Mozambique
Unprecedented opening of additional cities to the LDS Church continues in Mozambique. LDS Missionaries serving in the Mozambique Maputo Mission report that another city opened for full-time missionary work in the past month outside of Beira, Mozambique in a medium-sized town named Dondo. Full-time missionaries have experienced high receptivity and success in the few weeks of proselytism in Dondo, bringing around 40 investigators and members to church meetings in nearby Beira by bus. Full-time missionaries anticipate the opening of two additional cities by the end of the year: Quelimane and Xai-Xai. All new cities opened to missionary work in Mozambique over the past several months have no branches organized as groups operate in these areas, usually under the Mozambique Maputo Mission.
Nicaragua
The Nicaragua Managua North Mission assigned full-time missionaries for the first time to three additional cities, all of which were among the 10 most populated without an LDS Church presence. Latter-day Saint mission outreach centers are now established in Ocotal and Somoto by the Honduran border and in the small town of Rio Blanco located east of Matagalpa.
Ghana
Missionaries in the Ghana Cape Coast Mission report that missionaries have opened the large city of Sunyani, located northeast of Kumasi. Sunyani was the third most populous city in Ghana without an LDS presence and becomes the most northern city to have an LDS mission outreach center established. Sunyani is one of the few cities in West Africa to ever have full-time missionaries assigned prior to the creation of a branch. Four missionaries work in the city, and additional missionaries will likely be assigned in the coming months. Tamale, the largest city in Ghana without an LDS congregation, is located in north central Ghana and remains without mission outreach.
What is an outreach center?
ReplyDeletewhat is the differecne between a branch and a group?
What are the chances for Cuba opening up for missionary work in the forseeable future. It seems many churches can operate there.
ReplyDeleteI think leaving out the US embargo we coulds end elders from Canada and Mexico or other countries that maintain ties with the island nation. I listened on the radio yesterday about many evangelcal churches that are growing strong and alowed to worship there.The Catholic church is gaining freedoms as well.
I use term "outreach center" to mean a city in which full-time missionaries are stationed or a group/branch/ward is established. So some of these cities which were opened by the Church mentioned in this post have missionaries, but no LDS congregation, but because full-time missionaries regularly work in the city/area I call it an outreach center. There are some groups/branches/wards which have no full-time missionaries, but offer opportunity for the general population to learn about the Church and attend. I hope that this clarifies what I mean by an outreach center.
ReplyDeleteA group is a congregation not reported by the Church as it is a sub-unit of a branch or ward. Groups are usually established when there are multiple Latter-day Saints in a given area far from the nearest LDS ward or branch. Some groups met specific language needs. There has been an increased emphasis in the last few years to start the Church in a new area with groups prior to the creation of a branch.
Many branches are created from groups, particularly in remote areas.
Missionaries in the Dominican Republic reported a year ago that the Church had begun to look into the possibility of sending missionaries to Cuba. I have not heard any updates concerning the matter, but I personally think that this could occur in the immediate future. LDS membership in Cuba has steadily grown over the past few years, yet numbers fewer than 100.
ReplyDeleteIt would be wonderful if missionaries were allowed in Cuba. I read that when Fidel Castro retired, and his brother took over, that he said he would start removing some of the restrictions on the country, such as religious freedom.
ReplyDeleteHow many speakers would be needed to merit a BoM translation. I think it could help convert more people in Alaska and Canada if it were translated into the native languages. Probably Central Alaska Yup'ik is the most likely to have a translation first.
ReplyDeleteEskimo-Aleut Family
-Aleut ~ ap. 150 speakers
-Eskimo Family
--Central Alaskan Yup'ik ~ ap. 10,000 speakers
--Central Siberian Yup'ik (Yuit) ~ 1,350 speakers (300 of which is in Russia)
--Alutiiq (Pacific Gulf Yupik) ~ no estimate
--Naukan ~ ap. 70 speakers
--Inuit Family
---Inupiaq ~ ap. 2100 speakers
Athabaskan-Eyak-Tlingit Family
-Tlingit ~ ap. 300-500 speakers
-Athabaskan Family
--Ahtna ~ ap. 80 speakers
--Dena'ina (Tanaina) ~ ap. 75-95 speakers
--Deg Xinag (Deg Hit'an) ~ ap. 15 speakers
--Holikachuk (Innoko) ~ no estimate
--Koyukon ~ ap. 300 speakers
--Upper Kuskokwim (Kolchan)~ ap. 40 speakers
--Lower Tanana (Tanana) ~ ap. 30 speakers
--Tanacross ~ ap <60 speakers
--Upper Tanana ~ ap <100 speakers
--Gwich'in (Kutchin) ~ ap. 300 speakers
--Han ~ ap. 10 speakers
Haida ~ap. 45 speakers
Tsimshianic
-Coast Tsimshian ~ ap. 200 speakers
Sirenik and Eyak are extinct languages