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Pacific Islanders and Mormonism

Three of the major groups of islands in the Pacific Ocean

Pacific Islanders have a particular place in the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Its first non-English-speaking mission was in the region in 1844,[3] less than twenty years after the church's founding,[1]: 84  and there are currently six temples among the Pacific Island regions of Polynesia, Melanesia, and Micronesia.[1]: 83  In 2015 the Latter-day Saint population in the area was increasing in percentage and absolute numbers.[1]: 83 

Since the 1850s Mormon leaders have identified Polynesian islands with the "islands of the sea" marked in their scriptures for missionary activity, and taught that the people there were descendants of Israelite people from the faith's canonized Book of Mormon.[6] There are numerous notable adherents of the church, and LDS missionary efforts in the region were highlighted in the film The Other Side of Heaven. The church began operating schools in the Pacific Islands in 1850,[2]: 59  and currently owns and runs Brigham Young University–Hawaii (BYU–Hawaii) and the nearby Polynesian Cultural Center.[2]: 61  The Book of Mormon has been translated into numerous local languages of the region since 1855.[2]: 56 

  1. ^ a b c d e Morris, Paul (May 1, 2015). "Polynesians and Mormonism". Nova Religio. 18 (4). University of California Press. doi:10.1525/nr.2015.18.4.83. ISSN 1092-6690.
  2. ^ a b c d Britsch, R. Lanier (April 1, 1980). "The Expansion of Mormonism in the South Pacific" (PDF). Dialogue. 13 (1). University of Illinois Press. doi:10.2307/45224817. ISSN 0012-2157.
  3. ^ [1]: 85 [2]: 55 
  4. ^ Neilson, Reid L. (2008). "Joseph Smith's Legacy in Latin America and the Pacific" (PDF). Global Mormonism in the 21st Century. Brigham Young University. ISBN 978-0-8425-2696-8 – via Internet Archive.
  5. ^ Clement, Russell T. (December 1980). "Polynesian Origins: More Word on the Mormon Perspective" (PDF). Dialogue. 13 (4). University of Illinois Press. doi:10.2307/45224944. ISSN 0012-2157.
  6. ^ [1]: 85–86, 93 [4]: 39–40, 44–46 [5]: 91–97 

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