sábado, 24 de septiembre de 2011

Sister Chilean cities rich in LDS history

Gospel fruit continues its growth in Vina del Mar, Valparaiso
By Jason Swensen
Church News staff writer
Published: Saturday, June 3, 2006


VINA DEL MAR/VALPARAISO, Chile — Folks with an itch for Church history and travel likely have a "must-see" list of LDS-themed locales. Some are obvious: Nauvoo, Ill. Kirtland, Ohio. Palmyra, N.Y.

                           Photo by Jason Swensen
Chilean fishing boats deliver their catch to Valparaiso pier.
Chile's second-largest city, Valparaiso is rich in early
Church history; its sister city, Vina del Mar, can be seen
in the distance.


Other entries on the list might include the Mormon Colonies of northern Mexico, Martin's Cove, Wyo., or perhaps the storied spots of Preston, England.

Adventuresome LDS travelers shouldn't forget to look south in their history hunts.

More than a century before it recorded its first baptism, Chile forever etched its place in early Church history. The Chilean port city of Valparaiso was the intended rest spot for the weary LDS passengers and crew of the ship Brooklyn in May of 1848. The Brooklynhad left New York City three months earlier "determined to flee Babylon, either by land or by sea." It was bound for California in a desperate, dangerous voyage that took the seafaring pioneers below Cape Horn, then along Chile's massive stretch of Pacific coastline.

Temple Opens its Doors

Guests tour refurbished Santiago Chile Temple
By Rodolfo Acevedo
Chile public affairs


Published: Saturday, Jan. 28, 2006


SANTIAGO, Chile — A new chapter of the Church in Chile was penned Jan. 21 as the open house tours were conducted in the newly refurbished and enlarged Santiago Chile.

         Photo courtesy Chile Area.
Grounds of the Santiago Chile Temple.
The ongoing public tours will continue through Feb. 11 in preparation for Feb. 26 rededication ceremonies.

Among the first to tour the refurbished temple were Elder Ryan Dale Marcum and Elder John Robert Kimball, full-time missionaries serving in the Chile Santiago East Mission. After concluding his tour, which included a visit to the temple's new baptistry, Elder Marcum said he was moved by the spirit felt inside the sacred building.

"This is the house of God — there is a wonderful spirit here," Elder Marcum said.
Elder Kimball, a descendant of Elder Heber C. Kimball of the Quorum of the Twelve, added: "It's very special (here). The feelings in all the temples are the same. They are the feelings of God."

martes, 20 de septiembre de 2011

Research in Chile

Historian campaigns to make the Church better known
By Laurie Williams Sowby
Church News staff contributor
Published: Saturday, July 22, 2006


SANTIAGO, Chile — The first baptism of a convert in Chile occurred in a country club swimming pool in Chile's capital, Santiago, on Nov. 25, 1956. Fifty years later, as more than a half-million members throughout the country mark that event, one man is campaigning to make the history of the Church in Chile better known.



Photo by Laurie Williams Sowby
Rodolfo Acevedo is an LDS historian whose work
on a master's thesis at a Catholic University in
the late 1980s was on the Church in Chile.

"We have a beautiful history of the Church in Chile that people don't know yet," said Rodolfo Acevedo, a historian whose work on a master's thesis at a Catholic University in the late 1980s was on that topic. Only 500 copies were printed, all for library use, none for sale. Copies of the history were placed in major libraries around the world, including the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., and Harvard University in Boston, Mass., as well as Brigham Young University and the Church's Historical Department.

From the World

Published: Saturday, Jan. 22, 1994
South America South Area
BYU society meets in Chile


Brother Rodolfo Acevedo, his wife Soledad, and Esteban Veghazi

SANTIAGO, CHILE - The Rabbi Esteban Veghazi was the featured speaker at a recent meeting of the Santiago Chapter of the BYU Management Society. He spoke of the historical significance of Judaism, and how it is the spiritual foundation for the beliefs of millions of people since the Old Testament patriarchs.

lunes, 19 de septiembre de 2011

Chileans to create family tree

By Jason Swensen
Church News staff writer
Published: Saturday, July 13, 2002

Chileans are being asked to gather and submit their genealogy in the coming years to help build a national family tree. The nationwide family history effort is being planned to coincide with Chile's bicentennial in 2010.
The Church will likely play an important role in the development of the national family tree — offering both its extensive genealogical resources and know-how, said Chile Area public affairs director Rodolfo Acevedo.

