Difference between revisions of "Rome Italy Mormon Temple"

Revision as of 07:42, 30 January 2019

View of the Rome Temple from the Salerno's apartment in Rome, Italy, on Sunday, Nov. 18, 2018. Photo: Kristin Murphy, Deseret News

On Saturday, 4 October 2008, during the opening session of the 178th Semiannual General Conference, Thomas S. Monson, then President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, announced the building of a temple in Rome, Italy.

The two-spired, three-story, 140-foot Rome Italy Temple is located in northeast Rome near the Grande Raccordo Anulare, the circular road (beltway) that surrounds the city, at Via di Settebagni, 376, just 11 miles from Saint Peter’s Basilica, near the village of La Cinquina Bufalotta. Its architecture was inspired by ancient Rome. Architect Neils Valentiner said, "This had to be one that when you walked onto this site, every person should feel like they were on an Italian site. They would recognize it because of the materials, because of the design, and because of the surrounding." He also stated that the temple’s design was inspired by San Carlino, a Roman Catholic church in Rome. He said, "The curved ceilings, the curved walls, the expression of the colonnades and columns. And that started this very early concept of a curved church, a curved temple, and temple building both on the exterior as well as on the interior."

The temple sits on 15 acres and will feature lush gardens, and a 40,000-square-foot temple with floor and ceiling designs to mimic Michelangelo’s Capitoline Hill plaza overlooking the Roman forum. It is part of a religious and cultural center that includes a multifunctional meetinghouse, a visitors’ center, a family history center and housing for visitors. Marble from Italy, Spain, Turkey, and Brazil is being used to decorate the interior and exterior spaces. The exterior finish will be made of Sardo Bianco granite quarried and fabricated in Italy. A charming Italian Villetta, which stood at the highest point of the temple site, was razed to make way for the Rome Italy Temple. The Villetta served for a time as an apartment for the full-time missionaries.

The Rome Italy Temple 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 Stake Center meeting house (a stake being roughly similar to a Catholic diocese), a Visitors' Center that will house digitally reproduced marble replicas of Bertel Thorvaldsen’s renown sculptures of Christus and the Twelve Apostles, a Family History Center, and patron housing. When completed, the Rome Italy Temple will serve members who, according to local Rome Stake President, Massimo De Feo, currently travel to the Bern Switzerland Temple if they wish to do temple work.

The Daily Beast.com reports, "Italy has 103 Latter-day Saints congregations under 10 stakes, divided into missions based in Milan and Rome, with the highest concentration in the north of Italy, where 53 percent of Mormons live, compared to 29 percent in southern Italy and 18 percent in the central regions. Sicily alone has 3,052 members of the Church; the region around Rome has 2,117, according to the LDS Italy archives. There are more female Mormons (53 percent) than men (47 percent) in the country." President De Feo says that the Church has seen a significant increase in requests for baptisms for the living and the dead, and for celestial marriage ceremonies and family sealing ceremonies which officially bind couples or families together for eternity. He also believes that many Italian members who moved away because of inadequate ways to practice their faith will return to Italy once the temple is complete.

Rome Italy Temple Groundbreaking Ceremony

President Monson dedicated the temple site on Saturday, 23 October 2010. He was accompanied by Church officials including Elder William R. Walker, Executive Director of the Temple Department; Erich W. Kopischke, President of the Europe Area and his two counselors, Elder Gérald Caussé and Elder José A. Teixeira; Elder Alfredo L. Gessati, Area Seventy; President Massimo De Feo, Rome Italy Stake President; and President Raimondo Castellani, Bern Switzerland Temple President. Numerous government officials were also in attendance including Mr. Giuseppe Ciardi, vice mayor of Rome, and Senator Lucio Malan.

During his remarks to the 500 guests at the groundbreaking ceremony, he said, "My heart is filled with gratitude. Members throughout Italy and the entire Mediterranean area will be able to come here." Senator Lucio Malan commented that it was "A ceremony that profoundly touched me for the sincere and heartfelt appreciation of those attending. A positive day for Italy because those who profess to obey the laws of the state and the laws of God make the country in which they live a better place."

