stake and district authorities: it has been a while. I recall a stake president in Concepcion doing a follow up baptismal interview, but in Angol when it was a district it was run by the mission president (when I was a young missionary). 14 years later I got to be a member of the bishopric of that branch-turned ward, in the Angol Stake, but I did not conduct any interviews like that. Perhaps we were slow on the take?
I have been a branch president; I had most of the keys like a bishop, but as you mentioned, the counselors could not do as much with interviews as I have seen them do as counselors in a ward. The stake high council brings a lot of authority and experience to bear.
To try to answer the original question, stakes are stronger and more autonomous. Bishops and their counselors have more authority, keys, if you will, to do the Lord's work.
I do not think that I have added much to the answers and responses above, but having a stake presidency and wards and bishops is the goal. Most branches are just not big enough, not ideal.
How many stakes will be created this year? Guesses?
Please identify places with names or places, that is helpful.
Commentary about the Winchester temple of northern Virginia.
There is big growth in Virginia towards that temple, but there is also impressive growth in the West Virginia pan handle of that area. Taxes and cost of living are lower, which attracts many. The temple should be busy, and busier after construction, I presume.
I just noticed I made a typo in my last comment. In 1935 when Honolulu Stake was organized it included Lai'e as one of its wards. So with the announcement of the Honolulu temple we will get 2 temples where there was once 1 stake. The Oahu Stake was split in 1955 with the formation of the Honolulu Stake. Until the Honolulu Temple site is announced I cannot say for sure that it and Laine were in different stakes even then, but for now that is my assumption. That gives us 69 years from stake split to 2 temples. Guatemala City it looks like it is 45 years at most. There was only 1 stake there until 1975. I have no idea if the 2 stakes in 1975 split the 2 temples cites. A 3rd stake was formed in 1976. Lima looks like it was 42 years from getting 2 stakes to having a 2nd temple. The Philippines may have only 40 years. A second temple was announced for metro Manila in 2017. In 1977 metro Manilla went from 1 to 3 stakes. I can't tell if Lehi temple site and Satatoga Springs get split when the Lehi Notlrth stake is formed in 1974 or when Lehi West Stake forms in 1983.
It looks like Manila might hold the current record as 40 years after a stake split the old stake has multiple temples in its boundary.
Winchester Virginia gets a stake in 1977. However Oakton Virginia Stake dates to 1963. It looks like that is when northern Virginia gets a stake distinct from DC, although I have no clue what the boundaries were then. The only stake in Marland is DC stake until the 1970 formation of Silver Spring stake. Baltimore does not get a stake until 1974. So it looks like DC and Winchester are in different stakes starting in 1963. Even if Winchester wad in the DC stake until 1977 it would not beat the Manilla time from 1 stake to 2 temples. The list of stakes that ever coveted as area that now has more than 1 temple is probably fairly short. Most are probably in Utah. DC stake is one of few in the eastern US. Outside Utah and Idaho where you have some layered examples, there are probably not more than 10 examples. Oahu Stake in Hawaii, Houston, the first stake in Mesa, Washington stake, the 1st stake in Portland may have included both the Portland and Vancouncver Temples. We're Seatle and Tacoma rver in the same stake? Did Dallas stake ever tale in where the north suburban temple is being built.
As stake president Spencer W. Kimball in Thatcher had Ciudad Juarez in his stake. I am not sure if he had where the Gila Valley Temple was, most of the valley was in the Safford Stake. I am also not sure if Safford stake took in El Paso and Xiudad Juarez before Thatcher was split off.
Alberta weay have a case of a stake at one point covering multiple templexsites as well. Was Victoria ever in the Vancouver Stake? Feather River was never in the Sacramento Stake. Gridley Stake and Sacramento were formed the same day.
V v
I think there was a time when alm Orange County was 1 stake so Yorba Linda and Huntington Beach were once all 1 stake. That ended probably in the early 1950s. So almost 70 years before the second temple was announced.
Outside the US and Canada it is probably only Mexico City, Guatemala City, Sao Paulo, Santiago, Brisbane. Manila and that might be it.
Post a Comment