Mormon Life - Asia tag

Vietnamese chef finds the LDS Church, his foundation and a desire to help others

Fri, 13 Apr 2012 10:18:00 -0600

source: MormonTimes.com

Hai Fitzgerald places a steaming dish of pasta in sauce in front of a customer at Thyme & Seasons Market Place. He turns away to check on another dish as the man takes his first bite. As the diner tastes the food, he exclaims, "Holy cow!"

Fitzgerald whips back around. "No!" he says, with mock sternness. "That is holy chicken, not holy cow!"

When it comes time for dessert, the diner says he is full and can't eat another bite. Fitzgerald offers him a flourless Belgian chocolate cupcake, which he accepts and eats.

"Whenever people are full, they always somehow have room for dessert," Fitzgerald observes.

Mission History, 1949: First Missions to “the Orient”

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 11:18:00 -0600

source: keepapitchinin.org

Mormon Life says: A look back at The Friend from 1949. Click on the forwarding link to see the whole picture story. A short lesson in the history of missionary work in the Far East, presented to the children of the Church in 1949:

450 Cambodian Saints celebrate 'Day of Service' with festival cleanup

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 11:01:00 -0700

source: ldschurchnews.com

Mormon Life says: President Eyring's challenge for a "Day of Service" has done so much good around the world. More than 450 members of the Central, North and South districts in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, recently carried out their local "Day of Service" project by cleaning up trash and other debris left over from the annual Cambodian Water Festival.

"I am so thankful for our members and am happy that they had this chance to help clean our city," said North District President Thaong Chantha. "They show a good example with love and unity."

Youth from hong Kong and U.S. meet over video conferencing

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 11:59:00 -0700

source: ldschurchnews.com

Jo da Rosa from the West Columbia South Carolina stake was traveling for business in Hong Kong, China, in October 2010. With a desire to attend Church during his trip, he decided to attend the ward across the street from the Hong Kong China Temple.

After sacrament meeting, a man from the Hong Kong ward approached him and asked if he recognized him. Of course he did. This man from the Hong Kong Sham Shui Po Ward was Richard Cheung, a dear college friend from his days at BYU-Hawaii in the early 1980s.

BYU grads' award-nominated film 'River of Victory' features family's triumph over living conditions

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 11:20:00 -0700

source: MormonTimes.com

Through filming "River of Victory" about a family who lives near a garbage dump in Cambodia, two returned Mormon missionaries found that happiness isn't limited to a location.

“You can find happiness wherever you are,” noted Trevor Wright, director and producer of “River of Victory,” an International Documentary Association award-nominated documentary. “There are people everywhere and they are not defined by their circumstances.”

Church launches new Hong Kong newsroom website

Wed, 04 Jan 2012 12:16:00 -0700

source: Newsroom.lds.org

Only months after the launch of the Church’s Mexico Newsroom website, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has launched the Hong Kong Newsroom website: mormonnewsroom.hk.

Indonesia villages receive blessing of clean water

Mon, 19 Dec 2011 09:13:00 -0700

source: ldschurchnews.com

Obtaining the basic necessity of safe drinking water is a challenge many of Heavenly Father's children face each and every day. According to the World Health Organization, one in six people do not have access to clean water. That's why Church humanitarian efforts include clean water projects in several countries. On Oct. 27, villagers of Desa Anggramanis in Indonesia celebrated the completion of their safe water project. The Church provided funding, engineering, technical advice and supervision, while the villagers provided the labor.

BYU Students Raise Money to Send Fellow Student Home for Christmas

Wed, 14 Dec 2011 14:46:00 -0700

source: mybyuadlab.com

Provo, UT - As Brigham Young University students take their final exams this week, the one thing that will get them through is the thought of spending Christmas with their family. They will blast through their finals in two days if it means heading home a little earlier than expected. Some students will even drive hundreds of miles through the night so they can arrive home to be greeted with warm hugs, mom‟s homemade food and the chance to create new memories with loved ones. Because during Christmas, family matters most.

