The_Church_of_Jesus_Christ_of_Latter-day_Saints_in_the_Philippines

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Philippines

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Philippines

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The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church; Filipino: Ang Simbahan ni Jesucristo ng mga Banal sa mga Huling Araw) in the Philippines refers to the organization and its members in the Philippines.

Quick Facts Area, Members ...

The Philippines ranks as having the most church members and members per capita among Asian countries and the fourth most members worldwide.

History

More information Year, Membership ...
A meetinghouse in Guadalupe, Makati, Philippines

The first contact the church had with the Philippines was in 1898 during the Spanish–American War. Two church members, Willard Call and George Seaman, who were part of the United States artillery battery, were set apart as missionaries and began to proselytize after being deployed to the Philippines. However, they met with little success.[4] Active proselytizing stopped at the onset of World War II.[5]

The first Filipino to join the LDS Church was Aniceta Pabilona Fajardo in 1945,[6] who was introduced to the church by Maxine Grimm, who was in the Philippines with the Red Cross in the aftermath of World War II.[4]

The Luzon Serviceman's District was organized during the Korean War under the Japanese Mission for American servicemen stationed in the Philippines. In August 1955, the district was then transferred to the newly organized Southern Far East Mission, under the direction of Joseph Fielding Smith, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve.[4] During this time, Smith visited the Philippines. Due to legal issues, the LDS Church could not send missionaries to the country. Missionary work, however, was done by Latter-day Saint servicemen and American residents, including Kendall B. Schaefermeyer, a returned missionary serving in the U.S. Navy.[4] He had baptized four Filipinos by October 1957 and was teaching more than 20 others.[4]

During 1960, Gordon B. Hinckley, then an Assistant to the Twelve, and apostle Ezra Taft Benson, visited the Philippines.[4] The purpose of the visit was mainly to see the work of the servicemen groups, but they brought back encouraging reports of the missionary work being done among the native Filipinos.[4]

The church obtained official recognition in the Philippines in 1961 when Robert S. Taylor, president of the Southern Far East Mission, filed the paperwork with the Philippine government.[4] Subsequently, on 28 April 1961 in a meeting with servicemen, American residents, and Filipino members, Hinckley rededicated the country.[4] The first American missionaries (Ray Goodson, Harry Murray, Kent Lowe and Nestor Ledesma) arrived in Manila two months later.[4] One of the first converts after official recognition was the family of José Gutierez, Sr. By the end of 1961, six more were baptized.[4]

Due to growth that followed, the Philippines was organized into its own mission by 1967, with Paul S. Rose as the first president.[4] In 1969, the church spread across the islands, having the highest amount of baptisms compared to every other area of the world.[5] This led to the division of the Philippines Mission in 1974 into the Philippines Manila and Philippines Cebu City missions.[4]

The first stake in the Philippines was created in Manila on 20 May 1973.[1][7] In September 2017, the number of stakes in the Philippines reached 100, only the fifth nation in the world to reach that milestone.[8]

While serving as church president, Spencer W. Kimball presided over two area conferences, one in 1975 and another in 1980.[4] During the area conference in 1980, Kimball met with then-President Ferdinand Marcos at Malacañang Palace.[4] In 1987, Manila became the headquarters of the church's Philippines/Micronesia Area.[4]

Augusto A. Lim, the first Filipino general authority, was called to the Second Quorum of Seventy in June 1992.[4]

In 1987, the Book of Mormon was translated into Tagalog by Ricardo Cruz, with the assistance of Posidio Ocampo and Ananias Bala in the final stages of production.[9] Since then, the Book of Mormon has been translated to several other languages of the Philippines.

On June 30, 2021, the LDS Church broke ground for Asia's first "For the Strength of Youth (FSY) Camp" located in Tanay, Rizal, near Manila.[10]

Notable people

Stakes and districts

More information Stake/District, Organized ...

Missions

More information Mission, Organized ...

Philippines Missionary Training Center

The Philippines has its own Missionary Training Center (MTC), where native Filipinos receive missionary training in their own language. The first MTC was dedicated on October 8, 1983, and was housed in a private rented residence. The second MTC was opened July 13, 1992, and stands across the road from the Manila temple.[12] In 2011, the MTC underwent extensive remodeling and was rededicated in May 2012 by Russell M. Nelson.[12] Other nations, including those listed below, send missionaries to the Philippines MTC to receive training in their native language.[13]

  • India
  • Pakistan
  • Mongolia
  • Cambodia
  • Thailand
  • Indonesia
  • Taiwan
  • Hong Kong
  • Singapore
  • Vietnam
  • Malaysia
  • Bangladesh
  • Sri Lanka

