The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Sri Lanka
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The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Sri Lanka refers to
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...
(LDS Church) and its members in
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
. The first branch was organized in 1978 and has since grown to 5 congregations. Between 2015 and 2019 membership increased by roughly 20%.


History

Two
Mormon missionaries Missionaries of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church)—widely known as Mormon missionaries—are volunteer representatives of the church who engage variously in proselytizing, church service, humanitarian aid, and commu ...
, Chauncey W. West and Benjamin F. Dewey, arrived in Ceylon in May 1853. They briefly labored in
Galle Galle ( si, ගාල්ල, translit=Gālla; ta, காலி, translit=Kāli) (formerly Point de Galle) is a major city in Sri Lanka, situated on the southwestern tip, from Colombo. Galle is the provincial capital and largest city of Souther ...
and
Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo me ...
but could find neither a hall in which to preach nor a person to listen to their message, thanks largely to the influence of anti-Mormon tracts and newspaper articles. They remained in the country only a short time before returning to
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. The LDS Church's next official contact with Sri Lanka was in August 1975, when two missionaries en route home from the church's
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
Mission Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to: Organised activities Religion *Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity *Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...
were assigned to stop in Sri Lanka to explore the prospects for initiating missionary work. They reported favorably. In 1976, Clarence Long, a Latter-day Saint from
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, visited Colombo on business and became acquainted with Reginald and Easvary Rasiah and presented them with a copy of the
Book of Mormon The Book of Mormon is a religious text of the Latter Day Saint movement, which, according to Latter Day Saint theology, contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the American continent from 600 BC to AD 421 and during an interlude date ...
. Their son, Rosignald Rasiah traveled to the United States to work for Long and was baptized in Texas in June 1977. Reginald and Easvary Rasiah were baptized in August 1977, and a few of their family members and others were baptized in ensuing months. The Sri Lanka
Branch A branch, sometimes called a ramus in botany, is a woody structural member connected to the central trunk (botany), trunk of a tree (or sometimes a shrub). Large branches are known as boughs and small branches are known as twigs. The term '' ...
of the church was organized in March 1978 with Reginald Rasiah as
president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
. The church was officially registered in March 1979. In 1979, the church's
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started microfilming Sri Lanka's vital records. The LDS Church and the
Rotary Club Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, profe ...
in Columbo worked together to start a program to teach
English as a second language English as a second or foreign language is the use of English by speakers with different native languages. Language education for people learning English may be known as English as a second language (ESL), English as a foreign language (EF ...
in February 1982. Several senior couples served in Sri Lanka beginning in the late 1970s. They did not actively proselytize, but taught those who requested more information about the church. Missionaries were removed from the country at different times due to civil war. Sri Lanka had one branch and 135 members in 1990. Limited numbers of young foreign missionaries were allowed to serve there beginning about the late 1990s. This led to accelerated church growth. The first chapel in Sri Lanka was dedicated in December 2001. In 2003, membership reached 783.


Tsunami relief

After the 2004 Asian tsunami, the LDS Church brought aid and other assistance to the tsunami devastated countries, including Sri Lanka. Relief supplies, including food, hygiene, and educational kits, were given to those affected by the tsunami. The church assisted in building villages. Among other aids and services, the church built more than 650 boats and gave
micro-credit :''This article is specific to small loans, often provided in a pooled manner. For direct payments to individuals for specific projects, see Micropatronage. For financial services to the poor, see Microfinance. For small payments, see Micropaym ...
loans to hundreds of women to support each other in various livelihood efforts. Thousands of hygiene kits were distributed. In addition to giving humanitarian aid, youth in Long Beach California wrote letters of comfort, friendship and encouragement which were hand-delivered to children in Sri Lanka. Members of the Geneva Switzerland Stake made and provided hygiene kits and collected several tons clothing and bedding for tsunami devastated countries, including Sri Lanka. Some Latter-day Saints in Virginia traveled to Sri Lanka at their own expense and formed a group called "Sri Lankan Help". When they arrived in Sri Lanka this group saw people were receiving basic needs like food and water, but many psychological needs were not being addressed. They addressed this need by performing various acts of kindness. Merrill Osmond, a member of the LDS Church, performed at a Tsunami Relief Fund-raiser hosted by the Los Angeles World Affairs Council.Raising funds for tsunami relief
'. Church News, Feb. 5, 2005.


Colombo Sri Lanka District

The Colombo Sri Lanka District encompasses the country of Sri Lanka. As of February 2023, there were five branches in Sri Lanka, namely: *Chilaw Branch *Colombo 1st Branch *Colombo 2nd Branch *Kandy Branch *Negombo Branch All congregations in a district are considered a branch regardless of size and participation.


Missions

The country was within the boundaries of the church's Singapore Mission until 1 November 2007, at which time it came under the direction of the India Bangalore Mission at the same time the India New Delhi Mission was formed.


Temples

As of February 2023, the country lies within the
Hong Kong China Temple The Hong Kong China Temple (), formerly the Hong Kong Temple, is the 48th operating temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). The LDS Church first sent missionaries to Hong Kong in 1853. Almost 140 years later, in 1 ...
District. It is anticipated that it will be encompassed within the Bengaluru India Temple district once that temple is completed.


See also

*
Christianity in Sri Lanka Christianity is a minority religion in Sri Lanka. It was introduced to the island in first century. Traditionally, after Thomas the Apostle's visit in Kerala in AD 52, Christianity is said to have been introduced to Sri Lanka because of its clo ...


References


External links


Newsroom (Sri Lanka)

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Official site {{British Ceylon period topics