Mexico City Mexico Temple

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Mexico City, Mexico Mormon Temple
Mexico City Mexico Temple

The Mexico City Mexico Temple is the 26th operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The announcement to build a Latter-day Saint temple in Mexico came in April 1976. Although it would take eight years to dedicate the first temple in Mexico, since then, several other temples have been built in the country. Plans to build the first temple in Mexico, however, were not easy.

In 1976 foreign missionaries were not officially recognized in Mexico, and mandatory laws required all buildings to be open to the public. This was especially problematic since Latter-day Saints believe that temples are literal houses of the Lord and only those who prove themselves worthy through their local bishop and stake president may enter the temple. But within a few years, laws changed in encouraging ways and the necessary building permits were approved in 1979.

Importing the necessary building materials and furnishings proved to be another obstacle. Out of respect and love for the Lord, only the finest of materials are used in building Latter-day Saint temples, thus the Church leaders requested an exemption from the importation law, as well as importing the materials without tax. Church leaders fasted and prayed and presented their request to the proper government authorities. Amazingly, the requests were approved and signed.

Emil B. Fetzer was the architect assigned to draw up plans for the Mexico City Mexico Temple. Of the four designs which were presented, one was of a Mayan-type architecture. As the First Presidency studied each of the proposed designs, they felt that the one with the Mayan influence was the one most suited to the Mexican site and its surroundings.

The Mexico City Mexico Temple was dedicated December 2, 1983, by President Gordon B. Hinckley, then of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. The building is faced with white cast stone and white marble chips. At the time of its dedication, it was the fifth largest temple in the Church and the largest temple outside the United States. The Mexico City Mexico Temple has a total of 116,642 square feet, four ordinance rooms, and eleven sealing rooms.

By its 25th anniversary, the Mexico City Mexico Temple had dropped at least eight feet in elevation due to the rapid subsidence[1] of Mexico's capital city.

An Inside Look of the Mexico City Temple

The gallery of pictures via Mormon Newsroom.org provides an inside look at the Mexico City Temple.

Renovations Prior to an Open House and Cultural Celebration

The public was invited to take a guided tour of the Mexico City Mexico Temple, which was closed for 19 months for renovations, beginning on Friday, 14 August 2015, and going through Saturday, 5 September 2015. More than 96,000 people visited the temple.

Prior to the rededication, a cultural celebration was held Saturday, 12 September 2015, with music and dance by Latter-day Saint youth. President Henry B. Eyring told the performers, “May we enjoy and long remember this thrilling experience.”

Temple Rededication Services

President Henry B. Eyring, First Counselor in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, rededicated the Mexico City Mexico Temple in two sessions Sunday, 13 September 2015. Both sessions were broadcast to meetinghouses in all stakes and districts in the Mexico City Mexico Temple district. The regular three-hour block of meetings scheduled on the 13th were cancelled enabling thousands of Latter-day Saints to participate.

Assisting President Eyring was Elder Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Elder Kent F. Richards of the Seventy and executive director of the Church's Temple Department and the Mexico Area Presidency.

At the time of its dedication, the temple served more than 384,000 members of the Church who live in Mexico City and in the states of Mexico, Baja California South, Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Michoacán, Morelos, Puebla, Querétaro and San Luis Potosí.

There are 23 temples in Mexico, including those announced in 2021–2022.

Temples in Mexico

See also

External Links