Temples in Europe Articles
That a new temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints would be built in Paris, France, was formally announced at the Mormon General Conference of October, 2011. However, since the French press got hold of the plan many months before, an informal announcement was made in July of 2011, while government approvals were still in progress. The temple is planned for the area of Le Chesnay. Le Chesnay is located in the western suburbs of Paris 16.7 km (10.4 mi) from the center (Wikipedia).
There are more than 36,000 Latter-day Saints in France, and they have attended the temple in other European countries, especially Germany and Switzerland.
The first LDS missionary to France was the apostle John Taylor, who later became prophet and president of the Church. He departed for Europe in 1849. The first congregation in France, consisting of six members, was organized in April 1850 in Boulogne-sur-Mer. By July 24, 1853, nine branches (small congregations)... Read the rest of this article »
On October 2, 2010, at the commencement of the 180th general conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, President Thomas S. Monson announced the construction of a new temple in Lisbon Portugal. This will be the first temple for Portugal. Latter-day Saints in the country currently travel to the nearest temple in Madrid, Spain, a 400-mile drive.
Portugal currently has 6 stakes and 4 districts. Local congregations are called wards. They are under the administration of groups of wards, called stakes. Congregations too small to be wards are called branches. Groups of branches are organized into districts.
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On 4 October 2008 The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced that it would build a temple in Rome, Italy. The site ison nearly fifteen acres located at 376 Via di Settebagni. This site is on the outskirts of the city in the picturesque countryside near a freeway exchange.
Originally, trenches were dug every 10 to 15 feet across the property, since construction could not continue if Roman ruins were discovered. Latter-day Saints in the area held a special fast in the hope that the site (which the Church purchased in the 1990’s) would be free of antiquities. No antiquities were discovered anywhere on the 15 acres, yet a Roman village was discovered just 100 yards beyond the property’s boundary.
The Rome Italy Temple will be the first temple in Italy and in the Mediterranean region. For years, Italian Saints have traveled the long distance to the Bern Switzerland Temple, which now serves more stakes and districts from Italy than... Read the rest of this article »
On the exterior of every Mormon Temple is engraved the words, “Holiness to the Lord.” Whenever one enters the Temple, he or she knows that it is a dedicated House of God. The Temple is a place of holiness and a place of peace apart from the world.
Mormon Temples are sacred structures in which eternal questions are answered. The Temples are houses of learning where truths are taught and ordinances are performed. These truths bring a knowledge of things eternal and motivate all that enter to live a more Christ-like life. The work that goes on in the Mormon Temple brings to light God’s eternal purposes with reference to man. For the most part, temple work is concerned with the family; with the sanctity and eternal nature of the marriage covenant and family relationships.
All are equal in the Mormon Temple; upon entering, street clothes are exchanged for white clothing. When dressed in temple clothing, it is impossible to tell someone’s station... Read the rest of this article »
Mormon Temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are special buildings dedicated to the Lord. Worthy church members may go to the Mormon temple to receive sacred ordinances and make covenants with God. Like baptism, these ordinances and covenants are necessary for the salvation of man. They must be performed in the temples of the Lord.
The Mormon temple is a house of learning. It is a place where all can gain a better understanding of the purpose of life and the relationship we all share with God and His Son, Jesus Christ.
All the Mormon temple ordinances are performed by the power of the priesthood. Through this power, ordinances performed on earth are sealed, or bound, in heaven.1 Only in the temple can a family be sealed together eternally. Marriage in the temple joins a man and woman as husband and wife eternally, if they honor their covenants.
God wants all His children to return and live with Him. For those who died without hearing... Read the rest of this article »
Plans to build a Mormon temple in Freiberg, Germany, were announced on October 9, 1982. With the temple’s completion in 1985, it became the 33rd operating Mormon temple worldwide. The Freiberg temple was the only Mormon temple to be built in a Communist country. The German Democratic Republic government actually suggested the building of the temple for the Mormon members in the country, because the government wanted to reduce the amount of travel outside of its own country.
Mormon history in Germany goes back to 1840 when members of the Mormon Church began moving there. A small branch was set up in Darmstadt, but it was not until 1852 when the first Mormon missionaries arrived in Germany. They brought with them the Book of Mormon in German. In 1939 with the onset of World War II, missionaries were evacuated from Germany, and missionary work slowed. After the war, missionaries were only allowed to re-enter the Western part of Germany. It was not until... Read the rest of this article »
In 1850, Mormon missionaries from America arrived in Chile to begin preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ to the Chilean people; however, their stay was not to last, due to the apparent language barrier. Ninety-five years would pass before two missionaries from Argentina would arrive to begin preaching again.
It was at this time that Brother and Sister Ricardo Garcia were the first to be baptized. Brother Garcia clearly remembers his baptism in 1956, “I knew that this was the true Church – mine was not just faith, but a conviction…because of the teachings on the Word of Wisdom and tithing, I thought it would be impossible for the [Mormon] Church to succeed here. …now there are hundreds and…thousands of people”.1 Twenty-seven years [1983] after Brother Garcia’s baptism, and at the dedication of the Santiago Chile Mormon Temple, there were 140,000 members of the Mormon Church in the country of Chile.
Three years prior to the dedication, the... Read the rest of this article »
The decision to build a Mormon Temple in Helsinki, Finland was first announced in the April 2000 General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is the 124th operating temple for the Mormon Church and the third in the Nordic countries—Stockholm, Sweden, and Copenhagen, Denmark, being the other two.
Worthy members of the Church have been attending the Stockholm Sweden Temple to fulfill their obligations to the Lord and to bless their lives in attending the temple. Now, they are blessed to have a temple in their midst.
Church members attend the temple to learn more about the purpose of life and to strengthen their commitment to Jesus Christ. Christ’s teachings are reiterated through marriage, baptism, and other ordinances through which families can be united for eternity.
The site chosen for the new temple, and which was approved by the city, sits northwest of downtown Helsinki on 7.5 acres, in the city of Espoo, Finland.... Read the rest of this article »
The Mormon temple is a house of God; we are God’s family and we are His children. The temple is a constant reminder that God intends the family to be eternal. The Mormon temple is a place of learning. Here the principles of the Gospel of Jesus Christ are reviewed and truths of the kingdom of God are taught. If those who enter the temple are in the right spirit and are attentive, the mind and spirit are enriched in gospel knowledge and wisdom. The Mormon temple is a place of peace wherein the cares and worries of the outside world can be put aside for a time. Promises are made by temple patrons to obey the laws of God, and promises are made by the Lord to those who attend, conditioned upon faithfulness.
The gifts and blessings of the Mormon temple are offered to all who conform to the requirements of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. All who accept and live the gospel and keep themselves worthy may partake of them. Mormon temple work must be done first... Read the rest of this article »
The building of a Mormon temple in The Hague, Netherlands, was announced on August 16, 1999. This is the first Mormon temple in the Netherlands and the 114th Mormon temple worldwide. The need for a temple in the area was obvious with more than 13,000 members in the proposed temple district. This temple serves members from the Netherlands, Belgium, and parts of France.
Mormon missionary Elder Orson Hyde, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, first entered the Netherlands in 1841. He stayed for a little more than a week preaching the gospel, but he had really been sent to go to Jerusalem. It was not until twenty years later in 1861 when the first Mormon missionaries were officially sent to the Netherlands. On October 1, 1861, near the village Broek bij Akkerwoude, the first converts to the Mormon Church in the Netherlands were baptized. People from the Netherlands joined the Mormon Church by the thousands; most emigrated to the United States to... Read the rest of this article »
