Members in Europe report that a new stake will be created in northern Italy this September from the Milan Italy Stake. The Milan Italy Stake has grown to 10 wards and 2 branches as several branches have become wards within the past few years. It is unclear whether the new stake will be created from other stakes in northern Italy like the Verona Italy Stake.
The Church in Italy also recently reversed an over decade long era of congregation consolidations. Within the past two months, two new units were organized in Bergamo (Bergamo 3rd Branch) and Rome (Roma 5th Branch). It has been several years or perhaps even a decade since the Church has created a new unit in Italy. Members report that prospects appear good for the organization of additional new wards and branches in the largest cities.
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Monday, July 16, 2012
Exciting LDS Church Developments in the Central African Republic
The mission president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Kinshasa Mission recently visited Bangui, Central African Republic to meet local members and church leadership, visit the President of the Central African Republic, and to assess conditions for opening the country to formal proselytism. A news article with some more details on the visit can be found here. The cumorah.com country profile and church growth analysis for the Central African Republic can be found here.
One of the poorest countries in the world, the Central African Republic supports a population of approximately five million and is landlocked in central Africa between Chad and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Church initially established a presence in the early 1990s due to the enthusiastic efforts of an isolated expatriate Latter-day Saint. Due to political instability and isolation from established LDS missions there has been no formal missionary activity in nearly two decades. One of the members of the President's cabinet is the branch president for the sole LDS congregation in the country that operates in Bangui. The number of members serving missions has increased in recent years and the first sister missionary recently began her service in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Kinshasa Mission.
Mission leadership is hopeful that full-time missionaries can be assigned sometime in the next couple years to begin formal missionary activity in a process similar to the recent reopening of Burundi in 2010.
Other nontraditional Christian faiths have had an active presence in the Central African Republic. In 2011, Jehovah's Witnesses reported 2,559 active members meeting in 53 congregations and Seventh Day Adventists reported 10,363 members meeting in 51 churches. The LDS Church has a tiny presence limited to only 406 members and one branch.
One of the poorest countries in the world, the Central African Republic supports a population of approximately five million and is landlocked in central Africa between Chad and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Church initially established a presence in the early 1990s due to the enthusiastic efforts of an isolated expatriate Latter-day Saint. Due to political instability and isolation from established LDS missions there has been no formal missionary activity in nearly two decades. One of the members of the President's cabinet is the branch president for the sole LDS congregation in the country that operates in Bangui. The number of members serving missions has increased in recent years and the first sister missionary recently began her service in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Kinshasa Mission.
Mission leadership is hopeful that full-time missionaries can be assigned sometime in the next couple years to begin formal missionary activity in a process similar to the recent reopening of Burundi in 2010.
Other nontraditional Christian faiths have had an active presence in the Central African Republic. In 2011, Jehovah's Witnesses reported 2,559 active members meeting in 53 congregations and Seventh Day Adventists reported 10,363 members meeting in 51 churches. The LDS Church has a tiny presence limited to only 406 members and one branch.
Friday, July 13, 2012
LDS Missionary from Bangladesh Begins Missionary Service
The Church recently posted an interesting article on one of the first Bangladeshi Latter-day Saints to serve a mission. Bangladesh numbers among the most populous nations without any Latter-day Saint missionaries assigned notwithstanding greater tolerance for Christian proselytism than many other Muslim-majority nations. Only one small branch operates in the capital city, Dhaka. A link to the article can be found below.
http://www.mormonnewsroom.ph/article/first-mormon-missionary-from-bangladesh-arrives-in-the-philippines
http://www.mormonnewsroom.ph/article/first-mormon-missionary-from-bangladesh-arrives-in-the-philippines
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Concerning Results from 2010 Brazilian Census
The Brazilian Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística recently released 2010 census statistics on religious affiliation in Brazil. The census found that 225,695 people identified as Latter-day Saint whereas the Church reported 1,138,740 members in Brazil in 2010. These findings indicate that self-identified Latter-day Saints on the census account for only 20% of total membership officially reported by the Church in Brazil. Furthermore, the percent of official LDS membership self-affiliating as Latter-day Saint on the census has declined over the past decade. The 2000 Brazilian census reported 199,645 Latter-day Saints, or 26% of LDS membership reported for that year (775,822). It is unclear whether there were any changes in reporting membership for various religious groups between 2000 and 2010 on the census, but other religious groups did not appear to exhibit any major increase or decline due to changes in reporting religious data.
