December 28, 2015

Dear everyone,

I have like, no time again to write off a weekly email, but I'll do my best. Sorry, I keep running out of time, but I'll try to get you some information.

First off, I'm here in Mesa. It's actually nice. A little colder than I expected, which is weird, but it's nice. I'm on a bike, so that's been crazy and unexpected, but now that I have fixed my bike, it's actually really fun. 

My companion and I are whitewashing, which means we're both new to the area. His name is Elder Doman, and he's only been here for a 4 1/2 months, so we're both really new. He's from Colorado, and he's really great. We work well together. There's not a whole lot of work here for us to do, but there's a lot of potential, which means there's a lot of work for us to do, but it's exciting. 

Christmas here was great, Skyping home was great, and I've missed my family, so it was great to see and talk to them. 

Suffice to say, a mission has been awesome. I'm tired like all the time, but this is some of the most fulfilling work I've ever done, and I couldn't be happier. Being a missionary is an absolute blast, and I love getting to be bold in declaring the gospel. We have no other purpose in life right now other than to declare the Gospel.

Sorry this was so short, I'll try harder to get a better email out in the future!

Sincerely, Elder Miner

Hee hee, we're rebels.

Christmas lights at the Mesa temple were beautiful. :)

More Christmas

This one is me and my companion (who I suppose you've seen now, but whatever).

Excerpt from Elder Miner's letter to Mom:

We didn't end up opening presents until around 4 because we had a huge lunch/dinner at a member's house. Thank you so much for the sweater, I love it, and it goes great with all the ties my other sweater doesn't go with. I loved the little tsum-tsum too, those are adorable. Thanks also for the subway art things, it's nice to be able to decorate our rooms a little. In short I guess, thanks for sending me a Christmas. I was a little sad thinking that I wouldn't have anything really to open, and then suddenly I got two packages from family and some gifts from members too, including a new tie. But getting yours and Grandma and Grandpa's package really made my Christmas. 
I'm so glad I got to Skype with you and the rest of the family. I hope I'll still be able to in New Caledonia. I think I will be. I hope Christmas was great as it always seems to be at our house. I did get to sing at the Mesa visitor's center and finally got to look at the lights. They were gorgeous, and I wish you guys could come see them sometime. I had some ideas for Frank to add too. ;) 

I do miss being around family around this time of year, and as hard as it is to get missionary work done during this time because everyone is gone, I'm just loving it out here. I don't feel too homesick, and I'm doing my best to just lose myself in the work. It's hard, but it's one of the most satisfying things I've ever done. We finally have a lot of lessons scheduled for tomorrow, and I'm way excited. Trying to get the work going out here has been hard, but we're really starting to make progress I think. 

Thanks so much for all the prayers and support from home. It really makes a difference. I love you so much.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Elder Miner

Talking to Elder Miner

So we got to Skype with Elder Miner Christmas morning. It was wonderful to see him and hear him. Just seeing him erased my concerns. He called first to make sure it was a good time. We had just finished opening gifts. Then we set up Skype. There were a few technical difficulties at first, but Don was able to get them figured out. It was good timing because Grandpa was here so he could talk with him as well. I can't even express how happy he is serving in the mission field. I can't even remember everything we talked about, but we got to talk to him!!!! Can't wait until Mother's Day. (Maybe he'll get to call from the airport when he flies out - whenever that is.)

December 25, 2015

This is a picture of some of the orange groves out here. There are seriously citrus trees absolutely everywhere. 

December 21, 2015

Hey Mom,

Well, here I am in Mesa. So, the mission president and the AP's picked us up at the airport and took us straight to the Mesa Temple Visitor's center. We had a short orientation there and took pictures in front of the Christus statue there. From there we went to the mission office and got more of an orientation, and then a short nap at the mission home. (Best nap ever.) The best mailing address is the mission office, and they'll get it to me from there, and that address is:

2525 N 32nd St

Mesa AZ 85213
United States

I'm really doing great here though, I'm not to homesick, I'm not too stressed, just busy. There's a LOT of work to be done out here, and we need to get a lot more investigators. We only have a small handful, but we have a lot of referrals to contact. My companion's name is Elder Doman. I'll send some pictures in a little bit. He's really cool. He was a cross-country runner in high school, and he's way smart. We get along well, and he has a great attitude. He's only been out four months, so I'm a little surprised he's training, but he's great, so I'm totally fine with it. 

