Groundbreaking Held for Farmington New Mexico Temple

Ground has been broken on the Farmington New Mexico Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

“We are grateful Thy temple will be built in this city where three rivers come together and leave as one,” said Elder Anthony D. Perkins of the Quorum of the Seventy who presided at the groundbreaking event.

“We pray that women, men, and youth of every race and ethnicity, every language, every political persuasion, and every walk of life will feel welcome to come up to worship in this holy place and depart in unity as covenant-keeping disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ,” said Elder Perkins in the dedicatory prayer.

About 500 Church leaders and invited guests gathered for the groundbreaking ceremony in Farmington on Saturday, April 30, 2022.

Elder Perkins was joined by his wife, Christine; Elder Larry J. Echo Hawk, an Emeritus General Authority Seventy, and his wife, Teresa; Elder Tommy D. Haws, an Area Seventy, and his wife Eileen; as well as temple and mission leaders in New Mexico.

Elder Perkins and his wife grew up in the region. They met in Farmington, dated in high school and held their wedding reception in the city.

“To us, this region is home. We love the Ute Mountain, the La Plata Mountains, the Lukachukai Mountains, the Shiprock monolith, and the San Juan River,” he remarked.

Youth choirs from the temple district sang “Come, Ye Children of the Lord” during the program.

The groundbreaking signals the beginning of construction for the Farmington New Mexico Temple that will be built on a 6.62-acre site located at the intersection of College Boulevard and Windsor Drive. The single-story structure will be about 25,000 square feet in size. There will also be a meetinghouse on-site.

The temple will serve Latter-day Saints from the Four Corners region of the Southwestern United States, including parts of New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona and the Navajo Nation.

“We pray, Father, that this temple will be a blessing to this community, a beacon of hope shining in dark days that Thou art mindful of Thy children and that peace can be found in Christ,” said Elder Perkins.

Those participating in the groundbreaking ceremony included congregations from Bloomfield, Farmington, Gallup and Kirtland, New Mexico; Chinle, Arizona; Tuba City, Arizona; and Durango, Colorado.

Those who live in the temple district were able to watch Saturday’s broadcast of the groundbreaking ceremony. 

Temples

President Russell M. Nelson announced the Farmington New Mexico Temple during general conference in April 2021.

This will be New Mexico’s second temple, following the Albuquerque New Mexico Temple, which was dedicated in March 2000. New Mexico is home to nearly 70,000 Latter-day Saints in 137 congregations.

Latter-day Saints consider temples to be the house of the Lord and the most sacred places of worship on earth. Temples differ from the Church’s meetinghouses (chapels). All are welcome to attend Sunday worship services and other weekday activities at local meetinghouses. The primary purpose of temples, however, is for faithful members of the Church of Jesus Christ to participate in sacred ceremonies, such as marriages, which unite families forever, and proxy baptisms on behalf of deceased ancestors who did not have the opportunity to be baptized while living.