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‘Mormon Land’: A look at the church’s past, present and future in Russia

(Michael Stack | Special to The Salt Lake Tribune) The Presidential Palace and the Annunciation Cathedral stand side by side within the walls of the Kremlin on the Moskva River.

The Salt Lake Tribune just concluded a special three-part series on the challenges Western faiths, including The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, face in Russia — a nation dominated by the Russian Orthodox Church.

One of the biggest — if not the biggest — obstacles is the government’s ban on public proselytizing by these so-called outsider religions.

David Stewart, an independent demographer who served a mission in St. Petersburg and co-founded The Cumorah Project, which tracks Latter-day Saint growth around the world, discusses the status of Mormonism in Russia on this week’s podcast.

Listen here:

(Photo courtesy of David Stewart) David Stewart, center, with President and Sister Creel upon his arrival to the Russia St. Petersburg Mission in 1992.

Check out The Tribune’s series, too:

Part 1 explains what Western faiths are up against in Russia.

Part 2 explores the future of Mormonism there.

Part 3 examines why building a temple in Russia will be a tall order.