Shrinkage = Growth

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Meilingkie
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Shrinkage = Growth

Post by Meilingkie » Mon May 22, 2023 12:32 pm

Announcement of changes of Stakes.

To be read at the opening of sacrament meeting on April 30, 2023

Dear sisters, brothers and friends of Rotterdam Stake,

"Jesus Christ is the reason we build temples," said President Nelson. "Every temple is His holy house. Making covenants and receiving essential ordinances in the temple, and striving to draw closer to Him there, will bless your life in a way that no other form of worship can. That is why we are doing everything we can to make the blessings of the temple more accessible to our members around the world."
With this vision of our prophet, we want to join in making the church more focused on our rapprochement to the temple and empowering our members. With the recent announcement of a new temple to be built in Brussels, an opportunity arises to more closely connect the temple districts and Stake boundaries.

The First Presidency has authorized the following changes.
1. To adjust the wardboundaries of the wards of Antwerp, Breda, Eindhoven and Spijkenisse for the benefit of the temple districts.
2. To transfer the Breda and Eindhoven wards from the Antwerp stake to the Rotterdam stake.
3. To have the stake boundaries follow with the temple district boundaries.
4. To change the name of the Antwerp stake to the Brussels Belgium North stake and to change the name of the Rotterdam stake to the Breda Netherlands stake.

We ask anyone who can support these changes in word, deed and prayer to make this known by raising their right hand.
Anyone who cannot, to make it known with the same sign.
We trust that these changes will strengthen neighborhoods and members and contribute to further growth and conversion. Forming a new stake will be a great change for us as well as the members in the Breda and Eindhoven wards. We urge you all to give them a warm welcome and support them as they will also support us.
Members from the Breda and Eindhoven wards will be invited to meet with us in the upcoming stake conference. This promises to be a joyous meeting. The changes with their accompanying adjustments will take effect from then on.
Thank you for your dedicated service and inspired discipleship. We love you and will continue to serve you to draw closer to Christ together by turning our focus to the assembly of Israel on both sides of the veil
"Getting the Mormon out of the Church is easier than getting the Mormon out of the Ex-Mormon"

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Meilingkie
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Re: Shrinkage = Growth

Post by Meilingkie » Mon May 22, 2023 12:43 pm

The new Antwerp-Ward spans 150 miles Northwest to Southeast, happy Hometeaching !!
"Getting the Mormon out of the Church is easier than getting the Mormon out of the Ex-Mormon"

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2bizE
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Re: Shrinkage = Growth

Post by 2bizE » Mon May 22, 2023 5:14 pm

Good to hear from you Mel. It seems like you were living in Netherlands. Do the stakes or wards in Europe cross into different countries? For example, does a stake in Belgium have wards in The Netherlands or Germany?
~2bizE

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Meilingkie
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Re: Shrinkage = Growth

Post by Meilingkie » Mon May 22, 2023 10:20 pm

So that actually used to be the case, the former Antwerp-Stake straddled the borders. They have now amended the borders of the stakes to mostly conform to country-borders.
The Dutch Heerlen-Ward remain in the Belgium-Brussels North stake, because it’s a mostly military ward and many work at NATO. Same goes for the Brussels North ward.
"Getting the Mormon out of the Church is easier than getting the Mormon out of the Ex-Mormon"

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moksha
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Re: Shrinkage = Growth

Post by moksha » Tue May 23, 2023 7:24 pm

As more people leave the Church, the administrative structure will have to change. For isolated members at geographic distances, internet conferencing as a substitute for normal services may help. They could be mailed pre-packaged sacrament ingredients. Perhaps wear hair shirts in lieu of bishop counseling.
Good faith does not require evidence, but it also does not turn a blind eye to that evidence. Otherwise, it becomes misplaced faith.
-- Moksha

Gatorbait
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Re: Shrinkage = Growth

Post by Gatorbait » Fri May 26, 2023 7:47 am

It is interesting to me how the growth in the church seems to have stalled to a crawl in most of Holland, Belgium and the areas adjacent to them. Last time I was in Belgium, I did not see any mission mormonaries at all. No churches, and no sign of a Mormon presence. And I really looked for it.

At one time the Catholic church was strong in those areas but I see little or no interest in people younger than 50ish going to mass.

To build a temple in Belgium seems silly as hell. Probably won't be open more than a few hours a week. This seems to be a PR stunt more than anything else.
"Let no man count himself righteous who permits a wrong he could avert". N.N. Riddell

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Hagoth
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Re: Shrinkage = Growth

Post by Hagoth » Fri May 26, 2023 8:18 am

Meilingkie wrote:
Mon May 22, 2023 12:32 pm
...on both sides of the veil
The church is putting more and more emphasis on its success among invisible, unnamed people.
“The easy confidence with which I know another man's religion is folly teaches me to suspect that my own is also.” -Mark Twain

Jesus: "The Kingdom of God is within you." The Buddha: "Be your own light."

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