September 1st, 2025, 2pm MDT
In August, faithful members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints traveled miles from their Lithuanian homes to the country of Finland in Northern Europe, serving at the Helsinki-Finland temples, blessings and worshiping the Lord’s house.
This was the first time some Lithuanian Latter-day Saints have gone to the temple, while others have experienced their long-awaited return. Approximately 100 members of the church traveled from August 11th to 16th.
President Miguel M. Lissi, president of the Vilnius-Lithuania district, covers five branches across Lithuania – said the trip was fantastic, fun, full of miracles and service.
Joy was on a 13-hour bus ride north on Monday, August 11th through the countries of Latvia and Estonia.
“Members shared a very good sense of food, ideas of expectations, games being played, gatherings of saints united by faith and purpose,” President Rissi wrote in an email to the church news.
When they arrived on the Estonian coast, the members and their buses crossed the Gulf of Finland and boarded the ferry for two hours into Finland. They then took a bus to the Helsinki Temple grounds and accommodations for another 35 minutes.
The members began work at the temple the next day, bringing in hundreds of names from their ancestors. Others received their own donations.
“This was the first time some members had entered the temple, and their smiles were from ear to ear,” President Rissi said. “It was a very good spiritual experience to be around them because we appreciated the beauty and symbolism we could see throughout the temple.”
The experience was very gentle, he said, and the spirit and power they felt was very realistic and lasting.
President Rissi’s wife, Sister Marina Moreilla Rissi, also had a strong spiritual experience when she performed the work for her late aunt a few years ago.
“People present in the session later told her they felt the ordinance was accepted. That’s how strong the spirit became during the session,” President Rissi said.
One evening of the week, members were grateful for the opportunity they had to meet, travel together, worship together and develop friendships to share their worshipped testimonies and experiences at the temple.
“I think the Lord helped us unite our hearts and see each other through greater love and a clearer Christ-like lens,” President Rissi said.
The church is small, but strong in Lithuania.
The first Latter-day Saint missionaries preaching in modern Lithuania territories did so in 1907 in Memmel, Germany (now Klaipėda, Lithuania). A branch was established in Klaipėda in 1909, but contact with the branch was lost during World War II, and the country became part of the former Soviet Union.
In the late 1980s, many Lithuanians who were baptized in other countries returned to Japan, and were assigned to Lithuania in late 1992 after full-time missionaries regained their independence.
On May 20, 1993, then M. Russell Ballard, a quorum of the 12 Apostles, travelled to Vilnius and dedicated his land to the restoration of the gospel.
The Vilnius Lithuania district operates under the Baltic mission of the Church. There are only five branches for now, which is only a small portion of everyone in the church, but President Rissi said the love and desire of members to follow the Lord are just as strong.
“As district president, this trip truly allowed us to approach our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ through our experiences in the temple. “This trip will be the foundation for future growth that takes place within the country. He needs to have better patience and more service to each other.”
