Church Diversity Breaks Stereotypes

In Harlem, an African-American bishop leads his congregation in prayer. In Miami, neighbors enter a bright yellow chapel and greet each other in Haitian. In Salt Lake City, a teacher instructs her New Testament class in Chinese. Meanwhile, in Florida, an entire congregation sings in the physical poetry of American Sign Language. And in California a young child gives his first talk in Primary in Spanish.

This picture is a striking contrast to the stereotypical image many have of members of the Church in the United States as white, middle-class people from Utah. Yet it accurately portrays the changing face of Church membership, which is becoming increasingly diverse, mirroring a wide range of cultures and experiences.

This diversity has not gone unnoticed by media trumpeting headlines such as “Mormons Gain in Inner Cities—Church Is Attracting More Blacks and Hispanics” in the Philadelphia Inquirer, “LDS Church Follows Members to Inner Cities” in the Denver Post, “Colorblind Faith” in the Chicago Reporter, and “For Mormons in Harlem, Bigger Space Beckons” in the New York Times.

Jan Shipps, a professor emeritus of history and religious studies at Indiana University, said reporters often call her, surprised by the growth of the Church in inner cities. “‘Where are the Mormons?’ they ask. I tell them, ‘They’re everywhere.’”

For example, in the United States, more than 150 Latter-day Saint congregations speak a total of 20 different languages, including Polish, Navajo, Russian, Spanish, and German.

Much of the Church’s growth is attributed to the global volunteer missionary program, the largest of its kind in the world. More than 52,000 missionaries teach in 347 missions in more than 140 nations.

“We work hard to send out a message that brings hope,” said Elder Earl C. Tingey of the Presidency of the Seventy. “We share messages that help families. We bring hope of how a father can be a father, a mother a mother—and all of it is based on the teachings of Jesus Christ.”

At the same time, Elder Tingey was quick to point out the distinctiveness of the Latter-day Saint faith in the Christian world. He says the Church is neither Catholic nor Protestant, but a restoration of the ancient Church of Jesus Christ.

The Church is also growing more diverse internationally. More than half of all Church members now reside outside of the United States, a milestone that was reached in February 1996.

This worldwide membership of almost 13 million Latter-day Saints is a far cry from six members in April 1830, when Joseph Smith organized the Church in upstate New York.

Such growth among diverse cultures and nations has become the Church’s primary challenge. To help meet it, the Church translates scriptures, conference proceedings, satellite broadcasts, curriculum manuals, magazines, software, Web site information, and other materials into more than 100 different languages. The resultant translation system is one of the largest such networks in the world.

In a 2000 speech to the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., Church President Gordon B. Hinckley said that Church growth has brought some serious challenges. “The first is the training of local leadership,” noted President Hinckley. “The second … is providing places of worship as we grow so rapidly.”

In an effort to address the need for more places of worship, hundreds of new buildings are being constructed around the world each year.

But training leadership in congregations where no one has been a Church member for long brings special challenges. In some countries where the Church has only recently been established, some leaders have received their leadership assignments only a few months after joining the Church. These new leaders have few leadership role models.

Recognizing this challenge, the Church has established area offices around the world, overseen by General Authorities. They meet regularly with new local leaders and train them using their native language.

Also with dramatic growth comes the challenge of unifying Latter-day Saints of many cultures. Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles said that the growing diversity among the members is simply a condition, not a Church goal. The real goal is unity, not diversity. “We preach unity among the community of Saints and tolerance toward the personal differences that are inevitable in the beliefs and conduct of a diverse population.”

As a result, efforts are made to teach Latter-day Saints around the world the doctrines of the Church and to train local leaders without imposing American culture.

“Sometimes our culture and the Western culture are very different,” said Seung Hwun Ko, a Church member from Seoul, Korea, “but when we talk about the gospel of Jesus Christ, we meet.”