Here another merge

[Meilingkie]

Another member in Holland contacted me

Almere used to be over 100 people on Sunday. Now it's about 40. This Sunday we are combining with the Hilversum branch of 20 old people.

In the meantime sitting in SS
Teacher said: the time of the great harvest is nigh, the Church in Holland is growing, Yeah blooming.

The ignorance is strong in this one

[2bizE]

The word must not have got out to that person on the closing of so many wards in Europe.

[Meilingkie]

He saw the podcast, and confirmed what I am seeing.

My SS teacher though, head in the sand

[2bizE]

Mel,
Are there many American LDS that live in Holland? Are people moving and therefore leaving the wards or are they just quitting the church?

[Meilingkie]

The church is just another option in Holland.
In Holland, and Europe in general going to a Church is something you need to explain, because few do it, let alone a small outlandish one like ours.
The social gain of quitting is quite high, and the social cost is rather lower than in the US, unless you are a Multi-generational mormon.

So converts tend to leave much quicker.
Then there´s the mobile internet.
John Dehlin, and the CES-letter. 5 years ago another Stake (Apeldoorn) lost 30% of members when Grant Palmer´s books were passed around.
One friend left with her entire extended family of 13, who all attended the Apeldoorn Ward.

Here a post about Hilversum, which closed 2 weeks ago.
Closed earlier this year:
Assen, early January
Hilversum, 2 weeks ago
Nijmegen, this weekend
Dordrecht, later this year
Leeuwarden, later this year

And there are 4 units you could consider closing as well.
Tilburg, Den Helder, Hengelo, Vlissingen.
Not to mention the branches in Dutch-speaking Belgium......

Here a post about Hilversum of a friend, note the amount of people who have left (gone inactive) in red

We heard extremely sad news from Anton van der Horst today. The Area Preidency in Europe have decided that Hilversum Branch Church at Wernerlaan will be permanently closed for good on 12 March 2017. All of the members have been asked to go to the Church in Almere to strengthen and support their Ward. So if you know of anyone who served here and is thinking of coming back to visit Hilversum, please let them know that after the next 4 weeks, it will sadly no longer exist. So many happy memories and events there. Including the sad but lovely ones of beloved people passing on into Heaven too, such as Br. Theo Baalman, Br. van Kessel, Zr. Bets de Gruyl and Br. Jon Shurtleff I still miss them so much. I'm so glad I got to experience such lovely services there. I will never forget you Hilversum. My first home and Family in the Church. I miss those who have left, like Stu Finnigan and Mary Finnigan, Cathy Feddock Miller and Andrew Miller, Analia Norat van Dyck and Marisa Howard, Lee Conner and Paris Hidden, Bastiaan Klunder, Pillar and also the wonderful and wacky Gail Nicolaysen-Shurtleff. We all had some wonderful times and memories there. Now it's time to go make some new ones elsewhere and give of our love, talents and time to the new location, and become one with them. heart-emoticon<3 But Hilversum will NEVER be forgotten! And never can! Because I teach each and every Missionary I meet in Apeldoorn Hidden's Hilversum Handshake. Yeah!!!!!