The most concerning finding in comparing official LDS membership data and Brazilian census religious data is that the Church reported that membership increased by 362,918 members between 2000 and 2010 yet the censuses for these two years indicate a mere 26,050 increase in self-identified Latter-day Saints. In other words, the increase in census-reported Latter-day Saints was only seven percent of the membership increase reported by the Church!
To the contrary, Protestants have experienced major growth reflected in both church-reported members and census-reported members. In the past 30 years, the Brazilian census has revealed that the percentage of Protestants in the population increased from 6.6% to 22.2%. LDS Church-reported membership constitutes less than one percent of the Brazilian population and census-reported LDS numbers comprise close to one-tenth of one percent of the total population.
The most concerning finding in comparing official LDS membership data and Brazilian census religious data is that the Church reported that membership increased by 362,918 members between 2000 and 2010 yet the censuses for these two years indicate a mere 26,050 increase in self-identified Latter-day Saints. In other words, the increase in census-reported Latter-day Saints was only seven percent of the membership increase reported by the Church!
To the contrary, Protestants have experienced major growth reflected in both church-reported members and census-reported members. In the past 30 years, the Brazilian census has revealed that the percentage of Protestants in the population increased from 6.6% to 22.2%. LDS Church-reported membership constitutes less than one percent of the Brazilian population and census-reported LDS numbers comprise close to one-tenth of one percent of the total population.
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
City Opens for Missionary Work in Georgia
Missionaries serving in the Armenia Yerevan Mission report that a second city has opened for missionary work in the country of Georgia. With slightly more than 100,000 inhabitants and ranked as Georgia's fourth most populous city, Rustavi opened for proselytism last month and young elders and a senior missionary couple were assigned. Rustavi is located halfway between the capital city Tbilisi and the Azerbaijani border. The Church assigned the first young proselytizing missionaries in March 2006 and has performed missionary activity only in Tbilisi. Missionaries report that a group has been organized in Rustavi. It is unclear whether there are any members living in the city.
The opening of a second city in Georgia to missionary work is a significant milestone that may indicate additional prospects to expand missionary activity to additional locations. The delay of opening a second city to missionary work for six years is concerning and has possibly resulted in missed opportunities to establish the Church in more locations when local populations were more receptive to missionary activity. Prospects for future growth in Tbilisi and Rustavi appear modest as receptivity continues to decline and no translations of LDS scriptures are available. One positive development within the past few years is that the Church has translated several basic proselytism materials into Georgian and that the translation of the Book of Mormon into Georgia began within the past year.
The opening of a second city in Georgia to missionary work is a significant milestone that may indicate additional prospects to expand missionary activity to additional locations. The delay of opening a second city to missionary work for six years is concerning and has possibly resulted in missed opportunities to establish the Church in more locations when local populations were more receptive to missionary activity. Prospects for future growth in Tbilisi and Rustavi appear modest as receptivity continues to decline and no translations of LDS scriptures are available. One positive development within the past few years is that the Church has translated several basic proselytism materials into Georgian and that the translation of the Book of Mormon into Georgia began within the past year.
Friday, July 6, 2012
First LDS Stake Created in Central Nigeria
A new stake was recently created in Nigeria. The Abuja Nigeria Stake was organized from the Abuja Nigeria District and includes the following eight wards and three branches: The Bwari, Jabi, Kaduna, Karu, Kubwa, Nyanya, Suleja, and Wuse Wards and the Jikwoyi, Lugbe, and Mpape Branches. One branch - the Abuja Nigeria District Branch - was closed with the creation of the stake as district branches do not function in stakes. Click here to view the LDS International Atlas map of central and northern Nigeria.
The organization of the first stake in central Nigeria constitutes a major milestone for LDS growth in Nigeria as all previously organized stakes operate in southern and coastal areas of Nigeria. Growth has been steady and sustained in Abuja, with new branches regularly organized and such a large number of branches becoming wards at the time the stake was organized. There do not appear to be any likely prospects for outreach expansion into additional cities in central and northern Nigeria as the Church has organized very few new branches and wards in additional cities for the past decade. Christian and Muslim violence in the region may deter any overt expansion of missionary activity into other populous, currently unreached cities in the region. However, the organization of additional branches and wards in lesser-reached communities in Abuja appears likely in the coming years and may merit the organization of a second stake in Abuja in the not-to-distant future.
