The Church in the DR Congo: A Personal Perspective: Part 3, The Missionaries

In a presentation at the 2018 FairMormon Conference,[i] I shared stories of some of the faithful Saints in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Kinshasa). In this series of presentations, I would like to speak from a more personal perspective, reflecting on the meaning of that experience for Kathleen and me, and pondering some of the dynamics of numerical and spiritual growth of the Church in that country.

The series is organized into eight parts:

1. Prologue: What brought us to Africa?

2. Snapshot of the Church in the DR Congo

3. The missionaries

4. What attracts people to the Church?

5. Building from centers of strength — Kisangani

6. Building from centers of strength — Wagenya and elsewhere

7. The temple: A light to the world

8. “The labourers are few”

By means of photographs and video segments, Part 3 shares stories about the young African missionaries who serve in the DR Congo Kinshasa mission. Unlike many developing areas of the world, the DR Congo sends half-again more full-time missionaries than it receives. Unlike other African missions where a mix of African and non-African missionaries serve, only African missionaries serve in the DR Congo. Many unimaginable situations arise because of the personal circumstances of these missionaries. There is much we can learn from their devotion, spirituality, enthusiasm, and faith.

[i] The video version of the entire FairMormon presentation is available on the FairMormon YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJl9FvLKmjw. The first seven segments of this presentation, in an edited and somewhat expanded form, are available for reading at Meridian Magazine (https://latterdaysaintmag.com/) and the website of The Interpreter Foundation (https://interpreterfoundation.org). For more articles and videos by Jeffrey M. Bradshaw, see www.templethemes.org.

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