Updates to 3 new temples in Central and South America

In recent days, three new temples in South and Central America have reached major construction milestones. The Cobán Guatemala Temple was dedicated on Sunday, June 9, by Elder Dale G. Renlund, groundbreaking services were held for the Santa Cruz Bolivia Temple on Saturday, June 8, and a groundbreaking date was announced today, June 10, for the Londrina Brazil Temple. . .

Elder Dale G. Renlund of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles dedicated the Cobán Guatemala Temple—the third home of the Lord of the Lord of the Church of Jesus Christ in Guatemala—on Sunday, June 9, and invited the Latter-day Saints to “ to dedicate your heart to God’. .”

As the apostle prepared for the dedication, he learned of a standard greeting in Q’eqchi’ (also spelled K’ekchi’), a Mayan language spoken in the remote highlands of Guatemala. The greeting “Ma sa laa ch’ oo” means “How is your heart?”

The greeting can also be applied to those who worship in the house of the Lord, he explained, where the purpose of the temple ordinances and their covenants is to change hearts “from who we are to who we are to become.”

“On this day of temple dedication, an important question for all of us to ask ourselves is, ‘How is my heart doing?’ If we give Him the opportunity, God can and will change our hearts,” says Elder Renlund. “Once our hearts have changed, we need to periodically assess our hearts. When we are greeted with Ma sa laa ch’ool, we should ask ourselves, “How is my heart doing?”

You can read more about this unique temple dedication on Church Newsroom.

Elder Jorge F. Zeballos, president of the Church’s South America Northwest Area, presided over the groundbreaking ceremony for the Santa Cruz Bolivia Temple on Saturday, June 8, 2024.

Jhonny Fernández, mayor of the city of Santa Cruz, attended the ceremony. He was accompanied by Juan Carlos Medrano, councilor of Santa Cruz, and other civil and religious authorities. About 500 people were present.

“The temple is the holiest place on earth,” Elder Zeballos said. “Today we are going to dedicate this sacred ground. From now on this will be a consecrated ground to the Lord, a place where His house will be built.”

During the dedicatory prayer, Elder Zeballos expressed his gratitude for Jesus Christ.

“We thank You for Your beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. He is our Savior and Redeemer. We are so grateful for His love for each of us, a love that is especially expressed in His infinite atoning sacrifice. By dedicating this place, we rededicate our lives to You and Your Beloved Son,” he prayed.

The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has announced the groundbreaking date for the Londrina Brazil Temple. A groundbreaking service will be held on Saturday, August 17, 2024. Elder Ciro Schmeil, First Counselor in the Brazil Area Presidency, will preside and offer a dedicatory prayer.

Church President Russell M. Nelson announced this temple in October 2022. “May you focus on the temple in ways you have never done before. I bless you to draw closer to God and Jesus Christ every day,” he said before announcing 18 new temples, including the Londrina Brazil Temple.

The location for this temple was published in November 2022. An artist’s rendering was released in January 2024.

Brazil has 23 temples in use, announced or under construction. The Londrina Brazil Temple will be one of three temples in the construction phase, including the Belo Horizonte Brazil Temple and the Ribeirão Preto Brazil Temple (groundbreaking date June 22, 2024). The Salvador Brazil Temple (dedication date October 20, 2024) will be open to the public from August 23, 2024, through September 7, 2024.

There are ten operational temples in Belém, Brasília, Campinas, Curitiba, Fortaleza, Manaus, Porto Alegre, Recife, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. Nine temples have been announced in Florianópolis, Goiânia, João Pessoa, Maceió, Natal, Santos, São Paolo East, Teresina and Vitória.

You can read more about the groundbreaking ceremony in Bolivia and the new temple coming to Brazil here on Church Newsroom.

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