Mormons Search For Roots in Cambodia
By Steve Anderson of FamilySearch
What do you do if you are a member of the LDS Church who lives in a predominately Buddhist country, you want to do family history work and has to deal with the aftermath of a 4 year genocide effort that literally relocated the entire population of their country? Those are a few of the challenges that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Cambodia have to deal with as they begin searching for their ancestors in hopes of providing them with the same blessings of ordinances that living members have freely available to them. . .
What do you do if you are a member of the LDS Church who lives in a predominately Buddhist country, you want to do family history work and has to deal with the aftermath of a 4 year genocide effort that literally relocated the entire population of their country? Those are a few of the challenges that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Cambodia have to deal with as they begin searching for their ancestors in hopes of providing them with the same blessings of ordinances that living members have freely available to them. . .
In a recent CNN article, Mormons search for roots in Cambodia, writer Matthew D. LaPlante talks about some of the challenges and blessings that come to the Cambodian saints who struggle with trying to find their ancestors. This is no easy task in a land where families are often not willing to talk about the dark ghosts of their recent history. In an effort by the Khmer Rouge to destroy anything that had to do with the centuries old Cambodian culture, more than half of the country’s important records were destroyed by the Khmer Rouge or by neglect and exposure to the tropical environment.
Members who visit with relatives often find that the painful events of the past are still remembered by those who lived through those dark times. They find that family members are not willing to talk about what happened to deceased family members or give details of how relatives were related. They simple prefer to forget that dark past and move on.
Visit the link above and learn more about what challenges the saints in Cambodia face to create even a simple 4 generation chart and the blessings that come to them as they labor against such obstacles to bring the blessings of the restored gospel to their deceased ancestors. It may provide you with some interesting insights into the challenges that many of the saints in Cambodia face as they strive to find and redeem their ancestors.
Members who visit with relatives often find that the painful events of the past are still remembered by those who lived through those dark times. They find that family members are not willing to talk about what happened to deceased family members or give details of how relatives were related. They simple prefer to forget that dark past and move on.
Visit the link above and learn more about what challenges the saints in Cambodia face to create even a simple 4 generation chart and the blessings that come to them as they labor against such obstacles to bring the blessings of the restored gospel to their deceased ancestors. It may provide you with some interesting insights into the challenges that many of the saints in Cambodia face as they strive to find and redeem their ancestors.