Beginning in late December, Chileans will be able to submit their family histories via the Internet at www.chilebicentenario.cl. Those records will then be matched against family history archives from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Catholic Church and other entities, according toEl Mercurio, a Chilean newspaper. The publication noted that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has among the best genealogical records in the world, while the Catholic Church in Chile has baptismal records stretching back over a century.
Brother Acevedo anticipates Chilean Latter-day Saints will assist with the national family tree from a grass-roots level.

Global congregation views dedication broadcasts

Published: Saturday, July 6, 2002
NAUVOO, Ill. — Mapmakers likely use the tiniest spots from their dot supply to identify Nauvoo on an Illinois state map. The riverside city's main street boasts little more than a few mom-and-pop stores, a gas station or two and a few shops selling LDS-themed books and souvenirs.
Members of the Tabernacle Choir and others exit the Nauvoo Illinois Temple after a dedicatory session June 29. Dedication sessions were broadcast to 72 countries.

Still, for a few hours in late June, Nauvoo snagged the attention of hundreds of thousands of Church members around the globe. Families from Haiti, Bulgaria, New Zealand, Samoa, Tonga, Thailand, Chile, the British Isles and dozens of other nations gathered in their respective meetinghouses to view broadcasts of dedicatory sessions of the rebuilt Nauvoo Illinois Temple. Members from myriad cultures and backgrounds became a single congregation marking the temple's return to the historic City of Joseph.

A missionary Christmas, far away and long ago

Parley P. Pratt in Chile 150 years ago
By Rodolfo Acevedo
Church News contributor

Published: Saturday, Dec. 15, 2001

For Parley P. and Phebe Pratt, Christmas in 1851 was very different and distant from that of their native land.
Parley P. Pratt, who traveled by ship to Chile in 1851 with his wife Phebe and Elder Rufus C. Allen, spent most of his life in the Church as a missionary.

 However, in the intimacy of their missionary home in Valparaiso, Chile, they experienced a real nativity in their temporary quarters with the birth of their son in a faraway city, as did Joseph and Mary in Bethlehem with their newborn Babe.
Christmas in 1851 came in the springtime. The country and gardens were blossoming, offering natural riches to these missionaries who had traveled long distances to observe the conditions of the countries in South America with the view of establishing the recently restored gospel among them.

Church added to Chilean census

Published: Saturday, Dec. 1, 2001
SANTIAGO, Chile — For the first time, the word "Mormon" was included in the religion category of Chile's national census that will be completed in 2002.
 Chilean Church members can now identify their specific religious affiliation in the country's national census. The newly added "Mormon" category on the census reflects Church growth in Chile.
 Previously, the Church has been grouped with Protestant and evangelist religions. This time, the census forms that are to be filled out by all citizens over the age of 15 included the alternative, "Mormon" in response to the query, "What religion do you profess?"

Apostle's 1851 visit to Chile

By Rodolfo Acevedo
Church News contributor
Published: Saturday, Oct. 27, 2001


VALPARAISO, CHILE — November 8 will mark the 150th anniversary of the arrival of Elder Parley P. Pratt of the Quorum of the Twelve in Chile in 1851.
Photos by Rodolfo Acevedo
Church near where infant was buried remains in use today

Photos by Rodolfo Acevedo
Graveyard of Omner Pratt's burial contains a plaque commemorating
 the visit of Parley P. and Phebe Pratt to this nation 150 years ago.


Elder Pratt's visit occurred long ago — yet it remains an important chapter in the history of the Church in Chile and South America.
In 1851, Elder Pratt was serving as president of the Pacific Mission, which was organized to establish the preaching of the gospel along the Pacific coast, the Pacific Islands and South America. Elder Pratt arrived at the mission headquarters in San Francisco, Calif., in March of 1851.

