The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Mexico

A map of Alta California

When the Latter-day Saint settlers arrived in the Intermountain West in 1847 and established early communities, like Salt Lake City and Bountiful, Utah, they were settling in Alta California (a federal territory of Mexico). It was during the following year that the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed and ratified, ending the Mexican-American War and making the territory where Latter-day Saints had settled part of the United States.[6] The main reason that the Latter-day Saints settled in Alta California was to live in an area where they could govern themselves independently.[7]

During the Mexican-American War, the Latter-day Saints participated by enlisting the Mormon Battalion, a group of over 500 volunteers who served as a unit of the United States military. Their primary purposes in enlisting were to build a good relationship with the United States government (in case the U.S. won the war and gained control of the territory) and to earn some income to support their emigration.[8] The Mormon Battalion saw no combat with Mexican troops, but did take part in a brief occupation of Tucson, guarded the Luiseño people in the aftermath of the Temecula massacre,[9][10] and occupied San Diego until they were discharged.[11][12] Concerns about their potential reception as a result of the Mormon Battalion's involvement in the Mexican-American War may have contributed to the decision to send missionaries, including Parley P. Pratt, to Chile in 1851 rather than to Mexico as the first proselyting efforts in Latin America.[13]

A meetinghouse of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Cancún.

The first missionaries from the LDS Church to Mexico were called during the late summer and early fall of 1875, shortly after Daniel W. Jones and Meliton Gonzalez Trejo had begun to translate portions of the Book of Mormon into Spanish.[14] This initial scouting mission consisted of a handful of men who journeyed through Arizona to the Mexican state of Chihuahua, lasting ten months.[14] These first missionaries did not perform any baptisms; church president Brigham Young had instructed them to merely observe the conditions of the country in order to determine if their preaching would be effective.[15]

In 1876, Young sent six missionaries to Mexico and instructed them to contact and preach to the Yaqui in Northern Mexico. This group consisted of Helaman Pratt, Meliton Gonzalez Trejo, Louis Garff, George Terry, James Z. Stewart, and his brother Isaac.[14] A few of these missionaries found success in Hermosillo, and Jose Epifanio Jesus was baptized on May 20, 1877, becoming the first official member of the church in Mexico. Jose Severo Rodriguez, Maria de la Cruz Pasos, Cruz Parra, and Jose Vicente Parra were all baptized a few days later on May 24.[16]

Following the death of Brigham Young in 1877, missionary efforts in Mexico were halted, until in 1879 when missionaries were again sent to Mexico City.[17] The first person baptized by missionaries in Mexico City was Dr. Plotino Rhodakanaty, a prominent Mexican anarchist and socialist figure. Rhodakanaty had come across a Mormon doctrinal tract in 1875 which so impressed him that he wrote a letter to the First Presidency, requesting that additional materials and missionaries be sent to him in Mexico City.[18] By the end of 1879, sixteen converts had been baptized and joined the church in Mexico City, in large part due to the influence of Dr. Rhodakanaty.[18] In 1880, Desideria Quintanar de Yáñez became the first woman in Mexico City to join the church.[19] Missionary work in central Mexico continued until 1889, when all missionaries were withdrawn due to the strong opposition to foreign ministers following La Reforma.[18]

In 1901, the Mexican Mission of the church was re-established, with Ammon M. Tenney serving as its president. This period of the church in Mexico was characterized by the calling of missionaries with highly developed Spanish language skills, the increasing indigenous leadership of branches, and the constant effort to reclaim members that had fallen away during the church's absence.[14] In 1910, Rey L. Pratt became president of the mission, but was forced to leave Mexico City in the fall of 1913 due to rising safety concerns due to the Mexican Revolution. Before his departure, Pratt was able to leave most of the branches in Central Mexico under the leadership of local members.[14]

During the Mexican Revolution, tensions rose with regards to foreign religions, as did anti-American sentiments. In 1915, two members of the church in San Marcos, Hidalgo named Rafael Monroy and Vicente Morales were killed by the Liberation Army of the South (Zapatistas) for refusing to renounce their faith and for their association with foreigners.[20] The two were taken and interrogated by a group of Zapatista soldiers, who had initially demanded food and other supplies from the Monroy family store. Monroy was asked by the soldiers to show his weapons, to which he responded by holding up the copies of the Bible and Book of Mormon he carried in his pocket and saying, "These are the only weapons I carry." After the store was searched and no weapons or ammunition were found, Monroy and Morales, an employee of the family, were both taken prisoner by the soldiers and later executed by firing squad.[20]

Pratt remained as mission president until his death, also working to establish missionary work among the Spanish-speaking populations in the Southwestern United States.[14] In 1926, the Mexican government deported all foreign clerics from the country, including Mormon missionaries from North America. This lasted until 1934, when foreign missionary efforts were able to resume. During this hiatus, Mexican members of the church were able to coordinate with one another and preserve the church doctrine and practices.[14]

In 1936, a group of church members known as the Third Convention—who had been influenced by the spirit of the Mexican Revolution—called for a native-born Mexican to serve as president of the church's mission in Mexico. The tactics of this group led to the excommunication of its leaders.[14] In 1946, church president George Albert Smith visited Mexico and was able to establish a reconciliation with most of the members of the Third Convention, and the vast majority of this group were brought back into the church.[14]

In 1956, the Mexican Mission was divided for the first time with the organization of the Northern Mexican Mission. From this time forward, the church focused on strengthening the structure of the church in order for stakes to be organized.[21]

Church membership began to expand rapidly during the late 1960s, reaching 100,000 members by 1972. As membership increased, church leaders began making regular visits to church members in Mexico. In 1972, church president Harold B. Lee spoke to members at a Mexico City area conference, along with his counselors, several Apostles, and other leaders.[19] In early 1977, church president Spencer W. Kimball spoke to a large number of church members at area conferences in both Mexico City and Monterrey, with nearly 25,000 members attending the conference in Mexico City. During his visit, Kimball also met with Mexican President Jose Lopez Portillo at the national palace in Mexico City.[22]

The first Spanish-speaking stake in the church was organized in Mexico City in 1961.[23] In 1966, Agricol Lozano became the first Mexican-born member of the church to serve as a stake president. In 1970, the Monterrey Stake (now the Monterrey Mexico Mitras Stake) was organized with Guillermo G. Garza as its president. This was the first stake organized in Mexico outside of the Mormon colonies and the Mexico City area.[14]

On December 2, 1983, the Mexico City Temple and Visitors’ Center were dedicated by Gordon B. Hinckley, marking the first temple in Mexico.[22]