Abstract
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has experienced significant membership growth within the past century. Church membership reached one million in 1947, five million in 1982, 10 million in 1997, and 15 million in 2013. Although impressive on paper, only about one-third of Church-reported members regularly attend church services. Moreover, membership growth rates have dramatically slowed within the past three decades. Nevertheless, membership growth trends in the twenty-first century have significantly varied by region from rapid growth to stagnant growth or slight decline.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
- 1.
Martinich, Matthew. “Membership Growth – Encyclopedia on Missionary Work and Church Growth (Missiology),” cumorah.com, 4 October 2014. http://cumorah.com/index.php?target=view_other_articles&story_id=669&cat_id=35.
- 2.
“2018 Statistical Report for 2019 April Conference.” 6 April 2019. https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/2018-statistical-report.
- 3.
“Classic Maps.” Accessed 20 January 2020. https://classic.churchofjesuschrist.org/maps.
- 4.
“Facts and Statistics.” Mormon Newsroom. Accessed 14 May 2019. https://www.mormonnewsroom.org/facts-and-statistics.
- 5.
“Creating, Changing, and Naming New Units.” General Handbook: Serving in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Accessed 28 April 2020. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/general-handbook/36-creating-changing-and-naming-new-units?lang=eng#p1.
- 6.
Martinich, Matthew. “Congregational Growth.” LDS Growth Encyclopedia on Missionary Work and Church Growth (Missiology). 6 October 2014. https://cumorah.com/index.php?target=view_other_articles&story_id=674&cat_id=35.
- 7.
“Creating, Changing, and Naming New Units.” General Handbook: Serving in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Accessed 28 April 2020. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/general-handbook/36-creating-changing-and-naming-new-units?lang=eng#p1.
- 8.
“Church Administration.” True to the Faith. 2004. P. 36.
- 9.
“Temples.” ChurchofJesusChrist.org. Accessed 20 January 2020. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics/temples.
- 10.
“Notable progress in the Philippines,” LDS Church News, 30 April 2005. http://www.ldschurchnews.com/articles/47240/Notable-progress-in-the-Philippines.html.
- 11.
“Notable progress in the Philippines,” LDS Church News, 30 April 2005. http://www.ldschurchnews.com/articles/47240/Notable-progress-in-the-Philippines.html.
- 12.
Kellerstrass, J., Kellerstrass, P. “First Stake in India Organized,” Liahona, October 2012. https://www.lds.org/liahona/2012/10/first-stake-in-india-organized.
- 13.
“2011 National Household Survey: Data tables.” Statistics Canada. Accessed 28 April 2020. https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/nhs-enm/2011/dp-pd/dt-td/Rp-eng.cfm?LANG=E&APATH=3&DETAIL=0&DIM=0&FL=A&FREE=0&GC=0&GID=0&GK=0&GRP=0&PID=105399&PRID=0&PTYPE=105277&S=0&SHOWALL=0&SUB=0&Temporal=2013&THEME=95&VID=0&VNAMEE=&VNAMEF=.
- 14.
“Appendix table 6. Population by religious community in 2000 to 2015.” Statistics Finland. Accessed 28 April 2020. https://www.stat.fi/til/vaerak/2015/01/vaerak_2015_01_2016-09-23_tau_006_en.html.
- 15.
Martinich, Matthew. “LDS Membership and Government Census Data—Australia, Canada, Finland, New Zealand, Philippines, and Scotland.” Growth of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Accessed 8 August 2017. http://ldschurchgrowth.blogspot.com/2017/08/lds-membership-and-government-census.html.
- 16.
Cragun, Ryan T., and Ronald Lawson. 2010. “The Secular Transition: The Worldwide Growth of Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and Seventh-day Adventists.” Sociology of Religion 71(3): 349–373.
- 17.
Martinich, Matthew. “LDS Membership and Government Census Data—Australia, Canada, Finland, New Zealand, Philippines, and Scotland.” Growth of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Accessed 8 August 2017. http://ldschurchgrowth.blogspot.com/2017/08/lds-membership-and-government-census.html.
