Or so claims this article that states that the Mormon proportion of Utah residents is actually on the rise now.


http://www.sltrib.com/news/1842825-155/mormon-populace-picks-up-the-pace

Of course, this is just raw membership data. There is nothing in the article about membership activity - i.e., nothing that explains why Salt Lake County now has four missions - now THAT would be a story worth writing about!!

I live in a relatively new subdivision and when they started building it the church bought land for a new building. The houses are in and no new building. There are about 25-30 houses on my street and about 7 families that attend church. In one of the families that attend the mom is very openly Exmo (has prominent tattoos and does yard work on Sunday in a tank top as the faithful drive by).

No need for a new bldg. It will be interesting to see if they sell that land.

Sounds like my area. There are four wards in each of the buildings in the stake, they own land for a church building, but they have no plans to build. They told us about a year ago that funds were needed for the missionary "surge" and building was on hold indefinitely. My neighborhood is probably ~35% active Mormons, but most new move-ins in the neighborhood that has the building lot are not members...it's probably ~20% active Mormons.

Consider the source of the data! This study was done using LDS church membership data which we know is inflated. What it really tells us is that 62% of Utahns have their name on the cult's list. The fox is watching this statistical hen-house!

It DOES NOT mean that 62% are sitting in church on Sunday.

It certainly doesn't mean that 62% believe the cult's tall tales.

And no it doesn't mean the cult is tightening its grip on the state.

What is DOES mean is that there are more names on a meaningless list. My name is on that list but I'm LESS "Mormon" than ever!

Agree...hence the "need" for FOUR missions in Salt Lake County alone. Apparently, a big reason why the Church has beefed up its missionary presence is to convince the increasing throngs of inactives clogging up the membership rolls along the Wasatch FRont to get their a$$es back in Church on Sundays.

From the article:
"In 2013, the Salt Lake City-based faith reported adding 12,815 members in Utah County. That number is startling, given that the Census Bureau estimated the county’s overall population rose only 11,300 that year. Utah County is 82.26 percent Mormon."

Sounds fishy.

Sounds like where I grew up (which I did) and it is still "that Mormon."

Maybe TSCC is counting all the new eight year olds..?

They're counting all the new BYU and UVU students.

From periannydd's cite of the Trib:
"In 2013, the Salt Lake City-based faith reported adding 12,815 members in Utah County. That number is startling, given that the Census Bureau estimated the county’s overall population rose only 11,300 that year. Utah County is 82.26 percent Mormon."

First, the Census may be off. Utah County has been growing a lot, so the 11,000 number is suspect. The Census Bureau isn't designed to be precise; it's to measure long-term growth trends.

Second, there was a big announcement. Something about missionary ages being reduced. Surely, that would cause some uptick in membership record relocation to an MTC in Utah County?

Third, does anybody know what the church SOP is for unknown-address members? I would suspect that they probably view those members as being in the last known geography. So, if somebody graduates from BYU and the church doesn't know where to find him after graduation, I strongly suspect it'd count as a member in Utah County, even though the person no longer resides here. And there are a lot of those.

Anecdotally, my Alpine ward has had two families resign in the past year. Even with the new construction going up here (admittedly limited), there are no signs of any absolute growth in membership numbers.

Membership records of missionaries do not follow the missionary to the MTC or to the mission the missionary is going; they remain in the home ward for the entire duration of the mission.

I think more people are no longer identifying themselves annually as Mormons than people that are identifying themselves as Mormons each year.

Decline.

If I were to count membership the way the Mormon church counts membership, like a metastasized cancer, mormonism will always grow until it consumes the world or something else like it.

I had a friend who told me every time she lost five pounds. She never told me when she gained weight. So, by her accounting, I figure she's lighter than air now.

They are doing it with mirrors.

It has to be just mirrors, because we all know they don't smoke. :)

It makes sense. More are identifying as Mormons than those identifying as humans.

What you've got here is a plurality of Mormons, if not wives. More men or Mormon? This will be worked out in the after-lie.

> "Utah’s predominant faith, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, provides county-level membership numbers to state government for demographic purposes."

LOL. Yeah, so before anyone believes this demographic trend, I have a few bridges I'd like to sell at a really good price! Get 'em before they're gone!

It has been well documented that the LDS Church lies about membership numbers in the tune of MILLIONS. Believe this and you might as well believe Joseph Smith never slept with anyone other than Emma.

I think a lot are moving there from other states. I know several including family that left for Utah to live or retire.

My daughter left, so the ratio went up just a tad.

I read that too. It is disheartening.

Here are some interesting LDS membership numbers as reported by the church and then again by the Brazilian government.

Quite a discrepancy to say the least...

http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/blogsfaithblog/54497395-180/church-census-lds-reported.html.csp

That article is very interesting indeed.

From 2000 to 2010, the morg claimed to add about 350,000 new members in Brazil. The census said the # of self-reporting mormons went up by 35,000. Almost exactly 10% of the mormon number.
I recall reading that estimates of "after-baptism" staying in the church in Latin America was about 10%...if so, that matches quite well.

Which, of course, means 90% of the people getting baptized bail.

Keep in mind that Mormons believe these are the Last Days which are only getting worse. I agree with the previous poster who referenced in-migration - members "gathering" to what they believe will be a place of safety among other members. (HA!)

Man, are they in for a surprise!