Kiribati
Click here for the Pacific Mormon Newsroom
22,643
Total Church Membership
2
Stakes
43
Congregations
3
FamilySearch Centers
History
In 1975 students from Kiribati who had attended Church-owned Liahona High School in Tonga returned to their home country as missionaries. The early converts of these young I-Kiribati missionaries established the first branch of the Church and held their meetings on the campus of their old school, the Auriaria Kokoi Ataria School on the island of Tarawa. Just two years later, the Church converted that school into the Moroni Community School (later Moroni High School).
As students of Moroni High School embraced the restored gospel and spread its message across the islands, the school gained a reputation as “a city on a hill” (see Matthew 5:14) and a place of study and faith. Despite early resistance from government and community leaders, the school and the Church have grown much in the years since Kiribati gained its independence in 1979. Now the Church is recognized as a positive influence in the social, educational, and cultural development of the country and is the third-largest Christian denomination in the republic.
For Journalist Use Only
Richard Hunter
New Zealand
Phone: 64(9)488-5572
Mobile: 64-21-240-7804
Africa
Total Church Membership
849,568
Members
2,721
Congregations
Missions
45Missions
FamilySearch Centers
Temples
6Temples
Asia
Total Church Membership
1,298,181
Members
2,113
Congregations
Missions
45Missions
FamilySearch Centers
Temples
10Temples
Europe
Total Church Membership
507,748
Members
1,296
Congregations
Missions
35Missions
FamilySearch Centers
Temples
14Temples
North America
Total Church Membership
9,637,503
Members
18,423
Congregations
Missions
175Missions
FamilySearch Centers
Temples
120Temples
Oceania (Pacific)
Total Church Membership
599,065
Members
1,308
Congregations
Missions
17Missions
FamilySearch Centers
Temples
11Temples
South America
Total Church Membership
4,320,129
Members
5,629
Congregations