- 18.
“Population and Demography.” Samoa Bureau of Statistics. Accessed 31 December 2019. https://www.sbs.gov.ws/populationanddemography.
- 19.
Martinich, Matthew. 2019. “Top Ten Most Encouraging and Top Ten Most Discouraging Growth and Missionary Developments for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 2019.” Accessed 28 April 2020. https://cumorah.com/index.php?target=view_other_articles&story_id=687&cat_id=30.
Bibliography
Cragun, Ryan T., and Ronald Lawson. 2010. The Secular Transition: The Worldwide Growth of Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and Seventh-day Adventists. Sociology of Religion 71 (3): 349–373.
Kellerstrass, J., and Kellerstrass, P. 2012. First Stake in India Organized. Liahona, October. https://www.lds.org/liahona/2012/10/first-stake-in-india-organized.
Martinich, Matthew. 2014a. Congregational Growth. LDS Growth Encyclopedia on Missionary Work and Church Growth (Missiology), 6 October. https://cumorah.com/index.php?target=view_other_articles&story_id=674&cat_id=35.
———. 2014b. Membership Growth—Encyclopedia on Missionary Work and Church Growth (Missiology). cumorah.com, 4 October. http://cumorah.com/index.php?target=view_other_articles&story_id=669&cat_id=35.
———. 2017. LDS Membership and Government Census Data—Australia, Canada, Finland, New Zealand, Philippines, and Scotland. Growth of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Accessed 8 August 2017. http://ldschurchgrowth.blogspot.com/2017/08/lds-membership-and-government-census.html.
———. 2019. Top Ten Most Encouraging and Top Ten Most Discouraging Growth and Missionary Developments for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 2019. Accessed 28 April 2020. https://cumorah.com/index.php?target=view_other_articles&story_id=687&cat_id=30.
Samoa Bureau of Statistics. Population and Demography. Accessed 31 December 2019. https://www.sbs.gov.ws/populationanddemography.
Statistics Canada. 2011. 2011 National Household Survey: Data Tables. Accessed 28 April 2020. https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/nhs-enm/2011/dp-pd/dt-td/Rp-eng.cfm?LANG=E&APATH=3&DETAIL=0&DIM=0&FL=A&FREE=0&GC=0&GID=0&GK=0&GRP=0&PID=105399&PRID=0&PTYPE=105277&S=0&SHOWALL=0&SUB=0&Temporal=2013&THEME=95&VID=0&VNAMEE=&VNAMEF=.
Statistics Finland. 2015. Appendix Table 6. Population by Religious Community in 2000 to 2015. Accessed 28 April 2020. https://www.stat.fi/til/vaerak/2015/01/vaerak_2015_01_2016-09-23_tau_006_en.html.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 2004. Church Administration. True to the Faith, p. 36.
———. 2005. Notable progress in the Philippines. LDS Church News, 30 April. http://www.ldschurchnews.com/articles/47240/Notable-progress-in-the-Philippines.html.
———. 2019a. 2018 Statistical Report for 2019 April Conference. 6 April. https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/2018-statistical-report.
———. Facts and Statistics. Mormon Newsroom. Accessed 14 May 2019b. https://www.mormonnewsroom.org/facts-and-statistics.
———. Classic Maps. Accessed 20 January 2020a. https://classic.churchofjesuschrist.org/maps.
———. Creating, Changing, and Naming New Units. General Handbook: Serving in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Accessed 28 April 2020b. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/general-handbook/36-creating-changing-and-naming-new-units?lang=eng#p1.
———. Temples. ChurchofJesusChrist.org. Accessed 20 January 2020c. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/manual/gospel-topics/temples.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2020 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Martinich, M. (2020). Mormons in North America, Latin America, the South Pacific, Europe, Africa, and Asia: An Overview. In: Shepherd, R.G., Shepherd, A.G., Cragun, R.T. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Global Mormonism. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52616-0_11
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52616-0_11
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-52615-3
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-52616-0
eBook Packages: Religion and PhilosophyPhilosophy and Religion (R0)