The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Costa Rica
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints reported 51,320 members in 10 stakes and 1 districts, 79 congregations (59 wards[1] and 20 branches[1]), 2 missions, and one temple in Costa Rica, as of December 31, 2019.[2]
History
Year | Membership |
---|---|
1950 | 10 |
1960 | 214 |
1970 | 1,698 |
1980 | 4,523 |
1989* | 13,000 |
1999 | 30,118 |
2009 | 36,666 |
2019 | 51,320 |
1989 membership was published as a rounded number. Source: Jim M. Wall, Deseret News, various years, Church Almanac Country Information: Costa Rica, Windall J. Ashton[2] |
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On July 8, 1946, Costa Rica became part of the LDS Church's Mexican Mission. The first two missionaries, Robert B. Miller and David D. Lingard, arrived in Costa Rica on September 6, 1946. They presented Costa Rican president Teodoro Picado Michalski a copy of the Book of Mormon and began preaching in the country. Due to political unrest, the missionaries left the country in 1948 and 1949. Missionaries returned in 1950 and had their first public meeting on June 7, 1950, with 70 people in attendance. The first branch was organized on August 25, 1950 and the property for the meetinghouse was purchased in 1951.[3]
Missions
The Mexico Mission was the first to send missionaries to Costa Rica. On November 16, 1952 the Central American Mission was organized. It was renamed the Central America Mission on June 10, 1970 and then the Costa Rica San Jose mission on June 20, 1974 as more missions were created in Central America. On July 1, 2015, the Costa Rica San Jose West Mission was created with the Costa Rica San Jose Mission being renamed the Costa Rica San Jose East Mission.[4]
- Costa Rica San José East Mission
- Costa Rica San José West Mission
San José Costa Rica Temple
The San José Costa Rica Temple was dedicated on June 4, 2000 by James E. Faust.
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87 | San José Costa Rica Temple | Operating | 10,700 sq ft (994 m2) | 1.93 acres (7,810 m2) | 4 June 2000 | James E. Faust | edit |
See also
References
- ^ a b LDS Meetinghouse Locator.Nearby Congregations (Wards and Branches).
- ^ a b "Facts and Statistics: Statistics by Country: Costa Rica", Newsroom, LDS Church, retrieved 2021-01-15
- ^ Deseret News 2010 Chruch Almanac. Country information: Costa Rica. Jim M. Wall. p. 468. ISBN 978-1-60641-619-8.
- ^ Deseret News 2001-2002 Church Almanac. Jim M. Wall. p. 468. ISBN 978-1573459334.
External links
- History of the Church in Costa Rica David R. Crockett
- Antonio Pineda, Convert and Bishop David Grant
- "His Ways" - missionary experience Brandon Martin
- Jose Maria Figueres, President of Costa Rica Stan Pugsley
- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Costa Rica) - Official Site
- ComeUntoChrist.org Latter-day Saints Visitor site