A uniformity of devotion like BYU-Hawaii is found in an international travel of Elder Holland

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve visited Middle East and three European nations from February 20 to March 4. He called the experience as a uniformity of faithful devotion of Latter-day Saints of diverse cultures and nations regardless languages and geographies, says Church News.

Traveling to United Arab Emirates, Netherlands, England and Germany, Elder Holland described the devotion of Church members at each place as being "in their hearts, their spirits."

“You hear someone bear testimony in a different language, or coming out of a different culture, or in a very distant part of the earth and yet it sounds like you are in your home ward,” said Elder Holland summed his traveling experience with a testimony. “The ability of the gospel to unite us on common strengths and common truths is one of the great miracles, one of the great powers of the gospel,” he said.

Elder Holland got to preside over two stake conferences in two different countries that are 3,000 miles apart on the same weekend. He presided at the stake conference in Abu Dhabi on February 22 and then over to the Apeldoorn Netherlands Stake conference's sessions February 23 and 24.

One thing unique about the trip, Elder Holland got to dedicate the Abu Dhabi Stake Center in the United Arab Emirates, the first building constructed by the Church in the Middle East. 

While traveling to British, Elder Holland visited the London's historic Hyde Park Chapel where recently remodeled to function as a church meetinghouse and a visitors' center. Elder Holland said, "I was in this building when it was dedicated, so my memories are very sweet today.” He recalled his memory a young missionary in British Mission during the early 1960s.

Spending couple days in Germany, Elder Holland met with mission presidents and spoke to LDS members in several combined church meetings. He told the German members that “we truly are all brothers and sisters in the gospel and encouraged them to continue meeting together in order to foster a spirit of love.”

Ben Howells, an ICS senior from England, said he was happy that Elder Holland visited his country. He said, “I served mission in London and it is the same mission as Elder Holland. I I feel the sense of connection with him. When he visited PCC last year, I was lucky to be his tour guide. ”

Tsz Yin Chan, Biochemistry senior from Hong Kong, said, “Since Elder Holland already visited Middle East, I wish Elder Holland can visit China someday and dedicate a visitor center or a chapel in maybe Shanghai or Sichun. We have a lot of members in those areas.”

Clover Cheng