The Church in Romania

The first Romanian branches were established in 1899, though no Church members remained after the 1930s. In 1989, after years of political upheaval, Church leaders offered humanitarian aid to the country, and a branch was established in Bucharest in 1991. By 2000 branches existed in multiple cities, and members were actively serving their communities.

Visit the Newsroom to see current events of the Church in Romania.

History of the Church in Romania

Beginning in 1899, Mischa Markow, a Latter-day Saint missionary with a Romanian mother, preached in what is now Romania and established branches in Bucharest, Timişoara, and Braşov. However, no members are known to have remained in the country after the 1930s. After the regime of Nicolae Ceaușescu was overthrown in 1989, Church leaders visited Romania to offer humanitarian assistance. Latter-day Saints around Europe and in other parts of the world participated in extended efforts to help. At the same time, a few Romanians felt drawn to the restored gospel, and in 1991, a branch in Bucharest was established.

The Church soon spread beyond Bucharest: by 2000, there were also branches in Constanța, Piteşti, Ploieşti, Arad, Timişoara, Cluj-Napoca, Oradea, Sibiu, Bacău, Braşov, Galați, and Iaşi. In early 2001, young Romanian Latter-day Saints gathered for a countrywide youth conference for the first time. In the Church, members found a place of encouragement and support in times of trial, such as after the 2006 flooding on the Danube. Following Jesus’s counsel to give as freely as they had received (see Matthew 10:8), Romanian members reached out to others in service, especially as the number of refugees in Europe increased after 2015.

Read more in Global Histories.