But for BYU student Chathura Rathnakumara, going home has never been an option. He has spent the past four Christmases in the United States, unable to afford the plane ticket that would send him home to Sri Lanka to see his mother.

This year, a group of friends from the BYU Adlab want to change that by raising money to send him home.

Chad Ford, the student heading the project and good friend of Rathnakumara, said, “Everyone should be able to go home for Christmas, and that‟s not a problem for most of us. But Rathnakumara just needs a little help to get there.”

“The biggest challenge for me is trying to find the necessary finances [to go home],” Rathnakumara said.

Patty Dyck, another student helping raise funds for Rathnakumara, said she and Ford jumped at the chance to actively make a difference in someone‟s life.

“We didn‟t want to just send a card saying Merry Christmas,‟ we wanted to do something to make his Christmas merry,” Dyck said.

Rathnakumara‟s father passed away when he was 15, and since both he and his older brother live in the United States, his mother lives alone in Sri Lanka. Rathnakumara still takes time to talk with her on the phone every day.

“My message for my mom is to stay happy and enjoy Christmas. And I will try to see [her] sometime soon.”

Current donations total $550, and the project managers hope to raise a total of $3,000 by December 23 so Rathnakumara can spend Christmas with his mother. Those who wish to make a donation can visit www.sendchathurahome.com and click the “Donate” button at the bottom of the page to donate through PayPal. Donations will not be accepted after the goal has been reached.

Hong Kong district celebrates welfare anniversary

Mon, 12 Dec 2011 10:10:00 -0700

source: news.lds.org

It was a unique day of service on Saturday, December 3, 2011, when dozens of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from the Hong Kong China District assembled humanitarian kits and learned about poverty in commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the Church welfare system.

About 50 members from three local branches, representing different languages and ethnicities, came together in yellow Helping Hands vests.

BYU seeks couples to teach in China

Fri, 09 Dec 2011 10:00:00 -0700

source: ldschurchnews.com

The David M. Kennedy Center for International Studies at BYU is seeking qualified couples and individuals to teach at highly respected universities in the People's Republic of China during the 2012-13 academic year.

Although most teachers are hired to teach oral and written English, there is an increasing need for professionals with experience in the fields of linguistics, business, law, economics, science, culture and literature.

Korean newspaper features LDS missionaries

Mon, 21 Nov 2011 09:40:00 -0700

source: http://www.koreaherald.com/

“Whenever we say we’re Mormon, a lot of people think we’re polygamists,” said Elder Tyson Bailey, 21, his voice betraying a hint of exasperation.

Their frustration is understandable: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints banned the practice of plural marriage in 1890, about a century before the 21-year-old was born.

Elder Kellen Fowers, 20, listed more misconceptions: They don’t worship the book of Mormon, or church founder Joseph Smith, for example.

“We do not worship anything but Jesus Christ,” he said.

Of course, LDS Church members who volunteer to come here as missionaries do a lot more than refute myths about their church. They work to form friendships, to teach their faith and perform public services.

Taiwan school fires Mormon teachers for faith, fined for discrimination

Wed, 19 Oct 2011 12:35:00 -0600

source: straitstimes.com

Mormon Life says: What's most remarkable is that this is the first time religious discrimination at work has been punished in Taiwan. Taiwan has fined a school for firing two Mormon teachers over their faith, marking the first time that religious discrimination in the workplace has been punished on the island, officials said on Wednesday.

The Catholic Dominican International School, located in Taipei, has been fined US$20,000 (S$25,200) for sacking the two American women, according to the capital's labour bureau.

Letters in the Jade Dragon Box: Finding the Church in China’s Past

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 00:04:00 -0600

by Gale Sears
source: MormonLife.com

Mormon Life says: Author Gale Sears did extensive research on China, and the Church in China, for her newest novel, Letters in the Jade Dragon Box. These are some of the discoveries she made as she researched that enigmatic country.

