Two Apostolic Dedications in Buenos Aires

The plaque in the park
commemorating the dedication

Missionary efforts of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in South America formally began less than a hundred years ago. On Christmas Day in 1925, Elder Melvin J. Ballard of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles, accompanied by Elders Rey L. Pratt and Rulon S. Wells of the Seventy, gathered in the Parque Tres de Febrero in Buenos Aires. As directed by the First Presidency, Elder Ballard offered a dedicatory prayer on the lands of South America.

We were thrilled to realize that our apartment is only a few blocks from that same park. We did a little investigating and were able to locate this plaque in the park, placed only 4 years ago in honor of the dedication.

The original dedicatory prayer included these words:

And now, oh, Father, by authority of the blessing and appointment by the President of the Church, and by the authority of the holy apostleship which I have, I turn the key, unlock, and open the door for the preaching of the Gospel in all these South American nations, and do rebuke and command to be stayed every power that would oppose the preaching of the Gospel in these lands; and we do bless and dedicate these nations of this land for the preaching of thy Gospel. And we do all this that salvation may come to all men, and that thy name may be honored and glorified in this part of the land of Zion.

To read the full dedicatory prayer, click here.

It's fascinating to learn about the origins of missionary efforts in Argentina. Contacts began with two families who had immigrated from Germany, and so the initial work was done in the German language. The first missionaries worked among German and Italian speakers, the gradually made inroads with the Spanish speakers. Elder Ballard recorded on July 4, 1926:

"The work of the Lord will grow slowly for a time here just as an oak grows slowly from an acorn. It will not shoot up in a day as does the sunflower that grows quickly and then dies. But thousands will join the Church here. It will be divided into more than one mission and will be one of the strongest in the Church. The work here is the smallest that it will ever be. The day will come when the Lamanites in this land will be given a chance. The South American Mission will be a power in the Church."
(Quoted from Vernon Sharp diary, in Melvin J. Ballard: Crusader for Righteousness, p. 84.)

From acorn to oak

The image of growing from a small and fragile acorn to a massive, strong, vibrant oak tree is an apt one. Elder Ballard nourished the little sapling for a season and then returned to Utah after 8 months of service in Argentina. He reported his experiences in the October 1926 general conference and described those very early missionary efforts. Click here to read the full talk.

The growth did expand dramatically, as prophesied in 1925, not only in Argentina but throughout South America. This prophecy has certainly been fulfilled as Church membership has grown throughout South America; and now we are privileged to witness the ongoing miracle as part of our missionary service.

Over the years that followed, other apostolic dedications occurred in the various countries of South America, that were specific to each of those countries. In fact, every country was individually dedicated except Argantina. That led to the opportunity for Elder Melvin J. Ballard's grandson, Elder M. Russell Ballard, to return to Parque Tres de Febrero on February 21, 2014.

Elder M. Russell Ballard, Parque Tres de Febrero, Buenos Aires, 21 Feb 2014

In pronouncing the dedicatory prayer for Argentina, Elder Ballard noted that in the 89 years since the initial dedication by his grandfather, the Church had grown from a handful of members to over 425,000 in Argentina.

And now we ask thee that all those blessings pronounced upon all of South America by Melvin J. Ballard 89 years ago may be accelerated as part of this dedicatory prayer of Argentina. May there now be a new day, a new enthusiasm, a new commitment in the hearts of all of thy children, both member and those who are not.

Click here to read the full Argentina dedication prayer as offered by Elder M. Russell Ballard.

Here is another interesting report from the Church News about that visit.

Finally, here is a Church chronology documenting key events in the history of the Church in Argentina.