Cameroon
The Church created its first stake in the African nation of Cameroon on June 1st. The Yaounde Cameroon Stake was organized from the Yaounde Cameroon District (organized in 2012). Over 900 people attended the meeting to create the new stake. The new stake includes the following five wards and four branches: the Anguissa, the Bastos, the Ekounou, the Eleveur, and the Mimboman Wards and the Biyem-Assi, the Messassi, the Obili (English), and the Soa Branches. Reports over the past couple years have noted that the district was close to becoming a stake but continued to need to maintain the minimum standards for the stake to be created. Cameroon is the second African nation thus far in 2025 to have had its first stake organized (the first stake in Tanzania was organized in Dar es Salaam in January).
There is now one stake and one district in Cameroon. The Church reported 3,327 members in Cameroon as of year-end 2024.
Chile
The Church organized a new stake in Chile on May 11th. The Alto Hospicio Chile Stake was organized from the Alto Hospicio Chile District (organized in 2005) which was created when the Church's second stake in Iquique, the Iquique Chile South Stake, was discontinued (originally organized in 1997). The new stake includes the following five wards and two branches: the La Pampa, the Las Américas, the Los Aromos, the Los Cóndores, and the Tarapacá Wards and the Pica and Pozo Almonte Branches. Local leaders are ambitious that a third stake may be created in Iquique one day, although this goal appears unlikely to be reached for many years considering the Iquique Chile Stake has only six wards. The new stake in Alto Hospicio is the first new stake created in northern Chile since 2014.
There are now 80 stakes and nine districts in Chile.
Colombia
A new stake was organized in Colombia from the Palmira Colombia District (organized in 1986) and the Tuluá Colombia District (organized in 1992). The new stake includes the following five wards and three branches: the Bizerta, Buga, El Recreo, Santa Bárbara, and Tuluá Wards and the Andalucía, El Cerrito, and Zarzal Branches. Several branches were discontinued as part of the process of converting branches into wards, including two branches in Tuluá and one branch in Buga.
A new district was organized from three mission branches in the Colombia Bogota North Mission. The Casanare Colombia District was organized with three branches, namely the Aguazul, the El Alcaraván, and the Los Helechos Branches.
There are now 32 stakes and nine districts in Colombia.
Kansas
A new stake was organized in Kansas on June 1st. The Overland Park Kansas Stake was organized from the Lenexa Kansas Stake (organized in 1994) and the Olathe Kansas Stake (organized in 1986). The new stake includes the following six wards and one branch: the Heritage Park, Overland Park 1st, Overland Park 2nd, Overland Park 3rd, Paola, and Stanley Wards and the Mound City Branch. The new stake is the first new stake created in Kansas since the Garden City Kansas Stake was organized in 2003.
There are now eight stakes in Kansas.
Maine
A new stake was organized in Maine on June 8th. The Portland Maine Stake was organized from the Augusta Maine Stake (organized in 1968). The new stake includes the following seven wards and one branch: the Cornish, Oxford, Portland, Saco, Topsham, Windham, and Yarmouth Wards and the Casco Bay YSA Branch. The other two stakes and the Saint John New Brunswick Stake were also realigned as part of the new stake creation. The last time a new stake was created in Maine was in 1986.
There are now three stakes in Maine.
Missouri
A new stake was organized in Missouri on June 8th. The Shoal Creek Missouri Stake was created from the Liberty Missouri Stake (organized in 1979) and the Platte City Missouri Stake (organized in 1997). The new stake includes the following six wards and one branch: the New Mark, North Kansas City, Oak Grove, Platte Woods, Smithville Lake, and Tiffany Springs Wards and the San Rafael (Spanish) Branch.
Papua New Guinea
A new stake was organized in Papua New Guinea on May 25th. The Lae Papua New Guinea Stake was organized from the Lae Papua New Guinea District (organized in 2017). The new stake includes the following six wards and two branches: the Lae, Malahang, Ngasuwampu, Taraka, Wara Kalap, and Yalu Bridge Wards and the Kavieng and Yalu Branches. The creation of the new stake is a major success that would have been unlikely without the creation of the Papua New Guinea Lae Mission in 2013. More information about the creation of the new stake can be found here. The new stake is the Church's second stake to be created in northern Papua New Guinea within the past 12 months.
There are now four stakes and 10 districts in Papua New Guinea.
Also, the Church's fifth stake in Papua New Guinea, the Oro Papua New Guinea Stake, is scheduled to be organized on June 15th.
Peru
A new stake was organized in Peru on May 18th. The Lima Perú La Victoria Stake was organized from the Lima Perú Limatambo Stake (organized in 1970), the Lima Perú Magdalena Stake (organized in 1974), and the Lima Perú San Luis Stake (organized in 1983). The new stake includes the following five wards: the Balconcillo, the El Porvenir, the Jesús María, the La Victoria, and the Santa Beatriz Wards.
There are now 50 stakes in the Lima metropolitan area - more than any other metropolitan area in the world outside of the United States.