As of January 2017, the MTC president is Rodolfo A. Carlos.[14]

Temples


Temples in the Philippines


Temples in the Luzon Region


Temples in the Visayas Region

Temples in Metro Manila

= Operating
= Under construction
= Announced
= Temporarily Closed

Operating

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Quezon City, Philippines
1 April 1981 by Spencer W. Kimball
25 August 1982 by Gordon B. Hinckley
25 September 1984 by Gordon B. Hinckley
26,683 sq ft (2,478.9 m2) on a 3.5-acre (1.4 ha) site
Modern adaptation of six-spire design - designed by Church A&E Services with Felipe M. Mendoza & Partners
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Cebu City, Philippines
April 18, 2006[15] by Gordon B. Hinckley
November 14, 2007 by Dallin H. Oaks[16]
June 13, 2010 by Thomas S. Monson
29,556 sq ft (2,745.8 m2) on a 11.6-acre (4.7 ha) site - designed by Architectural Nexus and Recio & Casa Architects
Announced by letter to local priesthood leaders in April 2006.[17]

Under Construction

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Urdaneta, Philippines
2 October 2010 by Thomas S. Monson[18]
16 January 2019 by Jeffrey R. Holland[19]
March 15 to 30, 2024
scheduled for 28 April 2024
32,604 sq ft (3,029.0 m2) on a 15.34-acre (6.21 ha) site
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Muntinlupa, Philippines
2 April 2017 by Thomas S. Monson[20]
4 June 2020[21] by Evan A. Schmutz on a 2.6-acre (1.1 ha) site
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Davao, Philippines
7 October 2018 by Russell M. Nelson[22][23]
14 November 2020 by Taniela B. Wakolo
18,450 sq ft (1,714 m2) on a 2.7-acre (1.1 ha) site
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Bacolod, Philippines
5 October 2019 by Russell M. Nelson[24]
11 December 2021 by Taniela B. Wakolo[25]
26,700 sq ft (2,480 m2) on a 12.3-acre (5.0 ha) site

Announced

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Cagayan de Oro, Misamis Oriental, Philippines
1 April 2018 by Russell M. Nelson[26]
18,449 sq ft (1,714.0 m2) on a 4.9-acre (2.0 ha) site
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Tacloban City, Philippines
3 October 2021 by Russell M. Nelson[27][28]
21,407 sq ft (1,988.8 m2) on a 6.99-acre (2.83 ha) site
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Naga, Camarines Sur, Philippines
2 October 2022 by Russell M. Nelson[29][30]
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Santiago, Isabela, Philippines
2 October 2022 by Russell M. Nelson[29][30]
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Tuguegarao City, Philippines
2 April 2023 by Russell M. Nelson[31][32]
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Iloilo, Philippines
2 April 2023 by Russell M. Nelson[31][32]
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Laoag, Philippines
1 October 2023 by Russell M. Nelson[33][34]

See also


References

  1. "Facts and Statistics: Statistics by Country: Philippines", Newsroom, LDS Church, retrieved 4 June 2023
  2. Excludes groups meeting separate from wards and branches.
  3. The Philippines Family History Centers, familysearch.org, retrieved 4 June 2023
  4. "Philippines: Church Country Information". Mormon newsroom. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
  5. Gonzalez, Joaquin Jay (1 February 2009). Filipino American Faith in Action: Immigration, Religion, and Civic Engagement. NYU Press. p. 186. ISBN 978-0-8147-3297-7. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
  6. "Country Information: Philippines", Church News Online Almanac, Deseret News, February 1, 2010, retrieved 2012-10-18
  7. Rappleye, Christine (July 6, 2020), "Construction begins in the Philippines on 1st FSY camp in Asia", Church News, Deseret News, retrieved November 3, 2021
  8. Leach, Robin (December 11, 2009). "Photo Gallery: Mayor declares Dec. 4 as Lani Misalucha Day". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
  9. Bigelow, Christopher Kimball (20 August 2019). Temples of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Simon and Schuster. p. 551. ISBN 978-1-68412-782-5. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
  10. Baluyot, Cherry (17 November 2007). "Cebu temple — Groundbreaking in Philippines". Church News. p. 5. Retrieved 2012-10-15.
  11. "New Temple Announced in Cebu, Philippines" (Press release). Newsroom – The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 29 April 2006. Retrieved 2015-05-06.
  12. Taylor, Scott (October 2, 2010), "President Thomas S. Monson opens conference by announcing 5 new temples", Deseret News, retrieved 11 November 2012.

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