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

The growth of the Church in Italy has not been without its opposition. Just three years after the Saints arrived in the Salt Lake Valley, the first missionaries arrived in Genoa, Italy, on 25 June 1850, including Elder Lorenzo Snow, who would become the fifth president of the Church. Over the next three years, 221 people were baptized and organized into three branches. But most proselytizing in Italy stopped in the early 1860s in the face of local opposition and because of a request from Church leaders for Italian members to migrate to Utah. An attempt to reopen missionary work in Italy in 1900 was refused by the government.

The Church was finally reestablished in Italy in 1951, following the conversion of Vincenzo di Francesca, who happened to discover a charred copy of the 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 joined the Church in other countries began to return to Italy during this period. They attended Church with LDS serviceman stationed in Italy in various branches. By the end of 1964, Church records showed 229 members in Italy. That same year, Elder Ezra Taft Benson, an apostle who would become the 13th president of the Church, petitioned the government for permission to resume missionary work. Permission was granted, the mission was re-opened, and missionaries began to proselyte on 27 January 1965. By 1978, membership has grown to over 7,000 and increased to 14,000 by 1990. Today there are over 22,600 members organized into 10 stakes and one district. On 30 July 2012, the Italian government legally recognized Mormonism as a religion in Italy and full "partner of the state." The Prime Minister had given his approval in 2007 but a vote in the affirmative from parliament was still needed.

Construction Proceeds on the Rome Italy Mormon Temple

Per the Mormon Newsroom UK, 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. The first photo was taken on 12 December 2016 and the second photo was taken on 29 January 2017. Both photos are the courtesy of the Italy Rome Mission. The other four pictures were taken on 25 March 2017 and are courtesy of Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All pictures were taken from Rome Italy Temple, Construction Photographs

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  Rome Italy Temple 12 December 2016

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  Rome Italy Temple 29 January 2017

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  Rome Italy Temple 25 March 2017

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  Rome Italy Temple 25 March 2017

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  Rome Italy Temple Angel Moroni 03/25/17

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  Rome Italy Temple Angel Moroni 03/25/17

Angel Moroni Placed at Top of Rome Italy Temple

Rome, the Eternal City, known for the wonders of its ancient statues and as the world headquarters for Catholicism, has been graced with an even more impressive statue. On Saturday, 25 March 2017, a 13-foot-tall, 450 pounds, gold-leaf-covered Angel Moroni was installed atop the still-under-construction Rome Italy Temple. In a ceremony that lasted more than an hour, an invited audience of approximately 150 people comprised of local leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, construction supervisors, and their families, and a handful of Rome and national media representatives witnessed a crane lifting the iconic statue 150 feet in the air and placing it in place atop the temple. The Executive Director of the Temple Department for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Larry Wilson, commented, "The Eternal City is known for its history, its beauty and as a place of worship and faith. We are so pleased to add our sacred temple to this Christian tradition." Silvia Rodio, the wife of Francesco Rodio, President of the Puglia Italy Stake, commented, "It’s a great emotion, a feeling of gratitude that I’ve been feeling today. Five hours may seem long, but it's a far cry from the 14 hours it takes to drive from Bari and the Puglia northwest to the Bern Switzerland Temple, the closest temple option for the Latter-day Saints in Italy. We’ll soon have more of an opportunity to attend the temple and to receive more often the blessings of the temple."

An official completion date for the Rome Italy Temple has not been set.

Marble Statue of Christ and the Original Twelve Apostles Placed in Visitors' Center

The Rome Italy Temple reached another benchmark this week as the marble statue of the resurrected Christ, an exact replica of the original Christus statue produced by Danish artist Bertel Thorvaldsen in Italy before its placement in Denmark in the early 1800s, was placed in the Visitors' Center. Along with the statue of Jesus Christ, statues of the original Twelve Apostles were also placed in the Visitors' Center. The replicas of the Twelve Apostles were digitally measured and fashioned to be precisely the same as the originals, and the marble used was taken from Cave Michelangelo, the quarry in Carrera, Italy, where the marble for Thorvaldsen’s original sculptures was mined.