There are now 116 stakes and 18 districts in Peru. The Cañete Perú Stake will be organized from the Cañete Perú District on June 22nd.
Tennessee
A new stake was created in Tennessee on June 8th from the Chattanooga Tennessee Stake. The new Cleveland Tennessee Stake includes the following five wards and one branch: the Athens, Cleveland, Dalton, Dayton, and Ooltewah Wards and the Collegedale Branch. This new stake is the Church's second new stake to be created in Tennessee this year.
There are now 13 stakes in Tennessee.
Utah
A new stake was organized in Utah on June 8th. The Lehi Utah Hardman Farms Stake was organized from a division of the Lehi Utah Holbrook Farms Stake (organized in 2019). The new stake includes the following six wards: the Hardman Farms 1st, Hardman Farms 2nd, Hardman Farms 3rd, Hardman Farms 4th, Hardman Farms 5th, and the Hardman Farms 6th Wards.
There are now 25 stakes in Lehi.
There are now 644 stakes and six districts in Utah.
Virginia
A new stake was organized in Virginia on June 1st. The Mechanicsville Virginia Stake was organized from the Richmond Virginia Stake, the Richmond Virginia Chesterfield Stake, the Richmond Virginia Midlothian Stake, and the Newport News Virginia Stake. The new stake includes the following five wards and two branches: the Chickahominy, Meadowbrook, Mechanicsville, Scotchtown, and Tappahannock Wards and the New Kent and Richmond Branches.
There are now four stakes in the Richmond metropolitan area.
There are now 25 stakes in Virginia.
Washington
A new stake was organized in Washington State on June 1st. The Moses Lake Washington Stake was organized from the Moses Lake Washington Stake and one branch from the Spokane Washington West Stake. The new stake includes the following five wards and one branch: the Garden Heights, Larson Heights, O'Sullivan, Pioneer, and Ridgeview Wards and the Ritzville Branch.
There are now two stakes in Moses Lake.
There are now 62 stakes in Washington State.
Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo)
Two new districts were recently organized in the DR Congo.
The Bandundu DR Congo District was organized from three branches that formerly were under the direct supervision of the DR Congo Kinshasa South Mission, namely the Bandundu, Disasi, and Mayoyo Branches. All three branches are located in the city of Bandundu where the first branch was created in 2020.
The Tshitenge Democratic Republic of the Congo District was organized from four branches in the Dibindi DR Congo Stake (organized in 2022) and one recently organized mission branch (Lukalaba). The new district includes the following five branches: the Kabwe, Kambanja, Lukalaba, Sangu, and the Tshitenge Branches. The first branch in this area was created in Tshitenge in 2011 back when Mbuji-Mayi was a district.
Prospects appear favorable for the organization of many additional districts in the DR Congo due to the rapid and unprecedented expansion of the Church into previously unreached areas. Locations that appear likely to have districts organized within the near future include Boma (2 branches), Bukavu (2 branches), Kamanda (2 branches), Kikwit (3 branches), Kimpese (3 branches), Kipushi (2 branches), Luiza (2 branches), Muanda (2 branches), Tshikapa (2 branches), and Uvira (2 branches).
There are now 34 stakes and five districts in the DR Congo. On June 15th, three new stakes will be created in Kananga and one new stake will be created in Kinshasa, thereby bringing the total number of stakes in the country to 38.
Brazil
A district was recently discontinued in Brazil. The Três Rios Brazil District (organized in 2016) was discontinued. The district previously had five branches. Two branches in Três Rios were consolidated to create a ward in the Petrópolis Brazil Stake and one branch was also assigned to this stake. Another branch was reassigned to the Volta Redonda Brazil Stake (Vassouras) and another branch was discontinued (Valença).
There are now 288 stakes and 35 districts in Brazil.
58 comments:
I'm curious as to which US state has gone the longest without creating a new stake? I feel like it would have to be one in New England, probably Vermont or New Hampshire. Curious since Maine received its first since 1986, not sure if anyone has relevant data
Interesting article that relates to Church growth in Colorado City of all places -
https://www.stgeorgeutah.com/news/local/new-lds-chapel-nears-completion-in-short-creek-marking-momentous-shift-in-historically-insular-town/article_a59b4640-d236-4581-86fc-95cee02ee49a.html
Later this year, Colorado City will get its first dedicated LDS meetinghouse. Apparently there are around 800 members in the Apple Valley Ward, which primarily covers largely FLDS/polygamist areas of Southern Utah (activity must not be great amongst former polygamist converts or you think they would split the ward)
The Montpelier Vermont Stake was organized in the 1970s, and although the church has grown somewhat overall it is unlikely to ever have a second stake. In the last few years two units have been consolidated (one branch and one ward).
If you include Canada I assume Nova Scotia and New Brunswick would be in the running.
That's wonderful! A few years ago I moved Vermont to St. George. Colorado City & Hilldale used to be heavily FLDS, but their group has splintered and partly moved away. A lot of would-be FLDS beehive homes have been abandoned half-finished, and the cheap real estate has drawn a lot of other people to the area. Halfway to Hurricane is Apple Valley, a different settlement that is currently the namesake of the ward covering both areas. I suspect with the building of the chapel and the large size of the ward a split is likely to occur soon. That new chapel is not just a blessing for the members in the area, it has significant symbolic value as well.
