tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2786908254617003646.post5752207035766388795..comments2024-03-19T01:34:05.989-06:00Comments on Growth of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church): Significant Developments for the LDS Church in AfricaMatthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16030323360917985701noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2786908254617003646.post-9717602620871924382011-06-12T19:09:05.492-06:002011-06-12T19:09:05.492-06:00Good luck moving to Jimeta! Perhaps you will be c...Good luck moving to Jimeta! Perhaps you will be coordinating with mission leadership in establishing a group and introducing investigators and less-active members to the Church there.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16030323360917985701noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2786908254617003646.post-72158746382891913912011-06-12T18:25:28.714-06:002011-06-12T18:25:28.714-06:00I just discovered your wonderful blog today. This ...I just discovered your wonderful blog today. This is an excellent resource. Thank you for your dedication, commitment, and thoroughness. My family and I are moving to Jimeta/Yola, Nigeria and will be the first members of the Church there.Derrill Watsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08996812965100062495noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2786908254617003646.post-12473069905182133792011-06-10T12:17:48.249-06:002011-06-10T12:17:48.249-06:00Great conversation everyone! Sorry I have not com...Great conversation everyone! Sorry I have not commented sooner; I've been pretty busy...<br /><br />Craig - I agree with you that Ethiopia and Angola are following the typical LDS strategy for growth, but we are seeing a more aggressive expansion of national outreach approach than in the past couple decades in Africa. We've seen this in Madagascar, Mozambique, and Kenya lately as branches have been organized in villages which are so small that I have difficulty finding them. One correction though, there are three cities in the DR Congo with stakes now (Kinshasa with five, Lubumbashi with two, and Kananga with one). <br /><br />Tom - Growth in the DR Congo is indeed impressive and exciting, but there have been issues which have delayed growth and slow growth<br /><br />-some branches experience convert retention and activity challenges, such as the Kipushi Branch<br /><br />-trained, qualified leadership is sparse in cities with groups or recently organized congregations<br /><br />-poverty is very challenging for members to serve missions and to sustain themselves economically<br /><br />-the amount of LDS resources dedicated to the DR Congo remains very limited.<br /><br />I have been excited trying to visualize and imagine what the Church will look like in the DR Congo in a decade, but past experience has demonstrated that growth rates often do not remain stable and generally decline over time. I believe that maintaining the current pace of growth for the Church in the DR Congo will require a steady opening of additional cities to missionary work on at least a yearly basis. Membership growth has also picked up in Ghana and South Africa recently by the way...<br /><br />Erik - based on recent membership growth trends, I'd bet that membership in the DR Congo reaches 50,000 before 2015 and perhaps 100,000 by 2010. We may have 15 stakes in the DR Congo within the next few years as nearly all stakes appear posed to divide into new stakes with only a couple exceptions. A senior missionary couple stated that several additional stakes will soon be organized in the country.<br /><br />2.5 - LDS Church growth in the DR Congo is very different than how it occurred in Chile and the Philippines as foreign, full-time missionaries were behind most of the rapid growth in those nations whereas in the DR Congo local members serving missions supply nearly the entire full-time missionary force (and the remainder of the young elder missionaries come from other African nations). Emphasis on church attendance is high in the DR Congo, providing a cultural advantage for the LDS Church in retention and member activity. Also male involvement in religious affairs is very high and most congregations report more active men than women, another stark contrast with Latin America and the Philippines. North American missionaries do not appear likely to be assigned in the near future due to instability, low standards of living, and high sustainability of the local missionary force, but potential challenges may arise if an overemphasis is placed on local full-time missionaries fulfilling administrative duties or assigning too many missionary companionships to a single congregation.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16030323360917985701noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2786908254617003646.post-33983318000751161772011-06-10T11:31:59.643-06:002011-06-10T11:31:59.643-06:00How can we manage DRC better than we did Chile and...How can we manage DRC better than we did Chile and the Phillippines?Nelliehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12617214023993516070noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2786908254617003646.post-85966441900839653952011-06-04T11:10:18.176-06:002011-06-04T11:10:18.176-06:00A new stake has been created in Papua New Guinea. ...A new stake has been created in Papua New Guinea. The 2nd in that country.<br /><br />5 branches have been upgraded into wards in the process.Tomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18251390229042361699noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2786908254617003646.post-30282020311616840442011-06-02T21:21:51.963-06:002011-06-02T21:21:51.963-06:00Tom, always the optimist :) I agree that there is ...Tom, always the optimist :) I agree that there is huge potential for continued growth in the Democratic Republic of Congo. If growth is sustained and a third mission created we could reach as many as 150,000 members here by the end of the decade and a million members in the country 30 years from now. I do hope a temple will be announced for the country within the next few years or we may end up with more than a hundred thousand active members without easy access to a temple!Erikhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12247432962890179185noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2786908254617003646.post-51513707334079900842011-06-02T13:44:46.881-06:002011-06-02T13:44:46.881-06:00The Democratic Republic of the Congo is gaining un...The Democratic Republic of the Congo is gaining unstoppable momentum in terms of Church growth. There are NO issues at all, hence we just have to sit back and enjoy this.<br /><br />*Strong membership growth<br />*Retention is extremely high<br />*Congregational Growth is rapid<br />*Stake Growth is high<br />*Branches are quickly becoming wards<br /><br />It's clear this country needs a temple now in order to progress further. It has 8 stakes and 103 congregations. Surely this is the nation with the lowest membership and the highest number of congregations? <br /><br />But it is clear this nation will lead the entire world in the growth of the church. Imagine how big this will be in 30 years time? By then it will have overtook Ghana, South Africa and Nigeria with all its statistics.<br /><br />We are witnessing a miracle in this country.Tomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18251390229042361699noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2786908254617003646.post-59971804379923224262011-05-29T17:29:49.364-06:002011-05-29T17:29:49.364-06:00Ethiopia and Angola are typical of the Church'...Ethiopia and Angola are typical of the Church's strategy of building from points of strength. <br /><br />Ethiopia is the second most populous country in Africa after Nigeria with 85 million people<br /><br />Angola is now the third largest Portuguese-speaking country in the world with nearly 13 million people--behind only Brazil and Mozambique--more people than Portugal itself.<br /><br />From one branch in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and Luanda, Angola, to multiple branches in each city, to the first district in Addis Ababa in November 2009 and in Luanda in April 2011. Now in other Ethiopia and Angola cities, groups become branches and become future centers of stength. <br /><br />Kinshasa and Lubumbashi have been centers of strength for years in D.R. Congo--each with a mission now. Kananga is the fourth D.R. Congo city with a stake.Craighttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09608876644174580899noreply@blogger.com