Another in a series about the top stories of the 20th century.

"The future is bright. The growth of the Church is unlimited," proclaimed President Thomas S. Monson.

Speaking with the Church News in his office in the Church Administration Building, President Monson commented July 13 on the phenomenal growth of the Church during the last century — a 100-year period when Church membership has mushroomed from 271,681 in mostly Utah and the West to almost 11 million in more than 160 countries.

President Monson, first counselor in the First Presidency, spoke of several factors contributing to the Church's rapid growth and of the blessings and challenges that accompany a growing worldwide membership.

"During the past number of years," he said, "more missionaries have been called. More people hear about the Church, see the Church in action and desire to know more about it. What a glorious time to be living and serving the Lord."

Indeed, the Church has come a long way since 1900, the year B. H. Roberts was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Utah, but was refused a seat in Congress because of a cloud of controversy hovering over Utah and the Church. Almost 100 years later, however, 17 Church members are serving in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives — the largest number of Latter-day Saints to ever serve in Congress.

President Monson noted that since its early pioneering days, the Church has come out of obscurity. "Our membership has been imbued with the meaning of Paul's Epistle to the Romans: "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation. . . . " (Rom. 1:16.)

During the Church News interview, President Monson recalled his early days of Church service, when in 1950 at age 22, he was called as bishop of the Salt Lake 6th-7th Ward.

The ward, in which he was born and reared, had 1,080 members. Back then, "that was a common number of members in a ward," the Church leader explained. Today, he added, large wards have been divided into several smaller ones, giving more members an opportunity to hold Church callings and providing a greater help to bishops. However, with smaller wards, and new ones being created all the time as a result of growth, there is a vital need for the training of local leadership.

The General Authorities are unable to attend each stake conference as they did in the early years of the century, commented President Monson. When the century started there were only 40 stakes in the entire Church with none outside the western United States, except in the Mormon colonies in Mexico and the Church settlements in Canada. Today, there are more than 2,500 stakes throughout the world.

President Monson said an important emphasis of the Church today is the leadership that takes place in the home. The family, he continued, is the answer to many of the challenges that accompany Church growth.

"The Church places great emphasis upon families," he declared. "The home, indeed, is the basis of a righteous life. Family worship, family prayer, family service to others surely bring out the best in us."

President Monson said members frequently ask, "What is the greatest challenge facing the Church?" He noted that President Gordon B. Hinckley has answered: Coping with growth, including the training of new leadership and the construction of new meetinghouses.

Speaking to members gathered for the rededication of the Salt Lake East Millcreek Stake center June 27, President Hinckley talked about Church growth. "We are spread across the earth," he said. "We have more people outside the United States than we have in the United States. We are in 160 nations. We are a family of [nearly] 11 million people and we are moving across the earth. We have to provide meetinghouses for people everywhere, and we are building about 400 new buildings a year. None of you, I think, can appreciate the magnitude of this program but it is happening and moving forward."

Perhaps the most significant factor contributing to the growth of the Church is the increase in the worldwide missionary effort.

As the 20th century began, there were less than 1,000 missionaries in 20 missions. Today, more than 60,000 missionaries are serving in 333 missions.

President Monson said the construction of meetinghouses throughout the world is an important aspect of the Church's missionary effort — as the meetinghouses provide a place for both members and investigators to learn more about the Savior's teachings.

"Today, there are many chapels dotting the land where our missionaries labor," he explained. "It is a great advantage when missionaries can bring investigators into a dedicated meetinghouse of the Lord and there worship together, singing hymns of the Church and hearing the message of the gospel proclaimed."

Another factor contributing to missionary work and the growth of the Church, he went on, is the translation of the scriptures and other resource material. "When missionaries are sent to a given country, they are able to share with the investigator literature in the investigator's own language. Hence, understanding is enhanced. With understanding comes a desire to learn more about the Church."

President Monson noted that during the last century missionary proselyting efforts have also been refined and improved, helping more people around the world understand and embrace the message of the gospel. Missionaries today are better prepared through participation in Young Men and Young Women programs, as well as seminary and institute, he added. "The expansion of the seminary and institute program is phenomenal to behold. Our young people are anxious to learn more of the principles of the gospel. Young people are eager to attend their seminary and institute classes [now being taught throughout the world] and faithfully do so. Testimonies become stronger."

The Church leader explained that as the Church continues to grow, allowing more missionaries to serve in their own countries, among their own people, the missionary effort is strengthened. "At one time almost all of the missionaries came from a few stakes out here in the western United States. Today, missionaries come from all over the world, gifted in languages, and work and teach in their own culture with their native language."

Missionary work, which has always been a priority for the Church, has been emphasized throughout the 20th century. But after World War II, the Church — which had just reached its first million-member mark — began to grow outside Utah as never before. Today, some 50 languages are taught in 17 missionary training centers across the globe.

While serving as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve and then as a member of the First Presidency for the past 36 years, President Monson has been an eye witness to the incredible growth of the Church in eastern Europe. "I observed the Lord's handiwork; in His own time He brought to pass a real miracle," he declared.