In the last discussion someone mentioned the Wikipedia article on "Placentero nos es trabajar" or as it is entitled in the English version of Hymns for home and church "Oh, How Great is Our Joy". The Wikipedia article is now out of date since it does not mention inclusion in Hymns for Home and Church. Tab Wakch mentioned its inclusion in an article in the Deseret News this last week so its inclusion can be sourced. The article at present has some very awkward phrasing. It also is mainly contracting about early 20th-century hymnal published in Spanish by the Mexican mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The References to the 1992 Spanish hymnal I think are poorly chosen. It is not a "translation of the English language hymnal" It is more like a part of a hymnal family that started with the 1985 hymnal published in English.
Ignacio Garcia, a professor I had at BYU, published a biography of Eduardo Balderas. I first learned that name from going through the old Spanish hymnal before 1992. Balderas was the translator for either the most Hymns or second only to Rey L. Pratt.
Banderas is like W. W. Phelps and Wulliam Clayrmton in thus respect. Their names are heavily connected with Hymns, but Hymns are not really the sum total of them. Clayrlton wrote an immigrant guide, and was one of Joseph Smith's key clerks. Phelps was a publisher and much more.
Banderas was the church's first full time translator. He did the translation of the Doctrine and Covenants into Spanish along with Antiloine Ivins. He rmtranslated the Pearl of Great Privmce into Spanish. He and Ivins did the first translation of the endowment ever. Well at least to them be presented. The first translation was Joseph F. Smith going with one Hawaiian friends to the Salt Lake Temple in 1893 and as they went through he would say the stuff that had been said in English to his friends in Hawaiian.
Eduardo Balderas was a patriarch in Salt Lake City. He would go to Nesa when the large numbers of Mexicans and a few Guatemalans would vote from the endowment session and give patriarchal blessings. In the early 1960s he was sent to Uriguay and maybe other countries yo give patriarchal blessings.
Banderas updated the translation of the Book of Mormon in Spanish once, maybe twice. He also was the translator of the area Co ference talk by President Lee when he urged the Mexican saints to build zion in Mexico.
So there is much more to Eduardo Balderas than Hymns. I have not read Garcia's book. Nor have I ever managed to find the 1940s Church News article on Eduardo Balderas written by Gordon B. Hinckley. In the 1970s the Ensign had an article on Balderaz entitled "translating faith into service". The opening scene thry have is Rhea Ross,a missionary in El Paso in the Mexican-Amerixan mission recently transfered from California meeting Eduardo Baldaras at his job at a lumberjack and initially wondering if this grimy workman could be the great and powerful missionary she had heard so much of in California. Rhea Ross's dad was probably one of President Hinckley's high school teachers and may well have been an instructor to Russell M. Nelson as well.
If you understand even a little how most biographies in the Rnsign and Church News are written I do not need to tell you Rhea Ross married Eduardo Balderas. She had family members who were less than thrilled she was marrying a Mexican immigrant.
The Apple Valley Utah Ward may be one of those that has not split inpart because of the issues with having space for more units. I doubt it has DR Congo level activity (few places have that good of activity), you would think if sacramrnt meeting attendance crossed 500 splitting would be inevitable.
This is a good round of advancement. Things are moving forward in Colombia. Bogota may well be a city to get a 2nd temple, but we may see some others in Colombia first. I am also hoping Ecuador gets more temples soon.
Lima hitting 50 stakes is huge. In some ways I am surprised it has more stakes than Mexico City and Sao Paulo. I wonder if the next step is a 4th temple or expanding the existing Lima Temple. Lika Temple is basically the sane size as the pre-fab temples (Helena, Cody, Caper, Cleveland).
It looks like we are about to see an explosion of districts in DR Congo. I have to wonder if the time will come when DR Congo and Nigeria will make it to bring the countries with the 4th and 5th most members after the US, Mexico and Brazil, overtaking Peru and the Philippines. It might not be for some time though.
I also am now wondering how long until Cameroon gets a temple. I once read a report on a temple trip from a place in Canerron to the Aba Temple. I believe it took them 60 hours one way. In Camerron thry constantly had to get out of the car to push it out of the mud, and at the border thry were delayed a very long time. The missionary couple who wrote the report were not allowed to go past the border.
6 new stakes in the US US Great.
The fact that Lehi ties Virginia for number of stakes, and has half the number of Lima is crazy. If Lehi keeps up we might see a second temple there. Although probably one in Alpine would come first.
Maine getting a rmtemple now seems likely. It is the only state that does not at least border a state with a temple. To be fair Portland Maine is far closer to the Boston Temple than some places are to their closest temple. However I believe Bangor Maine stake center is the furthest from the temple of any stake center in the US outside Alaska.
I know have a crazy hope Chatanooga will get a temple. With Knoxville bring 30,000 square feet that might be a crazy though.
