- China - 12,500 members? - 12 districts
- Malaysia - 10,845 members - 31 branches - 6 districts
- Guyana - 6,264 members - 11 branches - 2 districts
- Belize - 5,485 members - 12 branches - 2 districts
- Pakistan - 5,000 members - 14 branches - 3 districts
- Armenia - 3,579 members - 11 branches - 2 districts
- Malawi - 3,216 members - 8 branches - 2 districts
- Romania - 3,064 members - 15 branches - 2 districts
- Bulgaria - 2,440 members - 7 branches - 0 districts
- Cameroon - 2,245 members - 13 branches - 2 districts
- Eswatini - 2,091 members - 6 branches - 1 district
- Poland - 2,058 members - 13 branches - 2 districts
- Cook Islands - 1,865 members - 5 branches - 1 district
- Ethiopia - 1,803 members - 4 branches - 1 district
- Tanzania - 1,793 members - 8 branches - 1 district
- Suriname - 1,747 members - 5 branches - 1 district
- Sri Lanka - 1,631 members - 5 branches - 1 district
- Macau - 1,463 members - 2 branches - 1 district
Sunday, April 12, 2020
UPDATED: List of the Countries with the Most Members without a Stake - April 2020 Edition
Below is an updated list of the countries with the most Latter-day
Saints without a stake. Membership totals are as of 2019 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.
Hey, Matt! Another great post-conference report. Thanks for the information. For any readers of this blog who may be interested, I posted a personal update with some major news on my own blog a short while ago. I invite anyone interested to see the post in question on my blog:
ReplyDeletehttps://stokessoundsoff.blogspot.com/2020/04/prayers-would-be-appreciated.html
Tanzania has very positive growth among those nations on this list. A stake or two there soon, after the worst of corona?
ReplyDeleteAlas Poland, Romania, Bukgaria. Slow but sure, I suppose? Too slow.
Malawi and Eswatini also will grow quicker toward stakes, too. And Cameroon, maybe Guyana and Belize.
Malaysia must be so close... Right?
@Matt
ReplyDeleteYou mentioned Swaziland in the description as being close to stake formation, but I don't see it in the list. Am I missing something?
Oh, is Eswatini Swaziland?
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThanks Chris! Guess I need to bone up on my African Geography. :)
DeleteHere is a brief look at the 58 new Area Seventies
ReplyDeletehttps://www.thechurchnews.com/callings/2020-04-13/april-2020-general-conference-58-new-area-seventies-180965
Over a year ago, Tanzania had its first new branch organized since 2011. I wouldn't call that "very positive growth".
ReplyDeletehttps://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/church/news/how-venezuelan-saints-deal-with-change-isolation-and-affliction?lang=eng
ReplyDeleteAn excellent example of staffing missions with local missionaries.
First Presidency announces more than 110 COVID-19 relief projects in 57 countries
ReplyDeletehttps://www.thechurchnews.com/global/2020-04-14/coronavirus-covid-19-relief-efforts-humanitarian-aid-181328
Chris, great letter from the First Presidency. Christopher, there were two branches created in Tanzania in 2019, a 25% increase, so our good friend Eduardo was right. Thank you, Eduardo.
ReplyDeleteYour posts are inspiring.
I appreciate Matt creating this blog forum to speculate about Church growth, which I find inspiring, which is a subject that I have been interested since the early 1980s, or maybe before since General Conferences in the 1970s announcing yearly growth stats.
ReplyDeleteThe way that I read and interpret the Scriptures and listen to the Prophets and Apostles is about the Restoration and the Final Kingdom of God on Earth, and I cannot think of anything bigger or better.
I am inspired by the most inspiring movement in the world.
Once I yelled in my sleep in little Renaico, 9th Region, Chile.
My temporary companion told me what I said because it woke him up:
"Jesus! Jesus! (In Spanish Hay-Seuss) Jesus anda buscando su Iglesia!
I think that some of us truly wish to do the same.
We just finished reading Mosiah 2 as a family. I thought this was an interesting question by one my kids. Are there any temples with open fields around the temple where members could potentially pitch tents like in King Benjamin’s time? Any thoughts or possible info on this notion?
ReplyDeleteBishop Causse has mentioned camping out by the Swiss temple in tents on trips as a youth.
DeleteI think the Sacramento California temple is on church owned camping property.
DeleteI'm not aware of any. But if you think about it, the way in which each of us, in our own homes, were able to watch the April 2020 General Conference from the comfort of our own homes (including Saints in far-flung areas such as Africa, the Philippines, and the Pacific, who did so for the first time), each of us figuratively pitched our spiritual tents within the sound of the prophet's voice, much like the people of King Benjamin pitched actual tents without the sound of that prophet's voice. And much like King Benjamin, President Nelson gave a message that will also be distributed to all of the Saints, including those far away from the location from which the message originated. The most profound differences between the two are mainly that there is not a single space anywhere in the world large enough to enable all living Saints to gather in one spot to hear the prophet, and that the methods of transmitting the message itself and distributing it after the fact are markedly different. HOpe that helps.