That service project sounds nice. The support of a ward is so so vital I'm finding to keeping members active and happy. 

There's been a lot of cool music out here. Elder Doman and I are over two wards, the Fraser ward and the Three Fountains ward in the Mesa North Stake. Both of their sacraments had Christmas musical programs, and they were both good. I was really impressed by the Fraser ward, they had a harpist who performed "What Child is This," and it was beautiful. 

I actually didn't call Camille at the airport. I suppose it's allowed, but I don't have her number anyway. XD It was a weird situation, I got handed all the boarding passes for people going to Arizona, and I had to find all of them, and so by the time I got in line to check my bags it took forever, and we had to get going to security, so I just ran out of time. I'm looking forward to Christmas though. I was really tired though, we had to get up around 2:30 because they sent us on FrontRunner and TRAX to get in to the airport, so it took a little longer. Not fun. I ended up with a migraine that day, so it was rough. 

I haven't had a chance to see the temple lights yet, we've been SO busy, we moved apartments the day after transfers, and we're still trying to get to know our area because we're white-washing. The missionaries will be singing there on Christmas though, so I have that to look forward to. 

Headed to Mesa

So Jaden left for Mesa today. He called earlier this morning. We had no idea when he would be calling so we kept the girls home until he did. He called around 7:30. He sounded good but tired. It was so good to hear his voice. We didn't have much time to talk with him as he was boarding in about 20 minutes. He is excited to be leaving the MTC and serving in the field.

Later this afternoon we received this email from his mission president in Arizona:

Last Day in the MTC

Some excerpts from the letter I received:


Hey Mom,

First off, thank you so, so much for the chocolates. They were totally, completely unexpected, and so wonderful. I definitely shared them, because I wanted them all to get eaten, and if I tried to do so myself I would probably die. I even gave some to my teachers. I don't know if I ever mentioned this, but I basically had the best teachers here. :)

I'm really honestly OK with going to Mesa. I think it'll be fun to teach in English for a bit and get used to "real" missionary work without also having to struggle with the language, and even though I'll be an English area (probably) I've been told I'll still have language study time. And, if I remember right, I think Isaac's older brother might be in Mesa, I know he's in Arizona, so it'd be way cool if I got to see him or get trained by him. As for the visa, I think it has less to do with time and more to do with how many visas France is willing to grant to the Church at one time, but I don't know for sure. I've been told I'll probably be in Mesa for a transfer or less, but you never know for sure. As soon as my visa comes in they're supposed to send me as far as I know. I did find out today that even this visa-waiting assignment was assigned by an Apostle, so I think that's cool. What all family do I have in the Mesa area? I don't even really know for sure, so you'll have to let me know, maybe send some pictures or something, that'd be great. And is Jason's Mom a member? If not, she will be soon. ;)

....the BYU Men's Chorus was here yesterday for our Sunday devotional, and they were AMAZING. I don't know why, but I just started crying at the end of their last song. I didn't know it off the top of my head, and I can't remember the name, but suffice to say the whole concert was just amazing. There's nothing like music to instantly bring the Spirit to people, and I love how musical our family is. 

Hopefully I'll get to fly out tomorrow, if not, I just figure we need to wait here in the MTC until our visas come in too. I forgot to mention, Elder Graham and everyone else had to come back to the MTC. Their first flight out to San Francisco was delayed to the point where they wouldn't be able to make their connection so they're back here in the MTC until they can get new flight plans. It was crazy to watch him walk into the cafeteria. I'm kinda happy to have him back (as selfish as that is) because he really is awesome and we've grown way close. It was hard to watch him walk away to fly out, so maybe we're all just meant to leave together. Whatever happens though, I know it's for the best. 

I can't wait to call and talk tomorrow, and whatever happens I should be able to call, Elder Graham did even though his flight got cancelled. Not sure what time still though, but I'm thinking I'll try for around 7 AM. 

Thanks again for everything, I love you so much.

See you soon,

Elder Miner

*I find it interesting that even his visa-waiting assignment was given by an apostle. I'm also glad that he is in an area that is similar in climate since he doesn't have cold weather gear,

Elder Miner's last letter from the MTC:

Hey everyone,

So, this is where it all ends, pretty crazy. It's funny, I came in to the MTC knowing absolutely nothing about what to really expect, and now that everything here is old hat, I get to go and adjust to something else completely new. I'm super excited though, I feel like I've learned about as much as I'm going to here, especially in regards to French. 