I think the next three temples in the North America Southeast Area will be Little Rock, either Jackson or Hattoesburg Mississippi and a end temple in Georgia either in Columbus or on the far south side of metro Atlanta. However I also thing Greensboro, North Carolina; Charleston, South Carolina and at least 1 temple in Eastern North Carolina are likely. The actual geography of eastern North Carolina makes 1 temple for the whole region seem not practiced so we may see 2-3 temple, although over an extended period of time.
As I stated in a previous thread, most if not all of the US stakes being created lately have been from stakes that had already been large and arguably due for division for a long time, even more so now with the 5 ward threshold. These are all basically low hanging fruit.
I see some stakes as products of consistent growth across years (Missouri), and other stakes as a product of rapid growth (Lehi, upcoming splits in NW Arkansas, etc.). I don't doubt some stakes fit your description, with the enabling #s the drop in number of members per ward/stake.
Those interested can review the new standards here.
https://ldschurchgrowth.blogspot.com/2023/12/new-global-standards-for-creating-new.html
(That all said, there isn't a new "5 ward threshold"-- that's long been a rule.)
The twelve approves patriarchs. They used to be called with new stake president. But since the twelve approves them and stakes are rarely created by apostles how long does it take for a new stake to get a patriarch? New ones are usually sustained in Stake Conference. If the parent stake loses the patriarch then that stake president has to send the prospective patriarchs name to the twelve for approval.
When approved may be sustained in ward meetings before the next Stake Conference. If your stake does not have a patriarch or you live in a district you can go to a neighboring stake for a patriarch. So for the weeks you don’t have a patriarch will go to neighboring stake until your stake gets its own patriarch.
Brings me to another point. Districts don’t have patriarchs. You go to neighboring stake, unless there is someone authorized to give patriarchal blessings in places like Israel and China. Brings me to another point. Stakes have patriarchs but districts don’t. However when a stake reverts to a district is the former stake patriarch authorized to give blessings to members of the now district since he is an ordained patriarch and was for that former stake? Saratov Russia is an example.
Patriarchs aren’t released, but if they move out of the stake, serve a mission, get called to another calling, have to be approved for calling in own ward and stake and is rarely approved. Though some get called as Area Seventies, mission and temple presidents and General Authorities. Many are given non functioning status as age and health keep them from serving.
In that case they can still give patriarchal blessings to there descendants wether there functioning or not. A stake patriarch can give patriarchal blessings to any descendent regardless of where they live. However only a functioning patriarch can give blessings to people in there stake there not related too. So if they are not functioning can’t give blessings to anyone in there stake. Exceptions may be made for language barriers. If stake doesn’t have patriarch and districts go to neighboring stake. I think most stake presidents work on getting one called once one will be leaving, new stakes and sudden death will give stake period of time with no patriarch.
Just wonder if stakes reverted to districts will keep the patriarch since he is ordained, or will they have to go to neighboring stake for blessing?
Yes, to restate what Michael Worley said, the "5 ward threshold" has been a rule for as long as I know. The total members of record was the only number that dropped for the US, from 3000 to 2000, but actually was raised outside the US, from 1900 to 2000. So, stakes like Chattanooga can split, not because only five wards per new stake are required, which they've long been able to fill, but because only 2000 members are required per new stake.
It used to be that stakes was the most quality measure to see church growth, as it cut through membership and activity. With the new requirements for US stakes it seems that it is causing a large increase in stakes without necessarily seeing a similar number of increase of congregations feeding into it. My guess is this year we will have push a lot of new stakes through the pipeline that hits the new reduced thresholds and then it'll level out a bit for a few years. Would surprise me if in 2027 or 2028 there are more temples opened in a year than new stakes.
I agree. Very exciting development! I know several former fundamentalists who were baptized. None of them really seemed to have much of an interest in staying in the area. So it's good to see a bit of a presence locally.
I respectfully disagree with the assertion that we’re seeing an artificially high number of new stakes in 2025 due to the revised requirements implemented on January 1, 2024. In reality, the updated standards have made it more difficult to create stakes in most areas of the world, including the United States.
The most significant change is the increase in the number of active, full-tithe-paying Melchizedek Priesthood holders required—now 150, up from 120 (and 100 in earlier years). There’s also a higher requirement for participating members—those who actively attend and hold temple recommends. While the term “participating members” was removed from the public Handbook, its definition remains widely understood in leadership contexts.
Under today’s standards, many stakes that were created before 2024 would not qualify for organization. In addition, new guidelines recommend 100 participating youth per stake—another hurdle in many areas.
The one notable easing of standards is for the number of members of record in the U.S. and Canada: the minimum has dropped from 3,000 to 2,000. Similarly, wards now require 250 members on record (down from 300), though internationally this is actually stricter than before—where the prior requirement was only 190.
The longstanding requirement for districts to sustain stake-level standards for six months before qualifying to become a stake was formalized in the 2024 revision, but it’s consistent with what area presidencies have typically required for years.
In summary, while the membership record thresholds were reduced slightly in North America, the overall effect of the new guidelines—particularly regarding active priesthood holders and participating membership—has been to raise the bar, not lower it.