There are now 21 stakes and 20 districts in Nigeria. The Asaba Nigeria District appears to be the district closest to attaining stakehood, with 12 branches currently operating.
The organization of the first stake in central Nigeria constitutes a major milestone for LDS growth in Nigeria as all previously organized stakes operate in southern and coastal areas of Nigeria. Growth has been steady and sustained in Abuja, with new branches regularly organized and such a large number of branches becoming wards at the time the stake was organized. There do not appear to be any likely prospects for outreach expansion into additional cities in central and northern Nigeria as the Church has organized very few new branches and wards in additional cities for the past decade. Christian and Muslim violence in the region may deter any overt expansion of missionary activity into other populous, currently unreached cities in the region. However, the organization of additional branches and wards in lesser-reached communities in Abuja appears likely in the coming years and may merit the organization of a second stake in Abuja in the not-to-distant future.
There are now 21 stakes and 20 districts in Nigeria. The Asaba Nigeria District appears to be the district closest to attaining stakehood, with 12 branches currently operating.
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
New Case Studies Added on Cumorah.com
On cumorah.com, we have posted 14 recently completed case studies examining various topics relating to LDS Church growth. Links to these case studies are provided below. View case studies in any web browser except Internet Explorer.
Monday, July 2, 2012
New Stake in Japan
Two weeks ago, a new stake was created in Japan. The Tokyo Japan South (English) Stake was created from the Tokyo Japan South (English) and Honshu Japan Military Districts. The new stake includes the following five wards and two branches: The Misawa Military, Tokyo 1st (English), Tokyo 2nd (English), Yokosuka Military, and Yokota Military Wards and the Iwakuni Military and Zama Military Branches. The Tokyo Japan South (English) Stake was originally organized in 2003 with four English-speaking wards in the Tokyo area but was downgraded to a district in 2010. It is unclear whether the new stake is technically considered a reinstated stake or a new stake altogether.
There are now 29 stakes and 13 districts in Japan.
There are now 29 stakes and 13 districts in Japan.
Saturday, June 23, 2012
LDS Missionary Activity Begins in the Western Solomon Islands
Missionaries serving in the Solomon Islands report that missionary activity recently commenced in the western Solomon Islands for the first time. Missionaries and church leaders visited Gizo, the third most populous urban location in the country, where they met 40 members and investigators and performed the first convert baptisms. Mission leaders report that a group has been or will soon be organized in Gizo.
The establishment of an LDS presence in Gizo has occurred on the heels of the organization of a group and an independent branch on Malaita, which was the first location off the main island of Guadalcanal to receive LDS outreach. Prospects appear highly favorable for continued outreach and, with the organization of the new Vanuatu Port Vila Mission this summer, more mission resources may be allocated to the Solomon Islands in the near future.
At present, the Solomon Islands are one of the least reached nations in Oceania and also one of the most populous. There were fewer than 500 Latter-day Saints nationwide at the end of 2011 but over 600,000 people living in the Solomon Islands.
The establishment of an LDS presence in Gizo has occurred on the heels of the organization of a group and an independent branch on Malaita, which was the first location off the main island of Guadalcanal to receive LDS outreach. Prospects appear highly favorable for continued outreach and, with the organization of the new Vanuatu Port Vila Mission this summer, more mission resources may be allocated to the Solomon Islands in the near future.
At present, the Solomon Islands are one of the least reached nations in Oceania and also one of the most populous. There were fewer than 500 Latter-day Saints nationwide at the end of 2011 but over 600,000 people living in the Solomon Islands.
Friday, June 22, 2012
New Stake Created in Uruguay
A new stake was recently created in Uruguay. The Treinta y Tres Uruguay District became a stake and includes the following six wards and three branches: The Central, Chuy, Obelisco, Olimar, Plaza, and Yerbal Wards and the Jose Pedro Varela, Lascano, and Vergara Branches. The new stake consists of seven of the original units in the former Treinta y Tres Uruguay District and two units from the Rocha Uruguay District: The Chuy Ward and the Lascano Branch. The realigned Rocha Uruguay District now has four branches.
There are now 18 stakes and three districts in Uruguay. Missionaries report that the Florida Uruguay District is close to becoming a stake in the near future.
There are now 18 stakes and three districts in Uruguay. Missionaries report that the Florida Uruguay District is close to becoming a stake in the near future.
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