This week went a lot like all of the others, with a few differences. We taught a lesson to one of our fake investigators, Guillaume, pretty much every day this past week. His story was real and from our teacher's mission, and it was amazing to watch him progress from someone hard-hearted and bitter towards God into someone who was praying and feeling the love of God in his life. I can't wait to watch that happen in investigators' lives for real. We also had a meeting called "in-field orientation." It was different from a lot of the MTC experience, mostly in that it was all in English. But really though, it was a big meeting where we talked about all different aspects of our purpose as a missionary alternated with breakout sessions where we then applied those things we learned in activities. We practiced things like contacting, planning, and keeping our attitude and expectations high. All in all it was pretty useful. 

Funny story though, so I'm sure by now most of you have heard that I am destined to visa-wait in Mesa, Arizona for a bit along with 3 other people from my district while the other half of our district head to Vanuatu. Well, those going to Vanuatu were supposed to leave yesterday, but that didn't quite work out. Apparently their flight from SLC to San Francisco got delayed to the point where they wouldn't be able to catch their flight from San Francisco to New Zealand, so they just came back to the MTC. We're still waiting on new flight plans for them. Part of me wonders if maybe we're all just supposed to stay together until we all have visas. Guess we'll see what God's plan is for us.

I really have enjoyed my MTC experience. While it was a little hard adjusting to how things work here, it really wasn't that bad. It helps that my companion and I get along really well and work really well together. He's been amazing. My French comprehension has increased far beyond where it used to be, and my ability to preach the Gospel in French actually exists now, and is pretty darn good I think. I've also learned what it's going to take to have the Spirit with me all the time. The answer really is strict obedience and constant prayer. It's cool when the Spirit just speaks to your mind and you know what you need to say right in that moment. I've had that happen more than once, and in a lot of different ways. Everyone is different and needs the Gospel unfolded to them in a different way, and that's why there is a need for everyone to serve a mission. Your call to serve a mission could potentially be for one specific person that only you can touch. I truly believe that. My next email will be from the mission field. 

See you out there,

Elder Miner

PS My apologies for the lack of pictures this week, I have no way to get them off my camera here at the MTC anymore since our SD card reader is packed away. I promise an extra dose next week. 

Change of plans

So, I had just sent a Christmas package to New Caledonia earlier today when we received this email from Elder Miner:


So, I just found out today that my visa hasn't come through... 4 of the missionaries in our district, including my companion will be leaving as normal for New Caledonia, and the other 4 of us, including me, will be going to the Mesa, Arizona mission instead. I'll be leaving on Tuesday the 15th now, and my flight leaves at 8:35 AM. I should still be able to call you from the airport at some point during the morning, so hopefully you'll all be available. I'm not going to lie, I'm a little disappointed. I've developed a love for the people of Vanuatu and New Caledonia and a desire to go be with, meet, and serve them. The people of Mesa don't really feel like my people, I guess. I'm also concerned about the French I'll probably lose while I'm there. To be honest though, I'm not taking it super hard. With Grandma and Grandpa having lived there and our other family there, I do love Arizona, I just wish I could be in island paradise for Christmas. It is possible I'lI l see Dan Crockett (Isaac's older brother) while I'm there, I know he was serving in Arizona, I just don't remember what mission. I have faith that there's a reason for this, I just have to try and discover what it is. Wish me luck, and keep praying for me. 

See you soon,

Elder Miner

And this:

It looks like there's an Apache Indian Reservation in my mission area, and I think it would be awesome if I got to serve there. :)

And then this:

Forgot something else, I'll have a bonus half P-day on Monday now to email and stuff, so that's when I'll see your replies. :)

Flight Plans

Here are my flight plans. Crazy huh?

Notice how he loses a day........

December 8, 2015

Hey everyone!

I don't have a whole lot of time to write a weekly email this week, but I'll try and cover most of what happened. 