Here's the link to the Church Handbook regarding Creating, Changing, and Naming New Units: https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/general-handbook/36-creating-changing-and-naming-new-units
The 100 participating youth is worded in a way that I believe it can be waved in some cases.
However the move to 150 active full-tithe paying melchizedek priesthood holders who are capable of holding a leadership calling is an increase from 120.
The rise in 100 total members needed and 30 in mMelchizedek priesthood holders needed may have slowed new stake creation in some areas.
I am guessing the surge in stake creation in the main is a reflection of higher numbers of convert baptisms, although probably 2022 numbers. I am hopeful about more good things in the future.
Vermont makes sense. Thanks Aaron!
It's interesting how the church has a higher number of convert baptisms one year and people make the assertion that it doesn't signify real growth because we aren't seeing as many new congregations as you might expect. Then we have congregation growth and people assert that that isn't the true sign of growth either.
In reality, it is true that stake growth ebbs and flows. We may see lots of stakes all splitting at once in a certain region due to preferences of area leaders to hold off until several can be done at the same time. I don't think there is a one-to-one correlation between real growth and stake growth, but I do think that the acceleration of new stakes that we are seeing is a good sign. I can only imagine that if the church starts building more buildings in heavy growth areas that we would see even more splitting happening.
Another factor impacting Chattanooga will be the Temple in Huntsville.
Craig H
The Antofagasta Chile Temple has been dedicated. There are now 207 temples, so 201 have been dedicated diluting President Nelson's lifetime.
I had not realized that both Elder Zebellos and Elder Giminez are from Antofagasya. I knew Elder Giminez was from there but had not realized Elder Zebellos was as well.
Chattanooga is closer to Knoxville than Huntsville. Huntsville is a surprise outlier and was able to get a 30,000 sf temple with two average-sized stakes in its temple district.
While the # of members required for a new stake has dropped, the definition for participating adults has seemed become more stringent - even in the US.
With the rest of the world having to match the criteria for the US, I would expect to see a temporary slowdown until membership/leadership catches up. This has not been apparent. My guess would be that unit creations outside the US/Canada has been grandfathered in under the old system. But that's just my guess.
The Batesville Branch was one Melchizedek Priesthood holder away from becoming a ward in 2023 in a conversation I had with their high council representative at the time. It now has reach the Melchizedek Priesthood number but, it's still a branch. My speculation is that the new requirement of 100 participating adults is the barrier now.
Under the new rules you would see a near freeze in new stakes outside the US/Canada until they catch up. The reduced raw membership requirement would help create wards/stakes in new neighborhoods with few less actives, but I don't see the new requirement creating a bunch of new wards/stakes elsewhere - even within the US/Canada.
I also would have thought there would be an increase of urban consolidation of wards and stakes to bring them to the new standards. This, I'm not seeing either.
This makes me believe that wards/stakes being created now was under the old standards. I understand it takes a while for a ward/stake to be approved after application. I'm wondering if the surge is partly due to if a surge in applications occurred before the new rules took effect.
In the past 3000 members were required. With 5 wards that would mean 600 members per ward. Each of those wards could split since the requirment for wards was 300 members on the list. Most wards in the US had a bit more than 400 members on average, for that reasons most new stakes created in the past in the US had 7 or 8 wards.
@David McFadden
Unit creation outside the US/Canada has slowed down because of the new requirments. Maybe with the exception of Africa, where there seems hardly any change. But I think the reasons for that are growth is faster than the chuches processes of creating new units and the church is trying not to grow to fast. In a place with lots of converts it does not change much if the requiremtn for a stake rose from 1900 to 2000 members. Even in the past we read of new stakes in africa beeing created with over 1000 and up to 2000 attending. I also thing the 500 participating adults per stake is not such a difficult requirment and think that most stakes outside the US alrady fullfill that. But not the fact that all of those have to come from 5 wards. The ward requirments changes are much harder. Change form 150 to 250 members and from 15 M. Pristhood holders to a 100 participating adults. In only know of a few new wards in Europe. 1 In Spain and I think 3 or 4 in Portugal. I do not know how Portugal managed that. In on Incstance they combined 3 branches to create a ward and in 2 others as far as I know alone upgraded to wards (But why not a year earlier when requirments were a lot lower?).
In latin america in many cases they combined branches to create wards for the new stake or they enoch pristood to become a stake or split of a stake.
All your points are correct, but I still think that this and nex year many new stakes can be created in the US becaus of the requirment drop form 3000 to 2000 specially in areas with high activity but slow growth.
The new stakes in Kananga are the Lukonga Stake, Ndesha Stake, and Nganza Stake.
https://lekasaien.net/kananga-leglise-de-jesus-christ-des-saints-des-derniers-jours-se-dote-de-3-nouveaux-pieux-a-lukonga-ndesha-et-nganza/#respond
Does anyone know if the number of stakes has been doubled in a city in one conference? I recall that perhaps it happened with Lima many years ago.