ReplyDeleteThe Manti temple has the pageant grounds right next to the parking lot. Also, the Smith farm may have open areas within earshot of the Palmyra temple.
ReplyDeleteThe Smith farm areas may not be good camping ground though- the church has a campsite next to the Hill Cumorah, which is almost 3 miles away.
ReplyDeleteLos Angeles Temple has a massive green lawn to the front sloping down the hill to Wilshire Blvd. It is extremely popular for wedding day photography. I can easily see putting a whole stake youth group in tents there. I don't know what the neighbors would think though.
ReplyDeleteSee the Church’s new 2020 leadership assignments around the world
ReplyDeletehttps://www.thechurchnews.com/callings/2020-04-16/new-2020-area-leadership-assignments-worldwide-181174
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteElder Joseph W. Stati I believe becomes the first black area president. Also with Elder Mutombo as his counselor it is the first black majority area presidency, and means the majority of the new area presidency is from the area.
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting that Hideki Aoki is returning to preside over the Tokyo Temple a second time. Is it in renovation and was he the last pre renovation president?
ReplyDeleteOn the area leadership assignments, Elder Kearon, as anticipated, will become the first Senior President of the Seventy to have been born outside North America since the Presidency of the Seventy was originally reconstituted in October 1975. And there will be a major reshuffling in the Missionary Department, as its' Executive Director, Elder Brent H. Nielson, will become the newest member of the Presidency of the Seventy. I believe there is a high likelihood that Elder Weatherford T. Clayton may assume Elder Nielson's current assignment.
ReplyDeleteI also very much appreciated the additional information the Church News article that announced these changes shared, namely: 4 of the 22 area presidencies will not see any changes; the changes include 8 new area presidents; 4 of the released area presidents will be reassigned to serve as counselors in different area presidencies; 2 of the counselors in 2 different area presidencies are area seventies; and finally, that 3 of the newly-called counselors in area presidencies are new GA Seventies sustained earlier this month in General Conference.
I have provided a more thorough analysis on these changes on my blog:
https://stokessoundsoff.blogspot.com/2020/04/breaking-news-first-presidency.html
Regarding new temple presidents, in the case of the Tokyo Japan Temple, I am able to confirm that the same man who was president of that temple when it closed for renovation in 2017. That led me to look back at temples that have been rededicated in the last year, or those for which a rededication will occur within this next year. Memphis Tennessee, OKC Oklahoma, Raleigh North Carolina, and Washington D.C. will all be getting new presidents later this year. For Oakland, a new president began serving just before that temple closed for renovation, so he continues to serve now. A new president for the Frankfurt Germany Temple was called as it was being prepared to reopen last year, and a new president was called for the Asuncion Paraguay Temple in 2018. New presidents for Baton Rouge Louisiana and Mesa Arizona were called in 2017, so new presidents for both could be called either this year or next year. And the man who presided over the Hamilton New Zealand Temple prior to its' renovation closure in 2016 was also called to resume that service once it reopens.
ReplyDeleteAnyone interested in my document tracking temples for which a new president has been or may be called this year can review it at the following web address:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qcf4P9oxAlBJ7Mh20Ixy11WQ7BQGxOtgqIRwnFhSn6A/edit?usp=sharing
On the subject of temples, based on the latest updates provided by the Church Temples site and many of my other sources, it appears likely that groundbreaking arrangements will be announced within the next 2 months or less for the Washington County, Taylorsville, Orem, and Tooele Valley Utah Temples (not necessarily in that order), and that the groundbreakings for each of those temples could take place between the beginning of August and the end of September, though I cannot rule out the possibility that one or two of them could have a groundbreaking scheduled for May or June.
ReplyDeleteI also have reason to believe that, in the coming months, action will also be taken towards groundbreakings for the following additional temples as well: Feather River California, Moses Lake Washington, McAllen Texas, Brasilia Brazil, San Pedro Sula Honduras, Coban Guatemala, and Managua Nicaragua. But I would also not be shocked to see the Church working on the backlog of announced temples in Africa (where 6 temples have been announced since April 2016), Asia (where 4 temples have been announced since April 2018), the Philippines and Pacific Areas, and the nation of Argentina (the last 3 of which have 3 temples each in the current queue).
But with the brisk pace of announcements related to temples that has been set by the First Presidency this year so far, I have no doubt we will see many more such announcements between now and the end of the year. My thanks to you all for wading through this extensive commentary from me.
Hello!!
ReplyDeleteGrowth is relative in some countries, it would be important to know how many are active and work for the gospel without pay.
Thanks to those who give of their time and energy, the church grows and maintains itself despite the obstacles.
I hope that the day has come and that it is not too far away, that there are temples everywhere where there are faithful members, however few they are, we all know that paying a tithe is not easy, especially if the salary is low or there are many expenses, Not only does it have to do with faith, it has to do with opportunities, coincidentally, the most faithful members of the Church are the poor and not the rich.
A hug from Chile
Omar Elías
@Historia Familiar Valenzuela Escobar
DeletePlenty of the rich in the church are faithful, too. Lots of our righteous leaders are successful and wealthy businessmen. Faithfulness is determined by what you do with your talents, not by how many or how little you've been given.