I had the opportunity to participate in a special 40 person choir for a Christmas devotional for all of the Branch President's and their wives. It was amazingly spiritual, and I was so grateful for the chance I had to bear my testimony through music. It was something I will never forget. We also had a Skype lesson with a native French speaker. It was definitely a different experience, but it was super enjoyable. We had a great conversation, and he was so cool. He was actually a recent convert, and so our message of enduring to the end was perfectly suited for him. I also had my first fast Sunday of my mission. It was great, and I definitely have felt the results of my fast. 

I'm sorry there's not more detail here, not a lot happens that's different from day to day here at the MTC to be honest. 

See you in 2,

Elder Miner 

December 8, 2015

Here are some recent photos from Jaden:

First up is me and the sisters from our zone who were in the special Christmas choir (more on that later.)

This is me and my companion with the two elders from our zone who were in our classroom that are going to the Congo. They left yesterday, and I got to be pretty good friends with both of them. 

This is me and my Branch President. Since this last Sunday was our last full Sunday here in the MTC, we took pictures. :)

This is me, Elder Miller, and Soeur Barton. Go Miners! 

December 1, 2015

This week has been very nice, in that it wasn't the same as always!

Thanksgiving here at the MTC was absolutely amazing. We had a devotional with Elder Oaks in the morning. He and his wife spoke, and Jenny Oaks Baker performed 3 numbers with other members of the Oaks family, and they are all extremely talented. Elder Oaks' remarks were short, but he spoke about the importance of remaining grateful through trials, and oh how important that is for missionaries. We then had thanksgiving lunch, and it was fantastic for MTC food. Real potatoes, juicy turkey, pie, it was so nice. After lunch we had a devotional with one of the church's welfare program leaders. The Church's welfare program is truly huge and amazingly well run. We also heard a talk from the founder of the charity we worked with, and though he wasn't LDS, he gave a great talk about unity as Christians. Because there were so many missions, the service project had two shifts, and my district watched 17 Miracles right after that devotional, and I felt the Spirit and was so grateful for the terrible sacrifices made by those early pioneers. How little we thank them sometimes, but at least our actions as missionaries honor them. The service project was seriously so much fun. We were packaging meals for children. This was done in an assembly line style. Each table had about 12 missionaries, and there were around 50 tables in operation. First two people would fill bags with lentils, and then another two would add spices, another two veggies, and then my job with another missionary was to seal the bags, and then two others would package them. In total the MTC produced over 357,000 meals, the most in the 5 years the MTC has been doing this, and it felt so good to help out. When we finished the service project, they had the Christmas lights here turned on and we then had another devotional that was also a talent show. My favorite talent was an improv two person jazz piano duet. 

Last Tuesday I also found out that I made a 40 person choir that will be performing at a devotional for all of the MTC branch presidencies and their families. I'll be rehearsing all this week and performing on Friday, and I'm super excited. The choir director here is absolutely hilarious, and I love getting to work with him. 

Yesterday the Elders in our district got to help host the new senior missionaries, and it was a blast. They're so nice. I'm seriously considering possibly going on a senior mission now. 

That's about all the news for this week. I'll only have one more official P-Day here at the MTC before I head out. I can't believe it's already been a month already. Thanks for all the love and support!

Sincerely,

Elder Miner    

November 24, 2015

My what a week this has been! Finally I have some stories to tell.

It's hard to remember exactly what happened and when, but I'll do my best. There have been a lot of ups and downs this week. On Wednesday we taught members who spoke French lessons. It was a different experience because they speak faster than our teachers and already understand the Gospel, so we have to try and go deeper. It went fairly well, but I think we can do much better. 

On Thursday I got to watch my companion go absolutely crazy with the Spirit and French during our lessons that day. He described his experience with our "investigator" Guillaume as having words come to his mind over and over with exactly what he should say, in French. He and I both bore powerful testimony to him. This investigator is based of one of Frere Keenan's actual investigators and his story is heart-rending, and it's so easy to love him and want him to accept the gospel. More on him later. We taught Lisa again on Thursday and we continue to have great lessons with her. We taught her more about prophets and the power and importance of the Book of Mormon, and the Spirit was so present. She asked us "who are you, really?" and we responded that we're just a couple of teenagers who are doing our best. I felt like Ammon when King Lamoni asks him if he is the Great Spirit. Again Elder Graham was filled with the Spirit and bore powerful testimony and knew exactly what to say over and over. That day was hard for me because I felt like I didn't have the Spirit very much at all. I prayed hard that night for an increase and to know what to do better after feeling overwhelmed with everything I was supposed to be doing.