With the recent creation of the Amistad Texas Stake with 1 Ward and six branches, I am again left wondering about a stake in San Angelo Texas and a splitting of the stake in Corpus Christi?
And another stake in east Texas? Texas is so big that it will be awesome when each stake is more ‘local’ in stead of spread out. I have read that it is farther from El Paso to the east Texas border than it is from the east Texas border to the Atlantic Ocean. The same holds true that Texas from east to west (vice versa) is longer than from El Paso to the Pacific Ocean.
It looks like the only major temple update today will be the groundbreaking announcement of the Winchester Virginia temple, which is scheduled for August 9th.
Details about the groundbreaking can be found at the following links:
https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/groundbreaking-announced-for-winchester-virginia-temple
https://www.thechurchnews.com/temples/2025/06/16/winchester-virginia-temple-groundbreaking-date-announced/
https://stokessoundsoff.blogspot.com/2025/06/breaking-temple-news-next-major-temple.html
And the Church reported yesterday on the dedication of the Antofagasta Chile Temple, so that's two temple developments this week. With 4 temples completed and awaiting the announcement of their opening arrangements, I assume that we will have dedication announcements next week and the week after.
Hope this additional comment is helpful to all who read it.
If anyone is curious, as Caleb reported above for the new Kananga Stakes from yesterday.
Here are the Assigned Units this weekend.
"Kananga Democratic Republic of the Congo Lukonga Stake (2285479) - 15 June 2025
- Kamilabi Ward (2260034)
- Lukonga 1st Ward (2128268)
- Lukonga 2nd Ward (2259982)
- Ndesha 1st Ward (418080)
- Ndesha 2nd Ward (1979426)
Assigned Mission: Democratic Republic of the Congo Kananga Mission (2217457)
Assigned Temple: Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple (1795171)
Kananga Democratic Republic of the Congo Ndesha Stake (2285452) - 15 June 2025
- Kapanda Ward (2214210)
- Katoka 1st Ward (276103)
- Kele-Kele Ward (2262029)
- Lulua Ward (2214008)
- Ndesha 3rd Ward (2088746)
- Tshibandabanda Ward (2213982)
Assigned Mission: Democratic Republic of the Congo Kananga Mission (2217457)
Assigned Temple: Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple (1795171)
Kananga Democratic Republic of the Congo Nganza Stake - 15 June 2025
- INFORMATION NOT YET AVAILABLE
Oro Papua New Guinea Stake (385697) - 15 June 2025 (district upgrade)
- Ititi Branch (2207036)
- Korisata Branch (271942)
- Popondetta 1st Branch (307718)
- Popondetta 2nd Branch (386197)
- Utukiari Branch (2102900)
Assigned Mission: Papua New Guinea Lae Mission (1932438)
Assigned Temple: Suva Fiji Temple (706353)
https://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/kinshasa-democratic-republic-of-the-congo-temple/district/
https://churchofjesuschristtemples.org/suva-fiji-temple/district/
Any update on the new stake in Kinshasa? It's currently the only new Stake not showing up on Rick's temple site. I'm also curious if any other Stakes were created yesterday, since the new Cleveland Tennessee Stake was noticed until fairly late in the week.
Amistad Texas Atake was created with 5 wards, just 4 of those were branches up until then so early reports did not fully indicate the change.
I am very glad the Winchester Virginia Temple is getting a groundbreaking. I was hoping more temple developments would come out today, but this is good.
Antofagasta Temlle has been dedicated.
In Wikipedia there is a discussion on deleting the article on the Grand Junction Colorado Temple. The article hadms had multiple sources added while the discussion has Bern ongoing. The latest editors yo chime in argues the article should be draftified until there is a firm completion date.
With a firm date published both for the open house and the dedication this virkew does not seem to actually take into account the reality of the present situation. I also would say it does not really deal with the actual context of the article at present.
The Lukonga Stake has been updated on the Meetinghouse:
https://maps.churchofjesuschrist.org/stakes/2285479
The Ndesha Stake has also been updated on the Meetinghouse:
https://maps.churchofjesuschrist.org/stakes/2285452
And the Oro Papua New Guinea Stake has also been updated on the Meetinghouse:
https://maps.churchofjesuschrist.org/stakes/385697
To David's point, both Huntsville and Winchester seem like unlikely temple locations in the first place and *really* don't seem like they need 30,000 sq ft temples, which tells me these are places where the church expects to grow dramatically. It will be interesting to see how long it takes those districts to grow into their temples.
To your first question, in the internet age, the approval process for a patriarch is about the same as for a stake president or a bishop, which also have to be approved by the Brethren--namely, it's pretty much all processed online. Once the candidate is approved, the stake president is authorized to ordain him and set him apart, so the process can move relatively quickly.
To your question about districts and patriarchs, anecdotally, I have heard of larger districts having their own patriarchs--perhaps left over from a dissolved stake, though I don't know for sure. In the past, the church has occasionally called regional patriarchs who would travel around an area giving blessings. My stake patriarch in Provo was Brother Peter Mourik, who you may remember from a President Monson talk a few years ago, and he spent much of his church service as a regional patriarch assigned to most of continental Europe (he was called at 36!). I also have an ancestor who served as a regional patriarch in the Pacific Northwest way back in the day. If there is no regional patriarch, my guess is that the nearest patriarch probably makes accommodations for members in nearby districts to receive their blessings whenever possible.
