In concluding the Sunday afternoon and final session of the April 2024 general conference, President Russell M. Nelson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced 15 new temples to be built around the world.
He said, “Here is my promise. Nothing will help you more to hold fast to the iron rod than worshipping in the temple as regularly as your circumstances permit. Nothing will protect you more as you encounter the world’s mists of darkness. Nothing will bolster your testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ and His Atonement or help you understand God’s magnificent plan more. Nothing will soothe your spirit more during times of pain. Nothing will open the heavens more. Nothing! The temple is the gateway to the greatest blessings God has for each of us.”
Latter-day Saints consider temples to be the house of the Lord and the most sacred places of worship on the earth. The primary purpose of temples is for faithful members of the Church to receive peace, inspiration, and spiritual power as they enter into sacred agreements with God in His holy house.
Here is a list of the 15 temple locations announced:
- Uturoa, French Polynesia
- Chihuahua, Mexico
- Florianópolis, Brazil
- Rosario, Argentina
- Edinburgh, Scotland
- Brisbane Australia South Area
- Victoria, British Columbia
- Yuma, Arizona
- Houston Texas South Area
- Des Moines, Iowa
- Cincinnati, Ohio
- Honolulu, Hawaii
- West Jordan, Utah
- Lehi, Utah
- Maracaibo, Venezuela
Uturoa, French Polynesia
The Uturoa French Polynesia Temple will be the second house of the Lord in French Polynesia. The Papeete Tahiti Temple was dedicated in 1983 and was rededicated in 2006 following an expansion.
In 1843, missionaries set sail from the North Atlantic to Tahiti. The Prophet Joseph Smith and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles called four missionaries to take the gospel “unto the islands of the sea” in the Pacific. The Pacific Area is celebrating the 180th anniversary of the missionaries’ arrival this month.
There are nearly 30,000 Latter-day Saints in nearly 100 congregations in French Polynesia.
Chihuahua, Mexico
The Chihuahua Mexico Temple will be the 25th temple in Mexico.
Dedicated temples in the country are located in Ciudad Juárez, Colonia Juárez, Guadalajara, Hermosillo, Mérida, Mexico City, Monterrey, Oaxaca, Tampico, Tijuana, Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Veracruz and Villahermosa. Other temples under construction or announced are in Cancún, Cuernavaca, Culiacán, Mexico City Benemérito, Pachuca, Puebla, Querétaro, San Luis Potosí, Toluca, Torreón and Tula.
The preaching of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ began in Mexico during the 1870s. In 1961, a stake (similar to a diocese) was organized in Mexico City and a temple was dedicated in 1983.
Mexico is home to over 1.5 million Latter-day Saints in more than 1,875 congregations.
Florianópolis, Brazil
Missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints began preaching in southern Brazil in 1928. The Portuguese translation of the Book of Mormon was published in 1940, igniting a new era of growth in the country including temples.
The Florianópolis Brazil Temple will be the 23rd house of the Lord operating, under construction or announced in the country.
Ten temples are in operation in Belém, Brasília, Campinas, Curitiba, Fortaleza, Manaus, Porto Alegre, Recife, Rio de Janeiro, and São Paulo. The Belo Horizonte Brazil Temple and the Salvador Brazil Temple are under construction. There are 10 temples announced in Goiânia, João Pessoa, Londrina, Maceió, Natal, Ribeirão Prêto, Santos, São Paolo East, Teresina and Vitória.
Today, there are nearly 1.5 million Latter-day Saints in Brazil (more than any other country aside from the United States and Mexico) in approximately 2,175 congregations.
Rosario, Argentina
Rosario is located in east-central Argentina, approximately 190 miles northwest of Buenos Aires.
The Rosario Argentina Temple will be the seventh in Argentina. Others under construction, announced or in operation are in Bahía Blanca, Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires City Center, Córdoba, Mendoza, and Salta. The Salta Argentina Temple will be dedicated on June 16, 2024, by Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
Argentina, where two German immigrants began preaching the restored gospel of Jesus Christ in 1923, is home to more than 480,000 Latter-day Saints in more than 725 congregations.
Edinburgh, Scotland
Built on an extinct volcano, Edinburgh has been Scotland’s capital city since the 15th century.
The Edinburgh Scotland Temple will be the first temple in Scotland and the fourth in the United Kingdom.
The United Kingdom, comprised of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, is home to around 185,000 Latter-day Saints in more than 300 congregations.
The other temples in the United Kingdom are the London England Temple (dedicated in 1958), the Preston England Temple (dedicated in 1998) and the Birmingham England Temple (announced in 2022).
Brisbane Australia South Area
Brisbane is the capital of the Australian state of Queensland, located in the northeastern part of the country, with a population of roughly 2.2 million.
It will be the second temple in Brisbane, following the dedication of the Brisbane Australia Temple in June 2003, and the sixth in the country. Other temples are the Adelaide Australia Temple, Melbourne Australia Temple, Perth Australia Temple and Sydney Australia Temple.
The first congregation was organized in Australia in 1844, followed by a mission created in 1851. In the 1960s, stakes (similar to a diocese) were organized in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne. They were among the first organized outside of North America.
Today, there are more than 155,000 Church members in more than 300 congregations in the country.
Victoria, British Columbia
Victoria is the capital of British Columbia on the southeastern edge of historic Vancouver Island.