There are countries cloaked in mystery. One such country is China: an enigma of thousands of years of emperors, Confucian philosophers, peasant farmers and scientific discoveries of wonder. The winds that blow across China whisper of the Silk Road and the Great Wall, of the terra cotta soldiers of Xian and the Palace of Tranquility in the Forbidden City, Peking.

Author Mark Twain once wrote that “Travel is an antidote to prejudice and narrow mindedness.” I have found this to be true. As we walk the pathways of another’s heritage and culture, we become more understanding, more aware of similarities and less bothered by differences. And, with an LDS sensibility, we realize that all the citizens of the planet are valued sons and daughters of a loving Father.

In doing research for my historical novel, Letters in the Jade Dragon Box, I had the privilege of discovering a country with thousands of years of astonishing history, a culture saturated in legend and lore, a citizenry of curiosity and tenacity and political systems ranging from Emperors to warlords to the communism of Mao Tse-tung. The research also took me into fascinating discoveries concerning the connection between The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the people of China: Apostle David O’McKay’s 1921 prayer of dedication given in the palace garden of the Forbidden City; the attempt to establish missionary work in Hong Kong in 1950, just after the communists took over China and just prior to the outbreak of the Korean War in 1951; of twenty-six-year-old Elder H. Grant Heaton accepting the call to serve as the mission president for the Southern Far East Mission in 1955. (Elder Heaton was one of the first missionaries called to labor in Hong Kong in 1950.) I was touched by the humble trust shown by Elder Heaton and his wife Luana as they took their three-month-old son, Grant Junior, and traveled halfway around the world to serve the Lord.

With permission, I will share some of Brother and Sister Heaton’s reminiscences of their time serving the wonderful people of Asia. To begin, Brother Heaton remembers the strange circumstances surrounding their call. As a missionary returned from Hong Kong, he had been called several times to meet with Elder Harold B. Lee and Stephen L. Richards, counselor to President McKay, to discuss and evaluate the conditions in the Far East.

“Still a few weeks later, I received a call from President Richards’s office, requesting another meeting. It was almost the same as the first, except he did wonder, out loud, if it would be possible for me to go to Hong Kong this summer. I assumed that he wanted me to accompany one of the General Authorities, or even a new mission president called to re-open the area. I knew that President Robertson had been urging for some assistance to continue operations in Hong Kong, which was then part of the Japanese mission. I told President Richards that I would be delighted to go to Hong Kong for the summer. He asked if my wife would be willing to go. Because Grant Jr. had just been born, I suggested that I talk to her about it first. He asked me to return in one week for another discussion.

“As we entered President Richard’s office, President J. Reuben Clark was there, and in a few moments President McKay walked in. He was very jovial and made a great fuss over little Grant Jr., playing and laughing with him for some time.

“Finally, seated in his large swivel chair, he turned and looked at me and said, 'Now, President Heaton, this is a very important assignment. I have long been interested in the Chinese people and the missionary work there.' For the first time it dawned on me that all this was leading up to me being called as a mission president. My first reaction of shock and disbelief impelled me to say, 'President McKay, I am neither capable, nor worthy to be a mission president.' He very causally replied, 'Oh, we are perfectly aware of that, Brother Heaton.' Our official call came in the mail a few days later.

“Our next surprise was to become aware of the immense territory covered by this new mission. President McKay said it was not only the largest mission in the church, but it contained more people than the missions in the rest of the world combined.

“In subsequent meetings with the First Presidency, we learned how deep President McKay’s interest in China really was. At the time we were set apart, it was mentioned that several attempts had been made in China, in failure. 'This time we will not fail!' he promised.”

Over the next several months President and Sister Heaton prepared for this new and challenging adventure. Sister Heaton writes:

“The next three months seemed like three days. It is not easy to leave family, friends and loved ones behind.

