The Collapse of the Church in Armenia?

Recently, the Church posted on its meetinghouse locator website that both of the districts in Armenia have been discontinued. Also, all of the branches in Armenia except for four branches (the Arabkir, Artashat, Vanadzor, and Yerevan Central Branches) have been discontinued which resulted in the number of branches decreasing from 11 to four. This is an unprecedented development for the Church in Armenia where a stake briefly operated between 2013 and 2016. Some of the branches discontinued were the only branches of the Church in the city where they operated. Moreover, some of these branches, such as Gyumri, had as many as 65 active members 7-9 years ago. The Church in Armenia had nearly 3,600 members as of year-end 2019 which means that, with year-end 2019 membership totals, the Church in Armenia has the highest ratio of members-to-congregations of approximately 900. There has not been any other country in the world to have experienced such a dramatic decline in congregations, national outreach, and active membership as Armenia during the past several decades of the worldwide Church.

I have not been able to find any information about the cause for these most recent developments. In fact, the situation in Armenia had appeared to be stabilizing in recent years given the creation of a second district based in Vanadzor in 2018 and the reestablishment of Alaverdi Branch in 2018. However, the Church in Armenia experienced a major leadership crisis in 2016 which culminated in the discontinuation of the stake and many leaving the Church. Returned missionaries have indicated that the mishandling of Church finances and local leadership development problems warranted the stake being discontinued. The Church in Armenia has struggled with very low member activity rates for many years which have appeared primarily attributed to inadequate prebaptismal preparation during periods of the most rapid membership growth in the 2000s. In the late 2010s, I estimated that only 17-19% of membership on Church records were active. The emigration of active membership in Armenia has been a major long-term challenge for the Church to maintain its stability in the country. In fact, the Church in Bulgaria has experienced similar difficulties with the emigration of active members. Similarly, the Church in Bulgaria is likely the country that has experienced the second most significant decline in the past several decades in the worldwide Church given that the number of branches in Bulgaria decreased by 67% from 21 to 7 between 2007 and 2018

Please comment if you have any information about the current status of the Church in Armenia and why both of the districts and most of the branches in the country were discontinued.

Updated Country Profile - Armenia

Click here to access the updated Reaching the Nations country profile for Armenia. As I noted in a post several years ago, the Church in Armenia holds the distinction as the only former Soviet republic to have had a stake discontinued, which was primarily due to local leadership development problems and the mishandling of finances. Additionally, the Church in Armenia also struggles from very low member activity rates due to quick-baptism tactics implemented in the 2000s when the bulk of Church membership joined the Church. Convert retention has markedly improved in the 2010s due to changes in mission policies, albeit the number of converts who join the Church has significantly decreased. No other nation in the Middle East or Caucasus has as many members, congregations, and missionaries as Armenia. Moreover, no other nation in the region has Church congregations as accessible to the population as Armenia. See below for the Future Prospects section of this article.


Emigration of Armenian Church members and low member activity rates stunt greater church growth. Continued and consistent implementation of appropriate pre-baptismal preparation is necessary to break low retaining patterns of the past and foster long-term indigenous growth, and retain a Church presence in cities where congregations have been organized. Greater member-missionary efforts will be required to expand national outreach and organize additional congregations. The greatest opportunities for growth appear to exist in the Yerevan metropolitan area, where the Church has discontinued several branches in the past decade to consolidate active membership into congregations with larger numbers of active members. A stake in Yerevan may be reestablished once local leadership has been adequately self-sufficient and accountable to warrant these responsibilities.

New Stakes Created in Brazil, Georgia, Guatemala, and the Philippines; New District in Armenia; Stake Discontinued in Germany; Districts Discontinued in Brazil, Germany, and Ukraine

Brazil
A new stake was organized in Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil on May 20th. The Santa Cruz do Sul Brazil Stake was organized from the Rio Grande do Sul Brazil District (originally organized in 1994) and Cachoeira do Sul Brazil District, and portions of the São Leopoldo Brazil Stake. Information on which congregations are assigned to the new stake is currently unavailable although it may be as many as 10 congregations. The Cachoeira do Sul Brazil District was organized in 1986 and included four branches before it was consolidated with the newly organized Santa Cruz do Sul Brazil Stake.

There are now 25 stakes and 6 districts in Rio Grande do Sul State, and 270 stakes and 38 districts in Brazil.

Georgia
A new stake was organized in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Coal Mountain Georgia Stake was organized from the Sugar Hill Georgia Stake and the Roswell Georgia Stake. The new stake includes the following six wards and two branches: the Coal Mountain, Dahlonega, Fowler Park, Laurel Springs, Pilgrim Mill, and Sharon Springs Wards, and the Blairsville and Murphy Branches. There are now 10 stakes in the Atlanta metropolitan area.

There are now 17 stakes in Georgia.