Missionary service in Canada began in the early 1830s with the organization of the Church in upstate New York and in close proximity to the Canadian border. Canada is home to more than 200,000 Latter-day Saints in nearly 500 congregations.
The Victoria British Columbia Temple will be Canada’s 11th temple. Other temples in use in Canada are the Calgary Alberta, Cardston Alberta, Edmonton Alberta, Halifax Nova Scotia, Montreal Quebec, Regina Saskatchewan, Toronto Ontario, Vancouver British Columbia, and Winnipeg Manitoba Temples. The Lethbridge Alberta Temple was announced in general conference in April 2023.
Yuma, Arizona
The Yuma Arizona Temple will be the seventh temple in Arizona, which is situated in the southwest United States.
Beginning in the 1850s, Latter-day Saints occasionally traveled from the Utah Territory to preach the restored gospel and to explore the possibility of permanent settlements in Arizona. The Mesa Arizona Temple, the first in Arizona, was dedicated in October 1927.
Other temples in the state are in the cities of Gilbert, Mesa, Phoenix, Snowflake, the Gila Valley and Tucson.
There are more than 440,000 Latter-day Saints in the state in around 925 congregations.
Houston Texas South Area
This will be the second temple in the greater Houston area. The Houston Texas Temple was dedicated in August 2000 and rededicated in April 2018 following flooding due to Hurricane Harvey.
Located in the south-central United States, missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ first visited Texas in 1843. Church growth in Texas has been rapid in recent decades with 210,000 members in 2000 and more than 385,000 members today and around 750 congregations.
This temple will be the state’s ninth. Other temples announced, under construction or in operation are the Austin Texas Temple, Dallas Texas Temple, Fort Worth Texas Temple, Houston Texas Temple, Lubbock Texas Temple, McAllen Texas Temple, McKinney Texas Temple and San Antonio Texas Temple.
Des Moines, Iowa
Des Moines is the capital and most populous city in the state of Iowa, with more than 200,000 residents. This Midwest U.S. state is home to more than 29,000 Latter-day Saints in about 70 congregations.
In the 1840s, nearly 200 Latter-day Saint pioneers established a small community named Garden Grove, where they planted crops and built cabins for the pioneer companies who migrated westward toward Utah in the ensuing years. Other communities were built at Mount Pisgah and Council Bluffs.
The Des Moines Iowa Temple is the first temple in the state.
Cincinnati, Ohio
The Cincinnati Ohio Temple will be the third house of the Lord in the state after the Columbus and Cleveland Ohio temples. Cincinnati is the third-largest city in this Midwest U.S. state, with a population of more than 300,000.
Kirtland, Ohio (located near Cleveland), served as an important center of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the 1830s, where a temple was built but left behind as the Church relocated. Community of Christ recently transferred ownership of the temple on March 5, 2024.
Today, Ohio is home to nearly 65,000 Latter-day Saints in nearly 130 congregations.
Honolulu, Hawaii
Honolulu is situated on Oahu’s southwest shore and is the capital of Hawaii and most populous city in the state.
The Honolulu Hawaii Temple will be the fourth in the island state, joining those in operation or announced in Laie, Kahului and Kona.
Oahu is home to Church-owned Brigham Young University–Hawaii and the popular tourist attraction known as the Polynesian Cultural Center.
Today, approximately 75,000 Latter-day Saints make up around 145 congregations in the state of Hawaii.
West Jordan, Utah
The West Jordan Utah Temple will be the 29th temple in Utah either in operation, under renovation, construction or announced.
West Jordan is a suburb of Salt Lake City on the southwest side of the Salt Lake Valley. The city has around 115,000 residents.
Temples currently in operation in Utah are found in American Fork (Mount Timpanogos), Bountiful, Brigham City, Cedar City, Draper, Logan, Monticello, Ogden, Orem, Payson, Provo (Provo City Center), Saratoga Springs, South Jordan (Jordan River and Oquirrh Mountain), St. George (Red Cliffs and St. George) and Vernal.
New temples under construction in Utah are those in Ephraim, Heber Valley, Lindon, Smithfield, Syracuse and Tooele (Deseret Peak). The Provo Utah Rock Canyon Temple and Salt Lake Temple are currently under renovation.
The Manti Utah Temple will be dedicated on April 21, 2024. The Taylorsville Utah Temple will be dedicated on June 2, 2024, by Elder Gerrit W. Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. On June 16, 2024, the Layton Utah Temple will be dedicated by Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.
Lehi, Utah
Lehi is home to Utah’s growing technology region, known as Silicon Slopes.
The Lehi Utah Temple in northern Utah County will be the 30th temple in Utah. In 1850, pioneers originally settled in this city, which today has more than 85,000 residents.
Utah, the Church’s world headquarters, is home to nearly 2.2 million Latter-day Saints, or nearly two-thirds of the state’s population, in more than 5,400 congregations.
Maracaibo, Venezuela
The Maracaibo Venezuela Temple will be the second in the country. The Caracas Venezuela Temple was one of many temples dedicated by Church President Gordon B. Hinckley (1910–2008) in 2000.
Venezuela is home to more than 175,000 Latter-day Saints spread over 230 congregations. In the early 1960s, U.S. expatriates working in Venezuela held Church meetings in their homes until 1966, when the first official congregation was organized. The first Venezuelan Latter-day Saint was baptized in 1967.