New chapel prompts 'green-up'

Published: Saturday, Feb. 3, 2001

SANTIAGO, Chile — The newly constructed meetinghouse of the Sotero del Rio Ward, Santiago Chile Puente Alto Stake, has yet to host a single sacrament meeting. But already, the stately red-brick meetinghouse is impacting the neighborhood.
Members are waiting for municipal approval to open the building for worship. Until then, they have kept busy landscaping and sprucing up the grounds surrounding it.

Cover Story: Pres. Hinckley in Chile marks largest LDS gathering

Chilean members eagerly greet Pres. Hinckley

By Rodolfo Acevedo
Director of public affairs, Chile Area
Published: Saturday, May 8, 1999




SANTIAGO, Chile — A great meeting of an estimated 57,500 members— believed to be the largest number of members ever gathered for a Church meeting — assembled in a soccer stadium to hear President Gordon B. Hinckley speak at a regional conference April 25.
President Hinckley was accompanied by his wife, Marjorie, and by Elder Russell M. Nelson of the Quorum of the Twelve and his wife, Dantzel. The Chile Area presidency, composed of Elders Dale E. Miller, Jerald L. Taylor and Eduardo A. Lamartine, all of the Seventy, and their wives also attended.

The members gathered from the Santiago area, and from points throughout the lengthy nation as they traveled to see the Church president. Those assembled represented nearly one-fifth of the nearly 500,000 members in Chile, who are members of some 116 stakes and eight missions.

Elder Archibald missing following mishap in Chile

Published: Saturday, Dec. 19, 1998
Elder Dallas N. Archibald, a member of the First Quorum of the Seventy and president of the Chile Area, has been reported missing following a fishing accident Dec. 14 near Concepcion, Chile.
Elder Archibald, 60, and Chile Concepcion Mission Pres. David K. Broadbent were fishing on the Biobio River in tube floats. They were about 80 yards apart when Elder Archibald encountered rapids and he was tipped out of his float. He was swept around a bend out of Pres. Broadbent's sight.

When the mission president could not locate Elder Archibald, he notified local authorities and a search began. As of Dec. 17, the search had proved fruitless.
"Elder Archibald has been on that river before," said Elder Jerald L. Taylor of the Seventy, first counselor in the Chile Area presidency. "It is generally a smooth river. Even though the river is lower than normal because of a drought, it is still about 40 to 50 feet deep and 30 yards wide." The banks of the river are not wooded.

Chile floods cause damage to 26 LDS meetinghouses

Published: Saturday, July 19, 1997

In some of the worst flooding in recent history in this coastal South American nation, 26 meetinghouses were damaged.
More than four inches of rain fell in one day in June in areas where there is normally less than that much in a year. Rivers overran their banks and residents were forced to flee from the waters that flowed through homes and businesses. Seven people died in the flooding. No Church members were injured or killed.More than 63,000 people were driven from their homes in central Chile following the heavy rains. Fifteen homes of members were among the houses destroyed, with another 22 homes of members seriously damaged.

Five LDS meetinghouses were used as emergency shelters.
After the disaster, the spirit of service was shown as local members and full-time missionaries worked to help others. In Copiapo (an inland desert city about 400 miles north of Santiago), members of the Chiguayante Chile Stake provided food, funds and clothing to those without homes. Youth of the Santiago Institute of Religion also helped in providing food and prefabricated structures to homeless members and non-members.

Rodolfo Acevedo of Church public affairs in Chile, described the events:
"As though to announce the start of summer, the rain began with no seeming end in Copiapo. The rain continued through much of Chile. On June 11, it rained heavily for 15 hours without stopping, placing entire regions under water. In the more humble sections where people live in small houses in bad conditions, they left all they had to the mud and rocks that filled their homes.

Chile 4th nation with 100 stakes

By Rodolfo Acevedo, Chile director of public affairs
Published: Saturday, March 22, 1997

With the creation of the Puerto Varas stake March 9, Chile joined the elite group of nations with 100 stakes.
So great was the excitement among the local members that the meetinghouse where the stake was created was filled to capacity. Some 300 additional members stood along the walls or hallways to witness the historic event.Chile's 100th stake was created in south Chile, about 25 years after the first stake in this South American nation was organized in 1972.

Only four nations have 100 or more stakes: the United States, with 1,241, Brazil with 154, Mexico with 152, and now Chile with 100. The next nation likely to reach 100 stakes is Peru, which currently has 77 stakes.