Guatemala
A new stake was organized in western Guatemala. The Sololá Guatemala Stake was organized from the Sololá Guatemala District. Most of the seven branches in the former district, which was organized in 1979, appear to have become wards although information on which branches became wards remains unavailable. The new stake is located within the homelands of the Kaqchikel people. There are now four stakes located within the Kaqchikel homelands.

There are now 49 stakes and 14 districts in Guatemala.

Philippines
A new stake was organized in Mindanao, Philippines. The San Francisco Philippines Stake was organized from the Trento Philippines District (organized in 1999). The new stake includes the following five wards and one branch: the Prosperidad, San Francisco, Santa Josefa, Trento, and Veruela Wards, and the Rosario Branch. The new stake marks the first time in over two decades since a district has become a stake in Mindanao. There are now 12 stakes and 17 districts in Mindanao.

There are now 102 stakes and 73 districts in the Philippines.

Armenia
A new district was organized in northern Armenia on April 15th. The Vanadzor Armenia District was organized from a division of the Yerevan Armenia District. The new district includes three branches: Alaverdi (member group recently organized as a branch), Gyumri, and Vanadzor. Additionally, a member group may also continue to operate in Margahovit. The decision to divide the Yerevan Armenia District, which used to be stake from 2013-2016, suggests that the mission may be exploring opportunities for leadership development and outreach expansion in northern Armenia, and/or there are no realistic prospects for the Yerevan Armenia District to become a stake again in the foreseeable future. There are now two districts in Armenia.

Germany
One stake and two districts were discontinued in northern Germany during May 2018. The Neumünster Germany Stake (organized in 1981) was discontinued and consolidated with the Hamburg Germany Stake, marking the first time in LDS history that the Church has ever discontinued a German-speaking stake. Additionally, the only two districts in Germany, the Oldenburg Germany District and the Neubrandenburg Germany District, were discontinued. Retained branches in the former Oldenburg Germany District were reassigned to the Hamburg Germany Stake and the Hannover Germany Stake, whereas retained branches in the Neubrandenburg Germany District were reassigned to the Berlin Germany Stake. Emphasis on reducing the amount of members needed to fill leadership positions in order to free resources and reduce member burnout appeared primarily responsible for the changes. For example, most of the branches involved in the changes reported less than 20 active members for two or three decades. More information on the changes can be found here (NOTE: article is in German).

There are now 14 stakes in Germany.

Ukraine
The Church discontinued the Dnepropetrovsk Ukraine District (originally organized in 1999, discontinued in 2011, reinstated in 2016) and reassigned its branches to the Kharkov Ukraine District. It appears that the change may have been made in preparation to create a second stake in Ukraine.

There are now four districts and one stake in Ukraine.

Apostasy in Armenia - Sole LDS Stake in Armenia Discontinued

Multiple missionaries serving in the Armenia Yerevan Mission report that last Sunday the Church discontinued the Yerevan Armenia Stake in a special stake conference. Organized in 2013, the stake has been returned to district status and all wards have been downgraded to branches. Missionaries report that the primary reason the stake was discontinued was due to improper handling of church administrative responsibilities by members and local church leaders. Many of the previous church leaders were released from their callings during the conference. Missionaries indicate that a large portion of members attending the conference, perhaps as large as one-third to one-half of those in attendance, left the conference early after the announcement was made that the stake was discontinued in protest of the decision.

This marks one of the few times in LDS Church history that the Church has discontinued a stake in a nation where only one stake previously operated. Most recently, the Church discontinued its sole stake in Monrovia, Liberia in 2007 due to similar problems as reported in Armenia. The news of the stake discontinuation in Armenia is disappointing and points to chronic problems with a lack of "real growth" and spiritual maturity among many members in the region. The Church in Eastern Europe has experienced similar problems with local members and church leaders becoming inactive after similar administrative changes have been made. It appears that the Church has yet to adequately address the cultural challenge of retaining church leaders in the region after they are released from a calling, or properly rectifying problems with church leaders not following policies for local church administration.

Click here to access the LDS statistical profile for Armenia.

First LDS Stake Created in Armenia

Last Sunday, the Church organized its first stake in the small Christian country of Armenia.  Located in the Caucasus Mountains and surrounded by Azerbaijan, Iran, Turkey, and the Republic of Georgia, Armenia is the world's oldest Christian country where the majority of the population adheres to the Armenian Apostolic Church.  The LDS Church began missionary activity in Armenia during the early 1990s and the Church organized the first member district in 1994.  In 1999, the Church organized the Armenia Yerevan Mission from the Russia Rostov Mission.  Steady membership growth occurred during the late 1990s and the 2000s and several additional branches were organized in Yerevan and additional cities.  In 2008, the Church organized a second member district in Yerevan with the goal to eventually organize two stakes in Yerevan within the medium term.  In 2011, the two districts in Yerevan were consolidated into a single district and four branches were closed in preparation to create ward-sized units. During the past decade, the Church has struggled with inactivity problems incurred by quick-baptism tactics employed during many years in the 2000s and the emigration of active membership.

