Elder John B. Dickson of the Seventy and president of the Africa West Area, described the members in Sierra Leone as "a very faithful, friendly people that have great capacity. They love the Lord and have no trouble expressing their belief in God, no matter what their religious affiliation might be. The church is growing very rapidly, but carefully, under the direction of Sierra Leone Freetown Mission President Richard P. Roggia."
He said when the members learned the first stake was to be created in Sierra Leone, they were "very excited and many were moved to tears."
Elder Dickson added, "This has been much more than just having sufficient numbers to have a stake. They have worked very hard to be a consecrated, covenant-keeping people.
Elder Holland said, "As with everything in the gospel, there are blessings layered on top of blessings in such a day as this. It is wonderful for the institutional church that we are spreading to ever-more distant frontiers. But it is also wonderful for individual people in those individual countries where the restored gospel of Jesus Christ is being so cherished and so revered. In this latter-day light everything is seen more clearly, more hopefully and more beautifully."
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Gerry Avant is editor of the LDS Church News. In addition to her editing duties, she has gone on assignments throughout the United States and to countries. She has won state and regional awards for photography. A native more ..
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Wonderful!
Glad that it's a stake in Africa that marks this milestone. We've made much progress since 1978.
This is very good news. I am glad to hear of this stake being organized. From 1991 until 2002 Sierra Leone went through a brutal civil war, so it has only been since 2002 that the Church has really began to sink roots in that land.