Eight Districts in Mainland China for Mainland Chinese (PRC Citizen) Members

In a recent article posted on the Singapore version of lds.org, Elder Randy D. Funk reported that by the end of his service, there were "38 stakes and 37 districts in the Asia Area." Currently the Church reports 29 districts in the following countries within the Asia Area:

• Malaysia (6) 
• China [mainland districts for foreigners] (4)
• Cambodia (4) 
• India (3)
• Pakistan (3)
• Thailand (2)
• Vietnam (2)
• Hong Kong (1)
• Indonesia (1)
• Macau (1)
• Mongolia (1)
• Sri Lanka (1)

There is a difference of eight districts between the number of districts reported by the Church in these previously noted nations and the overall total provided by Elder Funk. Thus, there are eight districts that appear to function in mainland China that administer to citizens of the People's Republic of China (PRC) as there are no other countries in the Asia area that have a sufficient number of members in order for a district operate. This finding indicates that significant growth has occurred among the PRC Chinese membership to the point that eight districts have been organized even though the first branches to service PRC members were created just 14 years ago. In contrast, the Church in Russia has operated since 1990 with one of the largest full-time proselytism forces of any religious group yet the Church currently reports only three stakes and 10 districts in Russia at present. Roughly speaking, the Church in mainland China has achieved a comparable amount of growth to Russia despite no formal proselytism efforts and within half the amount of time. Member-missionary work among biological relatives, strong proselytism efforts among PRC citizens in countries where full-time missionaries are permitted to serve, local leadership development successes, and a good relationship between the Church and the Chinese government have all appeared to fuel this rapid growth.

Given the sensitive nature of the Church in China, please do not publish comments that provide specific information regarding the location of individual member groups, branches, or districts as this information has not been publicly released.

July 2018 Monthly Newsletter

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