Information on which branches in the district became wards in the new stake is not currently available and I will post this information once it becomes available.  As of year-end 2012, Armenia ranked as the country with the thirteenth most members without a stake with 3,024 members, 11 branches, and one district.  The new Yerevan Armenia Stake becomes one of the Church's most isolated stakes in the world as the nearest stakes to Yerevan are located in Kyiv, Ukraine (approximately 1,000 miles away) and Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (over 1,200 miles away).  Due to visa restrictions, only 57 missionaries serve in the entire Armenia Yerevan Mission which includes Armenia and the Republic of Georgia.

For more information on LDS Church growth in Armenia, refer to our statistical profile, country profile, and LDS International Atlas on cumorah.com.

District Discontinued in Armenia

Organized in 2008, the Yerevan Armenia South District was recently discontinued and consolidated with the Yerevan Armenia District.  Missionaries currently serving in Armenia report that the decision to consolidate the districts was in preparation for the organization of a future stake in Yerevan once a sufficient number of active Latter-day Saints is reached.  A district council consisting of 12 local members has also been organized in preparation for a stake high council to operate one day.

The decision to split the district in 2008 and to consolidate the two districts back into a single district in 2011 appear linked to changing area/mission policies and vision regarding current member needs, the development of additional leadership, and the encouragement and outlook of future growth.  A couple branches were also recently closed just prior to the consolidation of the districts, indicating ongoing challenges with member activity and convert retention issues.  Membership growth rates have also plummeted in recent years after nearly two decades of some of the strongest growth experienced by the LDS church in the former Soviet Union.

The LDS Church has experienced some of the greatest growth among nontraditional Christian denominations in Armenia during the last decade despite challenges retaining new converts due to low and inconsistent convert baptismal standards.  The emigration of active Latter-day Saints has also been a significant setback for establishing a stronger local leadership force.  Most Christian groups experience stagnant growth in Armenia today.

New District to be Created in Armenia

Armenia will be divided into two districts on the 22nd of June. This will be the second district in the country. I have not been able to find information concerning whether the new district will be created from the original district in Yerevan or it will encompass branches in the north, but reflects steady growth in the country in the past decade. Membership has matured in Armenia and there is a need for more training of local Armenian Church leadership. A new district will provide members with opportunities to grow.

The Church in Armenia

This is one of the most fascinating countries the Church has recently moved into. Over 2,300 members now live in Armenia, organized into 15 branches according to the 2008 Church Almanac by the Deseret Morning News. In 2006, Church membership increased by 13.3% and 10 years ago membership was only 200. The majority of Armenians are Armenian Orthodox and take pride in the claim that their nation is the oldest Christian nation in the world. I do not want to recount a full history of the Church in Armenia and if you want more information, I suggest you visit http://www.lds.org/ or read what the Church Almanac has to say about it.

In the past six or seven years, missionaries have started to work outside of Yerevan (the capital), especially in the northern half of the country. Now branches are located in Ashtarak, Gyurmi and Vanadzor. Missionaries are also working, according to the Armenia Yerevan's website, in Alaverdi and Step'anavan were members meet together at least in groups (I have had trouble determining if they're groups or branches). Missionary activity has also spilled over into Georgia and there is an entire zone of missionaries in Tbilisi. However, most of the branches are located in Yerevan as well as the members.

Armenia, and recently Georgia, are the only countries in this region of the world with missionaries teaching and baptizing. In the last decade, missionaries have started working their way down from the Russia Rostov Mission into the northern Caucasus into cities such as Sochi, Krasnodar, and Stavropol. The surrounding areas to the south, east and west of Armenia are pretty much void of missionary work.

Oh, and on this map the red dot means that there are missionaries in this city, but I have not been able to confirm a branch in the city. Previously posted maps (excluding the temple maps) tend to symbolize cities over 100,000 people with no missionaries or branches with a red dot.

Countries with the highest membership growth rates

Below is a list of the top 10 fastest growing countries for the Church during 2006 (over 300 members).

1. Cameroon - 492 members - 31.6%
2. Malaysia - 3,633 members - 24.5%
3. Estonia - 874 members - 16.4%
4. Ethiopia - 708 members - 15.7%
5. Zambia - 1,905 members - 15.6%
6. Sri Lanka - 1,108 members - 15.1%
7. Armenia - 2,359 members - 13.3%
8. Ghana - 32,965 members - 12.5%
9. Guyana - 2,072 members - 12.3%
10. Latvia - 920 members - 11.8%

The top three nations which have the highest increase (not %) in membership per year usually are the United States, Brazil (which also just reached over 1,000,000 members) and Mexico.