“President Joseph Fielding Smith, then the president of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles, and Sister Jessie Evans Smith were assigned to accompany us and see that we got started all right. Most of the general authorities were there to see President and Sister Smith depart and wish them God-speed on their assignment. At the farewell at the train station, the conductor had a difficult time getting Sister Smith or me to board the train. The train started to move. There was such a large crowd that I could hardly reach the steps of the train. I almost dropped the baby as I boarded the train. Sister Smith was still not on the train. Elder Bruce McConkie, (her son-in-law) ran and picked her up and put her on the car behind ours. President Heaton and President Smith were already on the train. When Sister Smith had to be carried to the train, President Smith muttered, 'That woman will be late to her own funeral.'

“As the train slowly departed, all the people, families and general authorities began to sing “God Be With You Till We Meet Again.” It was an emotional time for me and also for Sister Smith. The meaning of the song was completely fulfilled during the next five years.”

The Southern Far East mission began in Hong Kong with eight eager missionaries being led by a very capable mission president and being fed by a loving “mission mom.” Over the next months and years the gospel net was tossed wide as Cantonese and Mandarin were learned, lessons given and baptisms performed. President and Sister Heaton would see the hand of the Lord in the missionary work, growth of the church and miracles for their family. President Heaton would be instrumental in securing floors of apartment buildings to serve as branch chapels and in purchasing a sizable piece of land in Kowloon for the mission home. In later years when Gordon B. Hinkley was searching in vain for property on which to build the Hong Kong temple, the following experience is recorded in his biography:

“Something very interesting came into my mind . . . I did not hear a voice with my natural ears, but into my mind there came the voice of the Spirit. It said, ‘Why are you worried about this? You have a wonderful piece of property where the mission home and the small chapel stand. They are in the very heart of Kowloon, in the location with the best transportation. Build a building of several stories. It can include a chapel and classrooms on the first two floors and a temple on the top two or three floors.' . . . I relaxed and went back to sleep” (Go Forward with Faith, pg. 481).

The Hong Kong temple was dedicated May 26 and 27, 1996. One year later, in 1997, as the 99-year lease agreement between Britain and China expired, Hong Kong went back to the jurisdiction of mainland China. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints would have a temple in communist China.

As I sat in the living room of Brother and Sister Heaton, hearing many of the missionary stories and absorbing gems of wisdom about the culture, I could feel the deep love and respect they have for the people of China. Through my research I was privileged to open a small window into that beautiful landscape with its amazing people. My soul is richer for the journey.

Learning of new Mormon Church leaders in Cambodia

Mon, 26 Sep 2011 08:26:00 -0600

source: MormonTimes.com

The six-month mark of our senior mission to the Southeast Asian nation of Cambodia was on Oct. 6, 2007. My wife, Dianne, and I had touched down at the Phnom Penh airport on April 6 of that year, the same day that the first box of triple combinations in the Khmer language had arrived to bless the beautiful brown-skinned, black-haired people of that foreign land.

Upon our arrival in that capitol city, our mission president, President Robert W. Winegar, wasted no time in appointing me to serve as branch president of a nonexistent branch that we were to help establish in Siem Reap, the city nearest the famous Angkor Wat ruins of the 11th-13th centuries A.D.

Missionaries in Japan help restore sacred Shinto shrine

Sat, 10 Sep 2011 13:21:00 -0600

source: ldschurchnews.com

The priests at Meiji Shrine in Tokyo — a shrine of such importance in Japan that it can be compared to the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. — recently invited Church leaders here to describe how Latter-day Saints conduct their humanitarian efforts around the world, but especially in Japan following the earthquake and tsunami in Tohoku.

Meiji Shrine is in the heart of Tokyo and was built in 1910 to honor the Emperor Meiji who re-opened Japan to the world in the 1860s. It is one of the three most important shrines in the Shinto religion and is a Tokyo landmark known to almost every visitor from abroad.

The invitation from Meiji came following an unusual — at least in the eyes of the Meiji priests — service project by Christian missionaries at one of their shrines in Tagajo, just outside Sendai. Missionaries from the Tokyo Mission of the Church rode the bus all night to spend the day cleaning the Yawata Shrine, one of the many Shinto shrines damaged by the tsunami. The Yawata Shrine is hundreds of years old and is designated as a Historical Legacy Site in Japan.

