Two New Temple Sites in Peru

The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has released the locations of new houses of the Lord in Cusco and Iquitos, Peru.

Cusco Peru Temple

The Cusco Peru Temple will be built a 2.48-acre site located at Avenida Arcopata 452 Cusco, Cusco, Peru. Plans call for a building of approximately 9,950 square feet.

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Church President Russell M. Nelson announced the temple during the Church’s general conference in April 2022.

“Do those things that will increase your positive spiritual momentum, that will keep you moving forward through whatever challenges and opportunities come,” he said before announcing 17 new temples, including the Cusco Temple.

Cusco is in southeastern Peru, nestled near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountains.

Iquitos Peru Temple

The Iquitos Peru Temple will be built on a 1.75-acre site located at Calle San Marcos 117–137, San Juan Bautista, Maynas, Loreto, Peru. Plans call for a temple of approximately 20,000 square feet.

This house of the Lord was announced by President Nelson in April 2023.

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“Jesus Christ is the reason we build temples. Each is His holy house,” President Nelson said before announcing 15 new temples, including the Iquitos Temple. “Making covenants and receiving essential ordinances in the temple, as well as seeking to draw closer to Him there, will bless your life in ways no other kind of worship can.”

Iquitos is in northeast Peru along the Amazon River. It is one of the most populous cities in the country.

Missionaries began teaching the restored gospel of Jesus Christ in Peru in 1956. In 1959, when the Andes Mission was organized, there were 300 members in five congregations.

In January 1988, 32 years after missionary work began in the country, seven stakes were created in one weekend by Elder M. Russell Ballard.

Peru is home to more than 630,000 Latter-day Saints in nearly 780 congregations.

The first temple in Peru, the Lima Peru Temple, was dedicated in 1986 by former Church President Gordon B. Hinckley (1910–2008).

In addition to Cusco and Iquitos, Peru has seven other temples announced or in operation. These are the Arequipa, Chiclayo, Huancayo, Lima Peru Los Olivos, Lima, Piura and Trujillo Temples.

Temples of the Church of Jesus Christ are different from meetinghouses or chapels where members gather for Sunday worship services. A temple is considered the house of the Lord, where the teachings of Jesus Christ are reaffirmed through marriage, baptism and other ceremonies that unite families for eternity.