The next morning my prayer was answered by one of my teachers without him even knowing. He said he wanted to share a scripture with us, and shared Philippians 4: 6-7 with us, which were exactly the words I needed. It was very spiritual for me and a testimony builder as well. That day I felt like how Elder Graham was the day before, filled with the Spirit in all of our lessons. We had a powerful lesson on prayer with our other "investigator" Leonard and I could speak near-fluent French. Then with Lisa, I had multiple promptings as we taught her further about the afterlife. What an amazing experience. 

Saturday we taught Guillaume again, and we were finally able to get him to pray. After "6 years" of not praying, he finally offered a simple prayer to God, and it was beautiful and simple and wonderful. What an amazing experience it is here at the MTC to teach people who feel so real, as well as people who could potentially be real investigators. 

Sundays here continue to be awesome. I love teaching and being in lessons because everyone is so spiritual and insightful and wants to share what they know, it's so different from a lot of home ward meetings. It's also a little interesting to have a Sacrament meeting almost entirely in French and be able to understand the vast majority of what's going on. My French has grown by leaps and bounds as I've been here at the MTC, and it's fantastic.

Monday I gave my first priesthood blessing of my mission. One of the sisters in our district hurt her knee, and she asked me for a blessing before she went and saw the doctors. It was really cool to have words truly just come to my mind as I listened for them. It was also Elder Graham's birthday, and it was cool to see all the support. Gifts like candy and ties from the other missionaries in our zone and teachers, and a box of cookies from his grandparents. I couldn't get him anything (for obvious reasons) but I think he had a good birthday regardless.

Cool news, I made it in to the Christmas program coming up soon. I think it's for the Branch Presidencies and their wives. Not sure if I'm a soloist or part of the choir or what, but I'll find out tonight. 

I think that just about covers this week. Hard to think I'm already over halfway through since we fly out on the Sunday the 13th! 

See y'all real soon,

Elder Miner

This is me and my companion with our old zone leaders. They headed out to Paris yesterday, and I think they'll do great. The new zone leaders are the other two elders from our district, and the new sister training leaders are also from my district, so basically all the "power" now sits in our district. ;) 

The second is Frere Keenan. He served in Quebec and is getting married on Friday, so we won't see him again until Monday. 

These are my teachers. The first is Frere Nollet, a native Belgian who attends BYU and served in Washington DC, French speaking.

November 17, 2015

Hey everyone!

Speaking French is hard, but I'm so so enjoying it. A lot of the MTC feels the same from day to day... So it's hard to know what to send. Elder Graham continue to get along, I already feel like I've known him for years. The schedule has become ingrained, and we know our way around campus now. We're settling in for the long haul now I suppose. 

The news about the attacks in France really shook all of us up, please keep the French people in your prayers. 

I will say that people definitely weren't kidding about gaining a lot of weight here in the MTC, I'm already starting to feel it.

As for teaching, we've finished up with "Raymond" and are now teaching "Guillaume." Guillaume is based off of a real investigator that our teacher Frere Keenan taught and baptized. He has a sad story about losing a daughter at birth despite praying hard, and has since turned away from God and the Catholic faith he used to have. We've already had some spiritual experiences with him. Do you remember Lisa from our last email? Elder Graham and I have now taught her 4 times total. We've had a lot of spiritual moments with her, especially in talking about the plan of salvation and temple work. In our 3rd lesson, we invited her to be baptized. She said no because she wanted to learn more about what that would mean, so we taught her about the Word of Wisdom for our fourth lesson. She really saw the great reasons for it, but she said coffee will be hard. We probably won't be able to teach her until December 3rd again, but she'll be visiting her son who was recently baptized. Being able to teach real people is so great. 

On Sunday we got a sneak preview of the Church's Christmas initiative, and oh my goodness it is going to be absolutley amazing!!! I can't wait for all the publicitiy the church is going to get, you guys are all in for a treat. 

I wish you could all hear the MTC choir here, it's amazing, and I love being in it. 

See you soon!

Elder Miner

A picture of Jaden's district at the temple on their Sunday walk.

PS So funny story, the power was out yesterday morning, probably because of the snow. We thought we'd get some extra sleep because everything was down, but we didn't. Oh well, made for an interesting start to the day.

