Elder Kearon speaking of the pandemic said “that this moment will pass”. He went on to say that when he stopped and listened, he realised the church had a very “sunny outlook” and that we are blessed to be led by leaders that have a calming optimism. He went on to speak about President Russell M. Nelson and how he has a calming influence wherever he goes. He reminded us that whatever pains and sorrows we are having, that they are only momentary if we truly come to understand the eternal context of our period here. He showed the following video and said that we need to follow President Nelson’s message to have faith. He reassured us quoting President Nelson from remarks he made in September “Gratefully even a pandemic cannot and will not stop the Lord from embracing us, His love is constant”.
Elder Holland had served as the Area President prior to the formation of the Stake. He spoke about his ancestors and their journey from Allihies in Cork to finally arriving in Utah. He shared how his grandmother came to know about the church and was eventually baptised a member of the church 7 years later. He also spoke about his time serving as a member of the Area Presidency and the fond memories he had visiting Ireland. Paraphrasing President Wilford F. Woodruff he said that if we do our duty, we will have all the revelation we need. He expressed his love for Ireland and his wish to spend more time there.
A brief history of the Dublin Stake:
The Stake was organised under the direction of Elder Graham W. Doxey of the Seventy. He was assisted by President Steven Jensen of the Ireland Dublin Mission and Elder C. Raymond Lowry, regional representative. During the conference Liam Gallagher was sustained as the Stake President. His counselors were Charles Keogh and Anthony O'Connor. With the formation of the stake, 4 of the branches became wards with a Bishop being called for each of these units. There is no paid clergy so bishops and stake presidents give of their time while also working to support their families. From the formation of the Stake there have been 4 Stake Presidents, President Gallagher (March 1995 – March 2000), President Raymond Fagan (March 2000 – Sept 2009), President Bernard C. O’Farrell (Sept 2009 – March 2018) & President Mark Coffey (March 2018 - to-date)
- Dublin Ireland Stake Building
- President Liam Gallagher (March 1995 - March 2000)
- Dublin Stake Presidency (March 2000 - Sept 2009)
- Stake Presidency 2009
- Stake-Presidency.JPG
| Temple Square is always beautiful in the springtime. Gardeners work to prepare the ground for General Conference. © 2012 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. | 1 / 2 |
Congregations of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are organized geographically and members attend worship services near their home in their Ward or Branch similar to a parish in the Catholic church. Each Ward is part of a Stake, which is similar to a Catholic diocese. The leader of a stake is called the Stake President. He is assisted by two counsellors. These brethren look after the spiritual and temporal affairs of the Stake.
The first branch in Dublin was opened in 1850. Throughout the 19th and first half of the 20th century members of the church were encouraged to emigrate to America and gather with the saints there. The growth in the church in Ireland was slow at this time and it was not until the 1960s that the church started to experience growth with an increase in membership that remained in Ireland. Over the years growth in the church has been slow but steady. At the formation of the Stake there were 1700 members living within the boundaries. With growth and emigration since then the current membership is about 2500 members in the Dublin Stake and approximately 7500 in the whole of the country.
In the 1960s the first branch was organised and the members met in small rented rooms at 81 Eccles Street. At this time there were about 30 members attending church. The branch was growing slowly but once again due to a recession and lack of employment in the early 1970s some 40 members emigrated to various parts of the world. At this time a goal was set for the branch to have its own building. The church purchased some land in Bushy Park, Terenure. The members were tasked with funding 20% of the building costs. Unfortunately, due to the economy, lack of employment and mass emigration from the country this was proving to be an almost impossible task. The members organised many events to try and raise the funds, events such as box parties and sponsored walks, (one of these walks was a 20 mile (32km) walk in the Phoenix Park). Despite the members best efforts, the target amount was still a long way off. After quite a long period of the members trying to raise the funds one of the more affluent members approached the branch president inquiring about the progress of the fund raising. After he explained about the slow progress, they were making she gave him a signed blank cheque and told him to fill in the amount needed to meet the target. This was a significant moment for the church in Dublin.
A second piece of land was purchased in the late 1970s in Glasnevin. This new building would become the Finglas Branch and the Stake centre. Currently there are 8 units in the Dublin Stake Stretching from Dublin in the east to Sligo in the west. 5 of these units meet in church owned buildings the other 3 meet in rented buildings. Twice each year there is a conference held in this building where up to 600 members are in attendance.