kids encyclopedia robot

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Sweden facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Quick facts for kids

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Sweden
LDS Church logo - swe.png
(Logo in Swedish)
Templet i Stockholm 2017b.jpg
Area Europe North
Members 9,531 (2022)
Stakes 4
Districts 1
Wards 25
Branches 15
Total Congregations 40
Missions 1
Temples 1
Family History Centers 37

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) (Swedish: Jesu Kristi Kyrka av Sista Dagars Heliga), headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, has been in Sweden since 1850.

History

Sunday School in The Christiana Norway ca 1902
Sunday School in Oslo ca 1902
Membership
Year Members
1930 1,854
1940 1,614
1950 1,483
1960 2,569
1970 4,722
1980 6,888
1989* 7,700
1999 8,587
2009 8,966
2019 9,649
*Membership was published as an estimate or rounded number.

The Book of Mormon was translated into Swedish in 1878. As with many other Scandinavian converts, Swedish LDS were encouraged to emigrate to the US and build up "Zion" there; these included the ancestors of a previous church president, Thomas S. Monson, whose grandfather, Nels Monson (born Torhamn), emigrated at the age of 16. This depleted local numbers for a number of decades, until in the late twentieth century, this policy was discontinued, and a temple built within the country itself.

As of 2021, the LDS Church counted its number of members in Sweden to be just above 9,528, divided into 5 regional units with a total of 40 congregations. This was an increase in membership from 2014, which was 9,463. The Church also maintains one temple in the country, the Stockholm Sweden Temple, in Västerhaninge.

The Swedish Rescue

Around 2010, a number of Swedish members of the LDS Church, including former area seventy Hans Mattsson, began to doubt the veracity of the church. Marlin K. Jensen, a church general authority, and historian Richard E. Turley Jr. soon after conducted a fireside, an informal church meeting, at the Västerhaninge Chapel in Stockholm, Sweden, on November 28, 2010. The audio was surreptitiously recorded and sparked much discussion and interest in the blogosphere.

Jesu Kristi Kyrkas medlemsantal i Sverige genom tiderna
Membership history of the LDS Church in Sweden
Gubbängens möten
Service in Gubbängen in 2015

Stakes

Templet i Stockholm 2017e
A meetinghouse next to the Stockholm Sweden Temple

As of February 2023, the following stakes were located in Sweden:

Mission Organized
Göteborg Sweden Stake 20 Nov 1977
Malmö Sweden Stake 1 Sep 1996
Stockholm Sweden Stake 20 Apr 1975
Stockholm Sweden South Stake 20 Aug 1995
Umeå Sweden District 1 Jan 1960

Missions

  • Sweden Stockholm Mission: On June 15, 1905, the Swedish Mission was organized from the Scandinavian Mission, which was renamed the Danish-Norwegian Mission. When established, the mission covered Sweden, Finland, Russia and northern Germany, with Petter Matson as its president. It has since been split among other missions, reducing the area of the mission to only Sweden.

Temples

Templet i Stockholm 2017d
A guest house for the Stockholm Sweden Temple
Templet i Stockholm 2017a.jpg
  • 34. Stockholm Sweden Temple (Closed for renovation)
  • Official website: https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/temples/details/stockholm-sweden-temple?lang=eng
  • News & images
edit
Location:
Announced:
Groundbreaking:
Dedicated:
Size:
Style:
Västerhaninge, Sweden
1 April 1981 by Spencer W. Kimball
17 March 1984 by Thomas S. Monson
2–4 July 1985 by Gordon B. Hinckley
31,000 sq ft (2,900 m2) on a 4.47-acre (1.81 ha) site
Modern adaptation of six-spire design - designed by John Sjostrom and Church A&E Services

See also

  • Religion in Sweden
kids search engine
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Sweden Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.