November 10, 2015

Bonjour!

It's great to finally be able to contact the outside world, I feel a little sequestered here, but it's fun. First off, My P-day is Tuesday (obviously) so that's when I'll get all your emails. :) If you want to send me a package or a letter though, my mailing address is:

Elder Jaden William Miner

DEC15  VAN-PV
2005 N 900 E Unit  38
Provo UT 84602

and I get those right away. I feel a little lonely, I haven't gotten any packages or letters yet... (hint, hint) ;)

The MTC is really a lot of fun, they certainly whisk you off quickly and get you everything you need. I was a little shell-shocked for the first couple of days, but by Friday our schedule normalized and we've really been settling in. I have some wonderful teachers for French, Frere Nollet is a native Belgian who was an exchange student and served in Washington DC, so his French and English are impeccable. Frere Keenan served in Quebec, so his French is a little weird, but he's so fun to work with. Our district is an absolute blast, we laugh all the time and we've bonded really quick. There are 4 elders and 4 sisters going to New Caledonia, and we have another two elders going to the DRC, French speaking. (I'll have pictures in a later email, I don't have my camera right now.)

My companion is named Elder Graham. He was raised in Minnesota, and he's sharp as a tack and way diligent. We think on the same wavelength almost all the time, and he's definintely my favorite person at the MTC. Since he grew up outside of Utah, his experience with the church has been quite different, and it's fun to compare ward and stake boundary sizes and temple trips and stuff. He's a big Doctor Who fan, so I wish I was a little more into it, but we like a lot of the same memes and we both like all kinds of the same nerdy stuff and similar books, so we relate super well. We also can teach really well together. His conversational French is fantastic, and he's been picking everything up really quick. 

I was also called as the District Leader for my district for the first three weeks. I don't really do anything besides get the mail and start meetings, but it was still quite stressful to recieve that calling at first. Again, I've been able to settle into it and I hope I'm doing a good job. Elder Graham assures me that I am.

The MTC was not exactly what I expected, there's really a huge emphasis on teaching here. Our teachers all act as investigators inbetween lessons, and we're teaching at least one lesson a day now, in French too. I'm so grateful that I have the French experience I've had as a base to build my Gospel vocabulary off of. There are also a number of "Gold Tags" around campus. Some of them are members, some of the aren't, and we're encouraged to teach lessons to them. Elder Graham and I had an opportunity to teach a Gold Tag named Lisa yesterday. She stopped us on our way to get the district's mail and asked us why some other missionaries had offered her a Book of Mormon, but not a Bible. We explained that we usually assume people have a Bible, and talked about the importance of both to us. She seemed reassured by our answer, and we continued talking for a while. She told us that her youngest son had recently been "baptized Mormon" and it was a surprise to her family. She told us that she had raised her family to be anti-organized-religion, and a lot of her other sons were mad at him, and she was trying to figure out how she was going to have Thanksgiving with everyone now. She also wanted to understand her son's decison. We did our best to help her, and we have another lesson with her tomorrow. She feels like she might be a real investigator, so hopefully we can help her. 

Really though, the MTC is just a lot of fun. It's different, and a little weird, but all in a good way.

See you soon!

Elder Miner

Here's a picture of Jaden and his companion, Elder Graham.

And his district.

November 7, 2015

First letter from the MTC:


Dear Mom and Dad,

Yep, I'm alive! The MTC is really a lot of fun, and I'm starting to settle in pretty well. The food is pretty crazy, and you weren't kidding when you said I would be sitting and eating pretty much all day. My P-Day is Tuesday, so I'll email more then, I'm just taking time now to learn the email system. (Yes, I got permission from my zone leader) Can't wait to email you again!

Lots of Love,

Elder Miner

A Little About the church in New Caledonia

My sister-in-law shared this article with me.

The Struggle Between Mormonism and Culture in New Caledonia + 4 More Things About the Church There

byMindy Leavitt | Nov. 04, 2015

Mormon Life

Comments

1. The first members of the Church on the islands were U.S. servicemen.

They were stationed in New Caledonia during World War II when Nouméa, the capital of New Caledonia, served as the U.S. naval and military headquarters in the South Pacific. Years later, more Church members, these ones from French Polynesia, came to New Caledonia to work in the nickel mines. Those Saints were organized into New Caledonia’s first branch in October 1961. At the time, the branch was part of the French Polynesian Mission almost 3,000 miles away.

