The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Massachusetts

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Massachusetts
A stake center and meetinghouse of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The 36,000 s/f, two-story building includes 2 chapels, a multi-purpose recreation hall, classrooms, and local church offices.
Area	NA Northeast
Members	28,940 (2024) [1]
Stakes	7
Wards	42
Branches	13
Total Congregations	55
Missions	1
Temples	1
Family History Centers	18 [2]

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Massachusetts refers to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and its members in Massachusetts.

Official church membership as a percentage of general population was 0.39% in 2014. ^[3] According to the 2014 Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life survey, roughly 1% of Bay Staters self-identify themselves most closely with the LDS Church. ^[4] The LDS Church is the 11th largest denomination in Massachusetts. ^[5]

History

Membership in Massachusetts

Year	Membership
1930	350
1950	637
1970	5,253
1979	6,639
1989*	13,000
1999	21,106
2009	24,689
2019	28,040
2024	28,940
*Membership was published as a rounded number. Source: Wendall J. Ashton; Jim M. Wall, Deseret News, various years, Church Almanac State Information: Massachusetts [1]

The nightly preachings of George J. Adams brought an audience of some 1,200 in Charlestown, Massachusetts, in 1843. At that time, there were some 14 branches (small congregations) of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Boston area. Eleven years prior, the first missionaries for the Church arrived in Boston to organize congregations. Church President Joseph Smith passed through Boston on his way to Washington, D.C., in 1839. After President Smith was martyred in 1844, several members in Massachusetts joined the mass exodus west, and missionary work in the state slowed.

In 1894, one year after the area was reopened to missionaries, Church membership was 96. A decade later, missionaries encountered hostilities toward the Church during the highly publicized United States Senate hearings on Church leader and Senator-elect Reed Smoot, and police disallowed missionaries to hold open-air meetings. By 1930, membership was nearly 360, some of whom were recently returned missionaries studying at Harvard University. Cambridge, Massachusetts, became the headquarters for the New England States Mission. A Church building was dedicated in the area in 1956. ^[6]

The Church completed and dedicated the Boston Massachusetts Temple in 2000, marking the 100th operating temple in the Church.

Stakes

Boston

Hartford

class=notpageimage|

Temples in and near Massachusetts
Red = Operating
Blue = Under Construction
Yellow = announced
Black = Closed for Renovations

As of May 2025, Massachusetts had the following stakes (with the stake center in Massachusetts): ^{[7] [8]}

Stake	Mission	Temple District
Blackstone Valley Massachusetts	Massachusetts Boston	Boston Massachusetts
Boston Massachusetts	Massachusetts Boston	Boston Massachusetts
Cambridge Massachusetts	Massachusetts Boston	Boston Massachusetts
Hingham Massachusetts	Massachusetts Boston	Boston Massachusetts
North Shore Massachusetts	Massachusetts Boston	Boston Massachusetts
Springfield Massachusetts	New Hampshire Manchester	Hartford Connecticut
Worcester Massachusetts	New Hampshire Manchester	Boston Massachusetts

Missions

The Eastern States Mission was organized May 6, 1839. On September 24, 1937, the New England Mission was organized as a division of the Eastern States Mission. The mission was renamed Massachusetts Boston Mission on June 20, 1974 and is the only mission based in Massachusetts. Western portions of the state is served by the New Hampshire Manchester Mission. ^[9]

Temples

Main article: Boston Massachusetts Temple

The Boston Massachusetts Temple was dedicated on October 1, 2000 by President Gordon B. Hinckley.

	100. Boston Massachusetts Temple Official website News & images		edit
	Location: Announced: Groundbreaking: Dedicated: Size: Style:	Belmont, Massachusetts, United States September 30, 1995 by Gordon B. Hinckley June 13, 1997 by Richard G. Scott October 1, 2000 by Gordon B. Hinckley 69,600 sq ft (6,470 m2) on a 8-acre (3.2 ha) site Classic modern, single-spire design - designed by Tsoi/Kobus & Associates and Church A&E Services

A Meetinghouse of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Lowell, Massachusetts. (Nashua New Hampshire Stake)

References

1. "Facts and Statistics: Statistics by State: Massachusetts", Newsroom, LDS Church, retrieved 28 May 2022
2. Category:Massachusetts Family History Centers, familysearch.org, retrieved March 28, 2022
3. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints membership statistics (United States)
4. "Adults in Massachusetts: Religious composition of adults in Massachusetts". Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. Pew Research Center . Retrieved June 21, 2021.
5. "The Association of Religion Data Archives | State Membership Report". Thearda.com. Retrieved May 24, 2021. Note:While it's the eleventh largest denomination in Massachusetts, it's the twelfth largest denomination when "nondenominational" is considered as a denomination.
6. "Statistics and Church Facts | Total Church Membership". newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org. Retrieved 2024-05-09.
7. "Boston Massachusetts Temple District", churchofjesuschristtemples.org, retrieved June 21, 2021
8. "Hartford Connecticut Temple District", churchofjesuschristtemples.org, retrieved June 21, 2021
9. Mortimer, Wm. James (2000), 1999-2000 Church Almanac, Deseret Morning News, pp. 414 & 418, ISBN   1573454915

Further reading

• Berrett, LaMar C., ed. (1999). New England and Eastern Canada. Sacred Places: A Comprehensive Guide to Early LDS Historical Sites. Vol. 1. Salt Lake City, UT: Bookcraft. ISBN   1-57008-644-3.
• Cannon, Donald Q.; Garr, Arnold K.; Van Orden, Bruce A., eds. (2004). Regional Studies in Latter-day Saint Church History: The New England States. Provo, UT: Brigham Young University, Religious Studies Center. ISBN   0-8425-2583-1.
• Cannon, Donald Q., ed. (1988). Regional Studies in Latter-day Saint Church History: New England. Provo, UT: Department of Church History and Doctrine, Brigham Young University. ISBN   0-8425-2284-0.
• Dayley, Kristen Smith (2012). For All the Saints: Lessons Learned in Building the Kingdom. Springville, UT: Cedar Fort, Inc. ISBN   978-1462110643.
• Godfrey, Kenneth W. (1984). "More Treasures Than One: Section 111". Hearken O Ye People. Sandy, UT: Randall Book. pp. 191–204. ISBN   0934126569.
• Holzapfel, Richard Neitzel; Cottle, T. Jeffery (1991). Old Mormon Palmyra and New England. Santa Ana, CA: Fieldbrook Production. ISBN   1879786001.
• Kuehn, Elizabeth (June 1, 2015). "More Treasures Than One: D&C 111". Revelations in Context. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Church History Department.
• Lindsay, Jay (February 12, 2006). "Mormon church small but expanding in liberal Massachusetts". USA Today (AP).

External links

• LDS Church portal

• Deseret News 2010 Church Almanac (Massachusetts)
• Newsroom (Massachusetts)
• ComeUntoChrist.org Latter-day Saints Visitor site
• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Official site