Referring to Church members who lived in former Soviet Bloc countries before the fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989, President Monson said they were "true and firm in their resolve to live their religion. It was not always easy. There were many restrictions with which they had to cope."

Even before the breakup of the Soviet empire, "government relations turned from a hindrance to cooperation. Buildings were permitted, including chapels, large and small, and ultimately a temple of the Lord."

When the open house of the Freiberg Germany Temple was held in June 1985, President Monson said that over "89,000 people stood in line, sometimes up to two or three hours, at times in the rain, just to have the opportunity to go into what would become the house of the Lord. After the temple was dedicated our people were so eager to go into the house of the Lord that reservations actually had to be made to participate in an endowment session.

"Spirituality exemplified by the membership was like water stored behind a dam," he remarked. "Great faith had been exercised and truly faith did precede the miracle."

President Monson said that from the German Democratic Republic, work spread to what had been the Soviet Union, and to Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania and many other nations, where "for many years we had not been able to establish the Church or have missionaries called to labor within their boundaries. The words of a hymn, 'The morning breaks, the shadows flee,' illustrates what happened in such nations. The Church is now strong and growing within their boundaries."

He observed that just as the Freiberg temple was an answer to the prayers of members in Germany, so are the many temples being constructed around the world today an answer to the prayers of local membership.

"A significant catalyst for growth is the accelerated construction of temples near and far, under the prophetic direction of President Gordon B. Hinckley," President Monson declared.

On Oct. 4, 1997, President Hinckley announced a program to construct smaller temples in remote areas of the Church. The Church now has 114 temples dedicated, announced or under construction. In 1900, the Church had four temples — the St. George, Logan, Manti and Salt Lake. By 1950, an additional four temples — the Laie Hawaii, Alberta, Arizona and Idaho Falls — had been constructed.

President Monson said that temples have a deep impact on the membership of the Church, and now with many temples closer to the people, the blessings of the temple are more readily available to the membership of the Church. In addition, the stature of the Church in the communities where they are constructed is raised. "Wherever temples are built, the spirituality and activity level of the members increase," he explained.

Another great catalyst for Church growth was the 1978 revelation extending the priesthood to all worthy males in the Church. Within 10 years of the revelation, there were 10,000 members in Nigeria and more than 5,000 in Ghana. Today, there are 49,000 members in the two countries. Within 20 years after the revelation, the Church had units in 26 nations on the African continent.

Since 1978, missionaries have also experienced great success in other nations, including the Dominican Republic and Brazil. According to the Deseret News 1999-2000 Church Almanac, an estimated half a million members, as of year-end 1997, have African roots.

President Monson noted that beyond direct missionary work, the Church has grown as a result of the examples of many of its members, including Stanley McAllister in New York, George Mortimer in New Jersey, John K. Edmunds and David Kennedy in Illinois, Ervin W. Atkerson in Texas, George Romney in Michigan and J. Willard Marriott in Washington, D.C.

Retention of members is an important part of the growth of the Church. Referring to President Hinckley's plea to fellowship new members by providing them with "a friend, a responsibility and nourishment in the good word," President Monson explained that when the membership of the Church works hand in hand with the missionaries "a synergism takes place which greatly increases the effectiveness of the combined effort. President David O. McKay's statement, 'Every member a missionary,' has resulted in welding together a missionary force and the membership of the Church to teach the gospel and to fellowship the convert," he explained.

"We are certainly a worldwide Church with a worldwide message to all people throughout the world. Our task is similar to that given to the disciples from the Savior: 'Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.' " (Matt. 28:19-20.)

As the Church continues to grow, explained President Monson, so does its influence and strength, making it more capable of providing help to the needy throughout the world. During the past decade the Church has contributed more than 27,000 tons of clothing, 16,000 tons of food, and 3,000 tons of medical and educational supplies and equipment to humanitarian-aid projects in 146 nations. Eighty Church farms, 80 cannery facilities, more than 100 bishops' storehouses and 50 Deseret Industries in North America are providing food and goods in an effort to relieve suffering.

"The Church is very much involved in relieving suffering and eliminating deprivation, hunger and disease. The welfare program of the Church has always been a model to follow," he said. "In recent years, this has expanded to embrace humanitarian aid worldwide.

"In areas of intense poverty, we not only supply the basic necessities of food and clothing, but we also build wells, so that clean, flowing water on a constant basis can be provided for villages."

President James E. Faust has also spoken of the Church's growing worldwide influence for good. President Faust, second counselor in the First Presidency, spoke at a sesquicentennial celebration of a pioneer ward in Salt Lake City Feb. 14, and said: "There is no church which can compare with the activity and the growth [of this Church]. There is no organization which fosters the principles of truth and righteousness as this Church does. And those of us who stand at the very vortex of it have a hard time even to conceive of what is happening in the onrolling of the work in our day and time. I rejoice in all that has happened in the past. I look forward in confidence to the future. . . . The work of God will go forward, as the Prophet Joseph said, nobly and boldly until it fills the whole earth."

President Monson declared it is every member's responsibility to make certain the work of the Church continues to move forward. "We have the privilege to witness the inspiration of our Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. All of us are builders of the Church. Our responsibility is great, our obligation is real, our duty calls us to the colors of the Church in our time."