Difference between revisions of "Freetown Sierra Leone Temple"

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Rendering of the Freetown Sierra Leone Temple. ©2021 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.

In October 2019, during the 189th semiannual general conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, President Russell M. Nelson announced that a temple would be constructed in Freetown Sierra Leone.

There are more than 22,700 Latter-day Saints in the Freetown Sierra Leone temple district, with approximately 79 congregations.

The Freetown Sierra Leone Temple will be built on a 2.9-acre site located at Jui Road, Kossah Town, Freetown, Sierra Leone. Plans call for a single-story temple of approximately 18,000 square feet with a two-story ancillary building that will contain an arrival center, patron housing, presidency apartments, ordinance worker apartments and utility buildings.

This will be the eighteenth temple in Africa. Temples in operation include the Accra Ghana, Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo, Aba Nigeria, Durban South Africa and the Johannesburg South Africa temples. Temples under construction in Africa are the Abidjan Ivory Coast, Nairobi Kenya and the Harare Zimbabwe temples. Temples announced in Africa are the Antananarivo Madagascar, Beira Mozambique, Cape Town South Africa, Monrovia Liberia, Kumasi Ghana, Lagos Nigeria, Benin City Nigeria, Lubumbashi Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Kananga Democratic Republic of the Congo temples.

On Wednesday, 15 December 2021, the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced the site location and groundbreaking date for the Freetown Sierra Leone Temple. An official external rendering of the temple was also released.

Groundbreaking Ceremony Scheduled for the Freetown Sierra Leone Temple

The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has announced a groundbreaking date for the Freetown Sierra Leone Temple. The groundbreaking ceremony will be held on Saturday, 19 March 2022. Elder Hugo E. Martinez, Africa West Area president, will preside at the event. Attendance at the site will be by invitation only.

The temple will be built on a 2.9-acre site located at Jui Road, Kossah Town, Freetown, Sierra Leone. Plans call for a single-story temple of approximately 18,000 square feet with a two-story ancillary building that will contain an arrival center, patron housing, presidency apartments, ordinance worker apartments and utility buildings.

Groundbreaking Ceremony Held for Freetown Sierra Leone Temple

A groundbreaking ceremony for the Freetown Sierra Leone Temple was held on Saturday, 19 March 2022. In-person attendance at the event was limited, but the ceremony was broadcast to stakes in the country.

Elder Hugo E. Martinez, General Authority Seventy and the Africa West Area president, presided and offered the dedicatory prayer on the site. Also in attendance was Sister Nuria Martinez; ​​Nabeela Farida Tunis, minister of the country’s western region; Kasho Holland-Cole, chairman of the Western Area Rural District Council; Elder Larry S. Kacher, a General Authority Seventy and counselor in the Africa West Area presidency; his wife Sister Pauline Kacher, and Elder Daniel Kabason, an Area Seventy, and his wife, Sister Millicent Kane Kabason.

In a prayer dedicating the site and the construction process, Elder Martinez acknowledged the country’s religious freedom that allows people to choose how they worship God. He said, "Many have embraced the restored gospel of Thy Son Jesus Christ, and look forward to the glorious day when they may attend the temple here in their homeland, to unite their family for eternity."

In his remarks, Elder Martinez spoke of the significance of having a temple in the country. He said:

Throughout history the Lord has commanded His people to build temples. The Church builds temples all over the world to increasingly make temple blessings more available to a greater number of Heavenly Father’s children.

Elder Kabason encouraged members to prepare to go to the temple by getting a temple recommend. He said:

If it (your temple recommend) has expired, please make an appointment with your bishop and get it renewed. Those who do not have a temple recommend, begin to prepare yourself spiritually. Put your life in order and get a temple recommend.

Temples in Africa

• Aba Nigeria Temple
• Abidjan Cote d'Ivoire Temple
• Accra Ghana Temple
• Antananarivo Madagascar Temple
• Beira Mozambique Temple
• Benin City Nigeria Temple
• Brazzaville Republic of the Congo Temple
• Cape Town South Africa Temple
• Durban South Africa Temple
• Freetown Sierra Leone Temple
• Harare Zimbabwe Temple
• Johannesburg South Africa Temple
• Kananga Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple
• Kinshasa Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple
• Kumasi Ghana Temple
• Lagos Nigeria Temple
• Lubumbashi Democratic Republic of the Congo Temple
• Monrovia Liberia Temple
• Nairobi Kenya Temple
• Praia Cape Verde Temple

Videos of the Freetown Sierra Leone Temple