I don't think it is just happenstance that we are set to hit 2024's new stakes six months into the new year. Not only that, when you look since the year 2021, these are the number of net new stakes in the US/Canada & foreign the last little bit using the historical listed on the homepage.
Year - US/Canada - Foreign
2018 13 29
2019 15 39
2020 17 10
2021 11 23
2022 10 13
2023 11 33
*New Stake Thresholds*
2024 16 28
2025 26 22 - Six months into the Year
We are on pace with new stakes to match the previous 4 years for the US. I think we are underestimating the amount of stakes that had an overabundance of activity but wasn't hitting the 3,000 total member threshold. While I can't see what the current increases in wards and branches are for 2025, the end of 2024 had the church hit the lowest ward/branches per stake/district in the church's modern history at just 7.72. It was over 8 in 2015 and hit a peak of 8.17 in 2010. Just listening to stake president chatter, many are working in creative ways to be able to hit all the new metrics to make the splits happen. Anecdotally, it seems a lot more of the stakes are barely hitting 5 wards with the splits with 2,000 threshold, though maybe it has always been that way.
Hopefully it is just all pent up post-Covid changes that are now finally able to be executed on, but I still feel we will peak with net new US stakes this year, have a slight decrease next year, and then have a multi-year dearth unless the new congregations pick up. There may be very a backlog for new units, as from 2021-2024 there were 361 new units for 84 net new stakes/districts, meaning only 4.3 a pop, so there were far more stake/district creation than unit. Don't have the per country unit stats handy.
The most new units we've had in a year this century was 433 back in 2004. If we are on pace for 100 new stakes/districts this year, we would need 772 new units to keep the existing W/B per S/D steady. We've only had more than 300 net units created in a single year once the past decade, and have averaged under 150 the past 5 years. Hopefully we do, and maybe the increase in new converts will continue to push that up, but unless that takes off like a rocket, it's unsustainable.
Hi Adam - We have had a pretty good year so far for the creation of new wards and branches. Just in the past 2 months, we have had 14 new wards and branches created in the Philippines, including:
Berong Branch Quezon Philippines Palawan District
Rio Tuba Branch Quezon Philippines Palawan District
Santa Rosa 4th Branch Cabuyao Philippines Stake
General Trias 4th Branch Cavite Philippines Stake
Batan Branch Kalibo Philippines Stake
Buenavista Branch Calape Philippines District
Tanjay 2nd Branch Tanjay Philippines District
Ipil Branch Ormoc Philippines Stake
Bacolor Branch Angeles Philippines Stake
Santa Ignacia 3rd Ward Santa Ignacia Philippines Stake
San Carlos 3rd Branch Bayambang Philippines Stake
Calasiao 3rd Ward Calasiao Philippines Stake
Balete Branch Kalibo Philippines Stake
Bulaon 2nd Branch Angeles Philippines Stake
The Church has just created a new Mission in Europe catering to Turkish and Persian-speakers. This has been planned for a while but the timing given the situation in Iran. My guess is that the Church is preparing in the medium term to reestablish more formalized Mission activity in Iran following a regime change.
War is terrible news, but perhaps if the current Iranian regime falls, there will be a silver lining in freedom for the Iranian people. I've had close friends and family called on Persian-speaking missions in the United States, and anecdotally know Iranians to be good, friendly people and relatively receptive to the Gospel message. Iran is a nation of 90 million people, none of whom have heard the Gospel before. No doubt with a mission there many thousands and more would become members of the restored Church.
I have anecdotally heard that at least in Germany, about as many Iranians currently get baptized per year as Germans, but population-wise Germans outnumber Iranians in Germany by a factor of about 150. So yes, they are one of the largest groups of converts here and have generally been very receptive. In the US it appears to.be similar albeit on a smaller, more regional scale.
Iran itself also has a sizable Christian community, mostly living and practicing their faith underground. Estimates vary but I have read of up to 10 million practicing Christians in Iran, although I don't have the source on hand anymore and would assume that a transparent census would be difficult to make work.
Is this new mission in Europe sort of like the Spanish-American mission was in the 1930s-1950s or so. A mission that coexists in the area of several other missions.
Is the district in Turkey still directly under the Area Presidency and not a mission?
Where are we seeing information about this new mission?
Quietly posted under a new mission leader article on the Church News - https://www.thechurchnews.com/leaders/2025/06/17/new-mission-leaders-philippines-cebu-europe-central-turkic-and-persian-speaking/
Missionaries served in Tehran I believe in the 1960s attached to the London England mission if I remember correctly. Perhaps one of you investigative geniuses could confirm or refute my allegation. I also believe the church had a meetinghouse in Tehran. While living in Russia, a good Iranian family joined the church. How they got to Russia as refugees was remarkable. Ultimately they were sent Twin Falls Idaho under the united nation relocation refugees.
