News Story

Dedicating a New Building Reflects Mormon Church Growth in Kenya

President Gary C. Hicken, the Kenya Nairobi Mission President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, dedicated the Church’s newest meetinghouse in Langas, Eldoret, Kenya, on 19th January 2014.

Ground was broken for construction of another meetinghouse in Misikhu on Kitale Webuye road in November 2013. The new building is a clear demonstration of church growth in Kenya.

The Langas congregation of the Church was slow in getting started several years ago. But, it was not long before it was one of the fastest growing congregations in Kenya.

Meetinghouses for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are different from those used by many other religions.  They include a chapel, classrooms, offices, a font for baptisms, a kitchen and in many cases a cultural hall with an indoor basketball court. The chapel is a large room that seats 200 to 300 people and is used for Sunday worship services.  But the word “chapel” is also sometimes used by Mormons to describe the whole building or meetinghouse. Cultural halls in Mormon buildings usually also have a stage, for dramatic and musical productions.  And the basketball court doubles for a dance floor or dining area, among other uses.

The dedication of the Langas building was attended by close to 300 members from the wider Eldoret area. President Dominic Kogo who leads the ten congregations in Eldoret noted, “When you look back to 1995 when missionaries first came to Eldoret and to now you see how much the Church has grown.”

In his dedication prayer, “as we dedicate this building this day, we should dedicate ourselves to the Lord as well.”

There are 43 congregations of the Church in all of Kenya with eleven Church-constructed meetinghouses.

Style Guide Note:When reporting about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, please use the complete name of the Church in the first reference. For more information on the use of the name of the Church, go to our online Style Guide.