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

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) had a presence in Russia before the rise of the USSR, with the first baptisms occurring in 1895. Preliminary missionary efforts began before the dissolution of the Soviet Union, and the Russian government officially recognized the church in 1991. Membership increased in the 1990s and early 2000s. Missionary efforts were impacted by the 2016 Yarovaya law, which prohibited proselyting outside of official Church property. Current membership statistics are not available for Russia, but the church reported 19,946 members in 2009. As of 2015, there are three stakes. There are five missions in Russia as of 2017. In 2018, Russell M. Nelson announced that a temple would be constructed in a major city in Russia.
History.
Early beginnings.
In 1843, 13 years after the church was formed, Joseph Smith called two missionaries - George J. Adams and Orson Hyde - to serve in Russia. Smith stated that "some of the most important things concerning the ... building up of the kingdom of God in the last days" involved Russia. Adams and Hyde's mission, however, was canceled after the death of Joseph Smith. In the 1840s, the Russian press reported the Mormon pioneers' move west, and in the 1870s and 80s chronicled the struggle between the church and the U.S. government over the practice of plural marriage. In 1887, while serving in Jaffa, Palestine, Joseph M. Tanner reportedly baptized some Russians who then settled in Utah. The first Latter-day Saint baptisms in Russia occurred in 1895. August Höglund, a Swedish native, was sent to St. Petersburg in response to a request from the Lindelof family for missionaries to visit them. Johan and Alma Lindelof were soon baptized, and two of their children followed in 1905. This event encouraged Francis M. Lyman to travel to Russia in 1903 to dedicate it for missionary work. He gave dedicatory prayers in Moscow and at the Summer Palace in St. Petersburg. Church leaders visited the Lindelofs following their conversion. An LDS missionary was sent to Latvia, but increasing political tension thwarted further efforts to proselyte in the Russian Empire. After the October Revolution occurred, the Lindelof family was arrested and only two children are confirmed to have survived.
Soviet era.
There is no evidence of additional converts to the church before 1989; however, John H. Noble claimed to have met a "handful of Mormons" while in the Soviet Union in the 1950s. He recorded that they were persecuted by the Communist government for their association with an American religion, but persisted in practicing their faith. The term "Mormon" was also used by Russians to describe unaffiliated polygamist groups.
In 1959, Ezra Taft Benson visited Moscow and spoke to a crowd in the Central Baptist Church. The Russian translation of The Book of Mormon was published on June 3, 1981. As the political climate began to change, the Russian people began learning of the church through travel to other countries and contact with members. The Terebenin family joined the church while visiting Budapest, Hungary in 1989, and it was in their home on February 11, 1990 where the first Russian branch of the LDS Church was created. Soviet diplomat Yuri Dubinin traveled to Utah in April 1990; while visiting Brigham Young University, he affirmed that the church would be allowed inside the USSR. Russell M. Nelson dedicated the land for missionary work for the second time in 1990, in the same Summer Garden where Lyman gave the original prayer. The first mission in the Soviet Union was established in July 1990.
Modern day.
The church was officially recognized by the Russian government in May 1991. The Russia Moscow and St. Petersburg missions were founded in February 1992 after legislation passed that allowed for greater religious freedom. At the time, church membership had reached 750. In the 1990s and early 2000s, membership grew and three stakes were established in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Saratov. In March 1998, a pair of missionaries were kidnapped while working in Saratov and held for a demanded ransom of $300,000. The ransom was never paid, and the young men were released four days later.
Recent developments.
Beginning in July 2016, anti-terror laws passed in Russia prohibit most religious proselyting. The LDS Church announced that it would adhere to the new restrictions outlined in this Yarovaya law, including referring to missionaries as "volunteers." According to a report by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, the law prohibits "preaching, praying, disseminating religious materials, and even answering questions about religion outside of officially designated sites." A 2018 Radio Free Europe story detailed the challenges these volunteers face in Russia, including not being able to directly tell people about the Church in public places and combating abundant anti-Mormon media. According to "The Moscow Times", Roskomnadzor, the part of the Russian government overseeing media censorship, has blocked the Church's website. In March 2019, a pair of Latter-day Saint volunteers serving in Novorossiysk were arrested and deported by Russian police for visa violation when they were found teaching English. There are continuing cultural obstacles, particularly due to the overlap that occurs between church culture and American culture. Russian privacy laws also make the use of the church-operated FamilySearch website impossible for Russian members. The church has built its own chapels in Russia, but tends to purchase and remodel existing buildings in order to draw less negative attention. Emigration and low birth rates currently contribute to falling membership numbers. In 2020, the LDS Church canceled services and other public gatherings indefinitely in response to the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.
Statistics and other information.
As of January 1, 2009, the church reported 19,946 members, 8 missions, 15 districts, and 129 branches in Russia. Members made up 0.14 percent of Russia's population. In 2017, the First Presidency dissolved the Russia Vladivostok Mission into the Novosibirsk Mission, lowering the number of missions in Russia to five. A 2017 "Deseret News" report claimed 23,180 members and 103 congregations. Currently, no membership statistics are available for the country.
Stakes.
As of January 2021, Russia has three stakes:
Temples.
Russian members attended the Stockholm Sweden Temple and the Freiberg Germany Temple before the Helsinki Finland Temple and the Kyiv Ukraine Temple were constructed. Hostilities between Russia and Ukraine have made travel more difficult for members seeking to attend the Kyiv temple. In the Russian Far East, members have also used the temple in Seoul.
At the church's April 2018 general conference, Russell M. Nelson announced a temple to be constructed in Russia. The official location has not been announced, though it will reportedly be in a major city. While visiting Moscow that same month, Dieter F. Uchtdorf encouraged church members to prepare for the temple but to have "patience," as development and construction will be slow. Ronald A. Rasband visited Eastern Europe in 2019 and assured Russian members that a temple would indeed be built.