All American Faith Goes Global

The Mormon Church is seeing a boom in growth in Africa with members across the continent.

One indicator of that growth is the many Temples that have been dedicated there - like the one in South Africa that opened in 1985; Ghana (2004) and Nigeria (2005).

Photo: Nigeria Temple, courtesy LDS.org

I spotted this article in the Washington Post click here to read the entire article.
Be sure to watch the Washington Post video showing a brief glimpse of the Church in Africa.

Photo: Mormon Church meeting in Ghana, Africa. Courtesy LDS Newsroom NewsRoomLDS.org

The New Face of Global Mormonism -
Tech-Savvy Missionary Church Thrives as Far Afield as Africa
By Mary Jordan
Washington Post Foreign Service Monday, November 19, 2007; Page A01

LAGOS, Nigeria -- Outside Zion Osandu Ndukwe's one-room apartment, a naked toddler ran up and down a filthy hallway lit by a single candle. The power in the overcrowded slum was off yet again. The stench of urine from the communal bathroom overpowered the fragrance of spices in the bubbling soup that a neighbor stirred in the dark passage.

But this night, the misery all around Ndukwe -- the crime, the uncollected trash, the bathtub-size potholes, the dilapidated cars belching black smoke -- stopped at his door. It was a Monday evening, and because Ndukwe, 39, had been baptized into the Mormon Church six months earlier, that meant it was time to be with his family and sing God's praises.

Play Video: All-American Mormon Faith Goes Global

"I am a child of God!" he sang, as he, his wife and their 4-year-old daughter celebrated in loud, joyous voices a faith once known for its all-white, all-American membership.
"I'm a changed man," Ndukwe said.....

Click here to read the complete article as printed in the Washington Post.
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Hong Kong Mormons Aid Earthquake Victims in Sichuan, China

Reprinted from the Church News, Deseret Morning News (UT) 14 June 2008)

John Aki
HONG KONG
Members of the Church from Hong Kong bustle around in factory made available in mainland China for assembling 10,000 daily necessities kits to relieve suffering of earthquake victims in China.

Shortly after a call for help from Church leaders, more than 600 Hong Kong members of all ages traveled to nearby Shenzhen, China, on May 23-24 to assemble 10,000 daily necessities kits for earthquake victims in Sichuan, China.

Said one Shenzhen news reporter covering the event, "I have not seen so many Hong Kong residents come all at once to China to help."
(Photo courtesy Asia Area public affairs)

Elder Sam Chi Hong Wong, Area Seventy for Hong Kong, quoted a Chinese proverb that described the spirit of the volunteers: "We are of one heart and one mind to provide." One volunteer, as she packed an emergency kit, said that Hong Kong's Latter-day Saints are not only sending daily necessities, "We are also sending our love and thoughts."

Each kit includes crackers, powdered milk, canned meat, instant noodles, soap, tooth brush and paste, towels, raincoat, blanket and drinking water. The effort was organized by Latter-day Saint Charities under the direction of Elder Stanley Wan, an Area Seventy and Asia LDS Charities Director. Brother Bruce Lai, a Hong Kong Chinese businessman and member of the Church, made his factory in Shenzhen available for the event. China Charities Federation, a co-partner in the effort, provided distribution of the relief supplies into the difficult terrain of the earthquake zone. Observed Brother Bruce Lai, "The water can divide us, but our friendship (for China's people) will not be disconnected. Our blood is thicker than water."

A third of Brother Lai's 1,300 factory employees are from Sichuan Province. Some have left the factory to return home to help their families. Elder Wan said, "I'm truly thankful and very impressed that so many members are so enthusiastic to come all the way from Hong Kong to help. We know we are united in our spirit and efforts to provide relief to those who suffer." Members had to obtain their own visas and provide their own transportation to the border. Once over the border, buses were arranged to transport them to and from the factory. One sister reported that she took a taxi instead of the bus back to the border. After explaining to the taxi driver what she had done that day, the driver did not charge her the fare. He wanted to contribute his part to the effort, she said.

Service project key individuals are, from left, Elder Sam Chi Hong Wong, an Area Seventy; factory owner Bruce Lai; Ms. Zhao Li Zhen, vice president of the Shenzhen Red Cross; Elder Stanley Wan, Area Seventy and Asia LDS Charities Director; and Shenzhen Long Gang District Civil Administration Bureau Chief Qiu Wen Shun.

Photo courtesy Asia Area public affairs

In addition to the relief supplies, a check from LDS Charities was presented to the local government officials and the Shenzhen Red Cross. The funds come from Church member donations. Vice-President Zhao Li Zhen of the Shenzhen Red Cross promised to put the money to good use to save lives in Sichuan. Lynette Chen from Hong Kong's Victoria Branch summarized the feelings of the day when she said, "Today I witnessed the gospel in action."

Missionaries Fill Sandbags as Mississippi Rises

QUINCY, Illinois 19 June 2008

Over 130 missionaries from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are saying thank-you to the people of Quincy, Illinois, by filling sand-bags to protect the city that once protected their Mormon ancestors.

Wednesday morning, missionaries from the Peoria, Illinois, and St. Louis, Missouri missions arrived in Quincy to help prevent potential damage from a key levee that broke Tuesday night between Quincy and Warsaw, Indiana. Heavy rain in the Mid-west has left entire towns inundated and thousands of people homeless in the last week.

Dirt is being dumped at the Civic Center in Quincy where missionaries are spending long hours preparing the bags which are then taken by truck to the most needed areas. The relief effort is being organized by local Latter-day Saint leaders who are working closely with John Springs, the mayor of Quincy.

The help given by these missionaries reflects the kindness extended by the people of Quincy to early members of the Church escaping religious persecution in Missouri. After walking close to 200 miles in the winter of 1839, the Latter-day Saints arrived at the banks of the Mississippi, the same river that threatens Quincy today, only to see chunks of ice floating down the river.

In the March 1839 edition of the Quincy Whig Newspaper, the editor wrote that “If they (the Mormons) have been thrown upon our shores destitute … common humanity must oblige us to aid and relieve them all in our power.”

Quincy took in more than 5,000 refugees, almost three times its population in 1839. The citizens organized rescue efforts, provided shelter, created jobs and gave members of the Church protection from those wishing to harm them. Shortly afterwards, Joseph Smith, along with other Church leaders, arrived in Quincy and led the Mormons 40 miles south to establish the city of Nauvoo.

In 2002 the Mormon Tabernacle Choir performed for the people of Quincy as a gesture of gratitude for the kindness extended by their town in 1839.