Rome Italy Mormon Temple
On Saturday, 4 October 2008, during the opening session of the 178th Semiannual General Conference, Thomas S. Monson, President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, announced that a temple would be built in Rome, Italy. President Monson dedicated the temple site on 23 October 2010.
The 140-foot Rome Italy Temple is located in the countryside outside of Rome but will be accessible via the highway. The temple is situated on a 15-acre plot of land just 11 miles from Saint Peter’s Basilica. It will be the first LDS temple constructed in Italy and the 12th temple in Europe. There are more than 30,000 members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Italy, with seven stakes and two missions. The construction plans for the Rome Italy Temple site also includes a multifunctional meetinghouse, a Visitors' Center, a Family History Center, and patron housing.
Shortly after ground was broken for the temple, Rome Mayor, Gianni Alemanno, visited the temple site with Elder José Teixeira of the Quorum of the Seventy. According to a report on the Mormon Newsroom website, Mayor Alemanno, an environmental engineer, "was impressed with the Church’s high construction standards and materials, including the systems employed to manage water consumption, electrical production and the low environmental impact of the temple complex." The full story is available on the Italy Mormon Newsroom website.
During a visit to Europe in the summer of 2014, President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Second Counselor in the First Presidency, spent some time at the site of the Rome Italy Temple. He commented, "The Rome temple is significant for the Church in Italy, not only for its physical presence but also as a monument to the growth of the Church. For centuries, Rome has been the Christian hub throughout the world."
Early Missionary Work in Italy
Missionaries were sent to Italy in the early years of the Church, during the 1850's. Lorenzo Snow, who became the 5th prophet of the LDS Church, was one of these missionaries. The slightly over 200 converts left Italy to join with the Saints in the United States. The Italian mission was closed, and permission to preach in Italy was declined by the government in 1900. In 1951 Vincenzo di Francesca discovered a charred Book of Mormon in a garbage bin. The cover and title page were missing, and it took him years to find out the identity of the book and achieve baptism into the Church. Italians who had converted outside of Italy returned to the country and joined other Saints there. By 1964, over 200 Mormons were in Italy.
However, it wasn't until 1965 that the mission re-opened, with permission from the Italian government to proselyte. Today there are about 23,000 Latter-day Saints in Italy. The Church is attempting to win state status in Italy along with already established religions. The prime minister gave his approval in 2007, and now parliament has to vote in the affirmative.
Construction Proceeds on the Rome Italy Mormon Temple
The temple exterior is being constructed from granite with decorative glazing. The interior finish will be of the finest material and workmanship: marble, woodwork, Venetian plaster and decorative painting. The three-story temple will be approximately 40,000 square feet with two tall spires when completed. [1]