Apostles visit Asia; a great frontier of the Church

Mon, 20 Jun 2011 11:21:00 -0600

source: ldschurchnews.com

Two Apostles recently toured several Asian nations — meeting with thousands of members and witnessing, perhaps, the Church's "pioneer" moments in a region of the globe that half the human population calls home.

"Everywhere we went there was a wonderful [spirit]," said Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, who was joined in Asia by Elder David A. Bednar, members of Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. "The members in Asia are out on the periphery of the Church and don't see the visiting Brethren that often, but they were wonderfully courteous and responsive. We came home just thrilled."

The Church in Asia is young but growing, observed Elder Bednar, adding, "It's a thriving part of the world where the Church is influencing for good the lives of millions."

Apostles Visit Church Members in India and Hong Kong

Sat, 28 May 2011 10:46:00 -0600

source: Newsroom.lds.org

Two apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints visited Church members in India and Hong Kong to extend their love and blessings. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland visited Latter-day Saints in India on 22 May 2011, and Elder Holland was accompanied by Elder David A. Bednar on a visit to Hong Kong on 25 May 2011.

The goal of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles is to train local priesthood leaders on every continent and become personally acquainted with the unique challenges and needs of members from dozens of cultures. The Church now has more than 14 million members, most of whom live outside of the United States.

In India, Elder Holland held a conference with local priesthood leaders, and leaders in Lahore, Pakistan, participated via video conference and members in 25 other locations listened through webcasts.

50-Year Jubilee Celebration: 1961-2011 in the Philippines

Fri, 27 May 2011 10:16:00 -0600

source: baguiojensen.blogspot.com

Mormon Life says: This mission president's blog has a great photo gallery of the celebration.

Asia North Area apostle visit: 'This is a historic meeting'

Sat, 05 Mar 2011 09:22:00 -0700

source: ldschurchnews.com

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland and Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve and Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Presidency of the Seventy spent 12 days traveling in the Asia North Area during February. Stops on their itinerary included the Korean cities of Seoul, Busan and Daejeon, and the Japanese cities of Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya. Elder Cook visited Hanoi, Vietnam, as well.

Accompanying Elder Holland, Elder Cook and Elder Rasband during their travels were their wives, Sister Patricia T. Holland, Sister Mary G. Cook and Sister Melanie T. Rasband. Also joining them for part or all of their travels were Elder Gary E. Stevenson of the Seventy and president of the Asia North Area, Elder Yoon Hwan Choi of the Seventy and first counselor in the Asia North Area presidency, and Elder Koichi Aoyagi of the Seventy and second counselor in the Asia North Area presidency and their wives, Sisters Lesa Jean Stevenson, Bon Kyung Koo Choi and Shiroko Momose Aoyagi.

There is a deep sense of the history of the Church in the Asia North Area, Elder Holland said.

"It began with Elder Heber J. Grant who landed in Japan in 1901 to dedicate the land. It continued when Dr. Kim Ho Jik was baptized in 1951 as the first Korean member," said Elder Holland. "The Church and the work here are firmly established. We saw faithful and diligent members of the Church everywhere we went."

Apostle meets with leaders in Vietnam

Tue, 01 Mar 2011 13:15:00 -0700

source: Newsroom.lds.org

While in Asia on assignment in February, Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles had meetings with leading Vietnamese officials, including Mr. Vu Trong Kim, member of the Communist Party Central Committee and vice chairman and general secretary of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front.

Senior leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints frequently travel across the world to manage the affairs of the Church and to minister to members. On occasion, these trips provide opportunities for Church leaders to meet with government officials and other opinion leaders.

Elder Cook said after the meeting that he had been graciously received and that the discussions were substantive. He was accompanied by Elder Carl B. Pratt of the Asia Area Presidency and Hoang Van Tung, a Church leader in Hanoi.

This Vietnamese news article and picture appeared on the Vietnamese site daidoanket.vn. An English translation of that article is below: