Newsday: "Diverse Immigrants Are Turning To God"

Diverse Immigrants Are Turning To God
(by Carol Eisenberg; published Newsday (New York, NY), October 21, 2002)

Excerpts:

Mormons have nearly doubled their numbers in the past decade, not just through aggressive proselytizing, but as a result of the arrival of foreign-born converts from Asia and Africa; . . .

The days of Mormonism, for instance, as a predominantly white, Utah-based religion are history, said Brent Belnap, president of the New York, New York Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, better known as the Mormons.

The group now has Korean, Russian, Spanish and Mandarin Chinese congregations in New York, Belnap said. And with 300 to 400 full-time missionaries proselytizing in the New York region, and a new temple on the drawing boards, that range is likely to increase.

On a recent Sunday, for instance, several dozen Chinese men and women - the men in white shirts, ties and dark suits - listen to a Cantonese service extolling the missionary work of 19th century leader Brigham Young as they sit on metal chairs in a suite in an office building just south of Canal Street.

Many, like Shui Lin Lee, say they were converts before they ever set foot on American soil.

Lee was a teenager growing up in Hong Kong when her older sister brought home a group of Mormon missionaries. "They were young, good-looking and they spoke English," she said. "And I wanted to practice my English."

After becoming distant from the church in recent years, Lee said she sought a greater tie after immigrating to the United States and then getting divorced.

"I came back after my divorce because I felt I needed the support," she said.

To judge from the church's meteoric growth, many others have sought that support as well.