After the reshuffle of the Kananga and Katoka Stakes on Sunday.
The Katoka DRC Stake has one remaining Congregation inn the Meetinghouse site left the Katoka 3rd ward.
https://maps.churchofjesuschrist.org/stakes/2052075
Several members before and during the height of "Operation Iraqi Freedom" assumed that it was going to allow the church to come in after the regime change. That of course has not been the case. Nor was the case with Libya, Egypt, and other middle eastern nations that had their government overthrown.
For middle-eastern countries that recognize the church, it was an incumbent government that decided to loosen their restrictions allowing the church to be there.
Another person commented about the distance from the Bangor Maine Stake to the nearest temple, (the Boston temple in Belmont, MA). It is about a 3 hour 44 minute drive on google maps. Meanwhile, part of the realignment mentioned involved bringing over the Caribou Ward from the St John New Brunswick Stake back to the Bangor Stake ( I was in this ward when it was created, as part of the Bangor Stake organization in 1986 so I have personal knowledge of this area). Caribou is about 6 hours, 23 minutes to the Boston Temple. So they would benefit greatly from any location in Maine where a new temple would be built.
I found this very exciting news, I first heard about it on the same day as I know some people who were at the creation of the Portland Stake. I have been anticipating this quite a while, as there seemed to have enough units for a 3rd stake in Maine for years.
I now live in New Hampshire, which also has 3 stakes. My stake includes 1 ward in Maine but it was not affected in this stake creation.
I really need to update my maps, but I keep track of each temple with a 200 mile circle around it and calculate a percentage of how much of the district is within the circle. The vast majority of temples in the U.S. and Canada fall in the 100% category, with only 12 that aren't. For the Boston Massachusetts Temple, only the Bangor Maine Stake is beyond that 200 miles. While I have long had Manchester, New Hampshire on my list, I feel that with the creation of the Portland Maine Stake, the "priority" has shifted to Augusta, Maine. I still think both are do-able, but really the only thing going against Manchester is how close it is to Boston.
Ryan,
Are you calculating 200 air miles? What is more important but harder to do would be 200 miles of actual driving.
The more recent goal is apparently a goal of getting 90% of more of members within 60 miles of a temple. That would be 60 miles inareas with freeway access and good roads, but much less in other areas. Including areas where you are going so far up a mountain you loose speed. Since there are villages in Nigeria that are functionally an hour from everywhere for most residents I do not think this is a totally obtainable goal. There are also places in DC, Chicago, LA and NYC as well as others internationally and probably some others in the US that at rush hour are functionally very far from everywhere.
On another note, altough the Falkland Islands are in the same area as the rest of the United Kingdom, Montserrat is not. The same I believe is true of the Cayman Islands. So the Caribbean Area technically has parts of both France and the UK. I know Guadeloupe and Martinique as well as French Guiana are technically more integrated into France than Montserrat is than the US.
Also the various associated states of the Netherlands in the Caribean (Arbua, Curacao and Sint Martin) are in the Caribbean Areas. While Hwaii and Alaska are placed in US areas, Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa and the US Virin Islands are not.
Yes, it is air miles. I just don't have the patience to calculate by driving distance, not even factoring in places that would likely have to fly to the temple. A place like Cabo, would they straight up fly to Mexico City or would they take a ferry across to Culiacan, then drive the rest of the way?
Marquette Michigan,which has a ward, is nearly 400 miles from the Chicago Temple driving. It is a fairly straight route, so I would guess the distance would not be much reduced by a flight.
It is 302 miles from Marquette to the Milwaukee Airport. So probably roughly that to where the Milwaukee Temple will be. Theater is s 5 hour drive. I still think a Green Bay Temple is a possibility.
The drive from Bangor to the Boston Massachusetts Temple is 244 miles. That is 3 hours 40 minutes. Portland, Neine to Boston Massachusetts is 116 miles. It is 56 miles and 59 minutes from Portland to Augusta. It is 1 hour 47 minutes from Portland to the Boston Massachusetts Temple. And it would maulybe be worse about 5 o'clock, it is almost 8 now.
The point at which the travel time would be less from Athens Boston Tmpme to an Augusta Meine Temple would be just south of Kennebunk and Kennebunkport Neine. It looks like some of northern New Hampshire would br closer to an Augusta Trmple, but the areas close to I-93 would not be.
I am thinking Augusta Meine is the most likely location for a temple.
The Falkland Islands are in the extreme South Atlantic Ocean, not at all near the United Kingdom. Remember the Falklands War of 1982?
363 driving miles from Marquette MI to the Chicago Temple. MKE airport to Chicago Temple is 65 miles. The Milwaukee Temple will likely not be that close to the Chicago Temple, but farther north or northwest of the City of Milwaukee.
@Matt Most of this units in the Phillipines are branches. (even in stakes) In my opinion this shows that in a lot of places outside the US units have to be devided before the ward is able to split in two. Often because the chapels are not large enough. Very few chapels outside the US/Canada have room for more than 200 people.
Post a Comment