2. The people there have a genuine kindness and friendliness.

It’s a chilly day in New Caledonia when the temperature falls below 70° F. While there is a rainy season from about February to June, the yearly average temperature remains around 74° F. And the people who live there reflect that warmth.

“People in this country are really nice in general,” says Ula Seiko, a native New Caledonian who also served her mission there. “But there’s something more about the members that makes them different—in a good way—from the rest of the population. One of the principles that comes to my mind is the genuine kindness that I think is a gift tied to the gospel. It’s an attitude that prevails among the members.”

One member from Tahiti who recently moved to New Caledonia observed that New Caledonians are “doux.” In French, the official language of this overseas territory, doux has a dual meaning—“sweet” and “soft.” Returned missionary Laurel Cummins White, who served in New Caledonia from 2009-2010, explains that “the members of the Church in New Caledonia are in this mix. They are sweet and sincere in gesture: they share their warm smiles, firm handshakes, traditional ‘bisous’ (cheek-to-cheek kisses), and their open hearts. They are soft in manner. They are humble, genuine people from deeply traditional backgrounds who have found unity with each other in the gospel and in their devotion to Jesus Christ.”

3. They have a unique struggle between religion and cultural tradition.

“The members here try hard each day to live the gospel the best they can,” says Freddy Tuahivaatetonohiti, the current stake historian in New Caledonia. “One of the biggest challenges for Melanesian members is trying to reconcile customs with religious practice, which isn’t always easy since customs hold a really important place in their lives.”

For native New Caledonians, and especially those who are recent converts to the Church, deep-seated cultural customs and practices—called la coutume—within their individual tribes dictate much of what they do. La coutume can make getting married difficult, keeping investigators from being baptized. It can put a financial strain on families who are expected to pay large sums for various events and can cause tension among families or tribes when members of the Church decide to be loyal to their beliefs rather than their traditions.

4. They are loyal to their heritage.

Along with la coutume, New Caledonians are very loyal to their heritage. Many can trace their ancestry back to Protestant or Catholic missionaries who first arrived on the island in the mid-1800s. They are rooted firmly in the “faith of their fathers” and are hesitant to accept another religion. For French people who have immigrated to New Caledonia, their background often makes them less inclined to believe in God. These attitudes make missionary work a challenge. Missionaries seek to find those who are humble and teachable. Fortunately these are also common traits among New Caledonians, and many accept the gospel with open arms.

Another aspect that makes sharing and living the gospel a challenge is the number of languages and ethnicities present on the islands. Missionaries who serve in New Caledonia learn French in the Missionary Training Center, but once they arrive in the country they often try to pick up one or more of the 40+ other languages spoken natively or in surrounding countries, such as Bislama, Wallisian, and Futunian.

“One of the characteristics of the Caledonian population is that it is multi-ethnic,” explains Seiko. “But this characteristic isn’t a stumbling block for members of different origins and cultural traditions. On the contrary, it creates a richness within the Church.” Seiko recalls many activities when she was in Young Women where they were taught dances and sampled dishes from other cultures. The members who taught them, Seiko remembers, “loved sharing what they knew.”

“It’s our diversity that makes us strong,” says Syo Ulivaka, another young native who served his mission in New Caledonia.

5. Every year, the members make sacrifices to travel to the nearest temple, 3,000 miles away.

One important source of strength for the members in New Caledonia is a yearly temple trip. “Many of the members love going to the temple each year,” explains Brother Tuahivaatetonohiti. “It’s a huge strength for them in their lives.”

In an interview with Church News, President Guidi explained, “We don’t have a temple in New Caledonia, so in order to attend the temple and do temple work, each year New Caledonians come to New Zealand to attend the temple with a full year of work before—of preparation, of saving money for the trip.” Members make many sacrifices throughout the year in order to fund the annual trip in January, while school is out for the summer. But for them, the blessings of temple worship outweigh the price of sacrifice.

“The spirit of the temple remains with them after they return to New Caledonia,” he continues. “This spiritual strength is also felt by others at home who were not able to visit the temple. We feel our unity grow stronger, and we become more humble.”

Missionary Training Center