News for Ribeirão Preto, Santiago West and Springfield Missouri Temples

Two temples to be built in South America by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints mark groundbreaking milestones. Groundbreaking services were held for the Ribeirão Preto Brazil Temple on Saturday, June 22, 2024. Today, a groundbreaking date was announced for the Santiago West Chile Temple and the site of the Springfield Missouri Temple.

Ribeirão Preto Temple (Brazil).

The ground has been broken for the Ribeirão Preto the Brazil Temple. Elder Joni L. Koch, Brazil Area President, presided and offered the dedicatory prayer.

With a beautiful clear blue skyline and newly sorted dirt on the temple grounds as a backdrop, the ceremony took place with several hundred people in attendance. Local members of the Adult and Youth Church spoke.

“Our hearts are intertwined in love and harmony for this inspiring and important ceremony,” Elder Koch said as he began the dedicatory prayer.

He spoke words of reverence and gratitude for Jesus Christ. “We are grateful that You sent Your Son Jesus Christ to earth, whose Atonement, gospel, restored Church, and covenants will enable us to return to Your presence,” Elder Koch said.

Elder Koch also paid heartfelt tribute to the early Latter-day Saints in the area.

“We remember with appreciation those who were the first members of the Church in this region,” he said. “The example of these pioneers has been a moral and spiritual support for the flourishing of your kingdom through these few who remained steadfast so that thousands of Latter-day Saints could enjoy this sublime moment on this day—here in this part of the earth. ”

Elder Koch was born in Joinville, Santa Catarina, Brazil. He later served a full-time mission in the Brazil São Paulo North Mission. In April 2017 he was supported as a general septuagenarian.

President Russell M. Nelson announced the Ribeirão Preto Brazil Temple in October 2022. The location of the venue was released in November 2022. The artist’s rendering was released two years later in January 2024.

Brazil has 23 temples in use, announced or under construction. Today, the country is home to nearly 1.5 million Latter-day Saints in more than 2,170 congregations.

Temple of Santiago Western Chile

The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has announced the date of the groundbreaking ceremony for the Santiago Western Chile Temple; it will take place on August 17, 2024. Elder Alan R. Walker, second counselor in the South America South Area Presidency, will preside over the meeting.

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Participation at the location is by invitation only. Additional details will be released as the groundbreaking date approaches. An external artistic rendering has also been released.

Church President Russell M. Nelson announced this house of the Lord in October 2021. “I implore you today to resist the temptation of the world by making time for the Lord in your lives – every day,” he said before opening 13 new temples, including the Santiago West Chile Temple.

The location of the venue was published in December 2022. The temple will be built in Primo de Rivera 1551, Comuna de Maipu, Santiago, Chile. The plans call for a one-story temple of approximately 12,500 square feet.

The first temple in Spanish-speaking South America was dedicated in Santiago in 1983. The other four temples operating, under construction or announced in Chile are in Antofagasta, Concepción, Santiago West and Viña del Mar.

One of the early leaders of the Church served a mission in Chile in 1851. Today the country is home to more than 600,000 Latter-day Saints in 571 congregations.

Springfield Missouri Temple

The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has released the location for the Springfield Missouri Temple.

The Springfield Missouri Temple will be built on a portion of an 80-acre site located at 2720 East Farm Road #188, Springfield, Missouri. The plans call for a one-story temple of approximately 29,000 square feet.

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This new house of the Lord was announced by President Russell M. Nelson in April 2023. “Jesus Christ is the reason we build temples,” said President Nelson. “Everyone is His holy house. Making covenants and receiving vital ordinances in the temple and seeking to draw closer to Him there will bless your life in ways that no other form of worship can. For this reason, we are doing everything in our power to make the blessings of the temple more accessible to our members around the world.”

In addition to the Springfield Missouri Temple, the Show-Me State operates two other houses of the Lord. These are the temples of St. Louis and Kansas City, Missouri.

Missouri is home to more than 80,000 Latter-day Saints in nearly 165 congregations. In the 1830s, during the early days of the Church, Independence, Missouri, and the surrounding counties were important gathering places for Latter-day Saints.

Temples differ from church buildings (chapels). Everyone is welcome to attend Sunday worship services and other weekday activities in local church buildings. The primary purpose of temples is to enable faithful members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to participate in sacred ceremonies that unite families forever.