In the video, Director of Public Programs for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Mark Lusvardi, commented, "One of the things that were as important to us was to do something that would make this part of the country but more importantly for recognizing the Savior, Jesus Christ. What a perfect symbol of the Savior and our belief in Him could we do than to bring that here to this place." He continues, "That’s also part of the message of the whole Visitors' Center here. We’ll learn not only about Christ and the calling of the original Twelve but we know that we have prophets and apostles today."

The original statues are housed in the Church of Our Lady in Copenhagen, Denmark, nearly 1,000 miles away from the Rome Italy Temple.

Artist Insights into the 50 foot Mural for the Rome Italy LDS Temple

First Aerial Photos of the Rome Italy Temple Released and Other Rare Photos

According to LDS Living, "The Rome Italy Temple has undergone many visible and significant changes in its construction process, which has taken seven and a half years. Late last year, more scaffolding was removed from the temple as landscaping continues to progress." In February 2018, the first aerial pictures of the temple were released, showing the temple, the visitors' center, and the entire temple complex. More art glass has also been installed in the beautiful edifice.

The pictures in the gallery below were retrieved via LDS Church Temples.

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  Construction continues on the Rome Italy Temple.

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  12 February 2018. Photo credit: Joe Mount

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  12 February 2018. Photo credit: Joe Mount

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  12 February 2018. Photo credit: Joe Mount

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  12 February 2018. Photo credit: Joe Mount

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  Rome Italy Temple construction continues in late February 2018.

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  26 February 2018. Photo credit: Daniele Salerno

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  26 February 2018. Photo credit: Joe Mount

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  Mid-January 2018. Temple construction continues on Rome Italy Temple.

Church Announces Open House and Temple Dedication Dates

The Rome Italy Temple will be open to the public for a free public tour beginning Monday, 28 January 2019, through Saturday, 16 February 2019, excluding Sundays. Tickets will become available for the public open house near the beginning of January 2019 at templeopenhouse.lds.org.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced that the Rome Italy Temple will be dedicated on Sunday, 10 March 2019, through Tuesday, 12 March 2019.

Speaking about the temple, President Russell M. Nelson said, "The sacred ordinances performed in this holy temple will unite families for eternity. God loves all His children equally and has provided a way for them to be linked in love, generation to generation. We are thrilled to be able to dedicate a temple in this city replete with historical importance throughout the ages." Of the Rome Italy Temple, the 162nd operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the world, Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and chairman of the Temple and Family History Department said, "It is beautiful. The craftsmanship is expert and perfect."

On Monday, 14 January 2019, journalists, community leaders, and government officials came from around the world to tour the new Rome Italy Temple. As part of media day, a press conference was held with Elder David A. Bednar and Elder Ronald A. Rasband of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Elder Massimo De Feo of the Quorum of the Seventy, who is from Italy, joined them. The event begins at the 18:00 mark. The Latter-day Saint Life Hacker Facebook page recently shared a beautiful video of the Rome Italy Temple.

External Links

• It's all in the details: What makes the Rome temple piazza 'very Italian' and why it will continue to draw members from across Europe

• 5 Things You Never Knew About the Christus Statue

• See: First Official Photos Inside the Rome Italy Temple

• Latter-day Saint Sculptor Shares How He's Helped Thousands See the Beauty in the Rome Italy Visitors Center

• What Religious Leaders and Others are Saying about Touring the Rome Italy Temple

• A Behind-the-Scenes Look at the Christus and Other Statutes in the Rome Italy Temple Visitors Center

• Elder Bednar Explains Deeper Meaning of Symbols in the Rome Italy Temple

• CNN Addresses the Role the Vatican Played in the Rome Italy Temple

• Mormon Celestial Marriage

• 'A day of thanksgiving' for Italian Latter-day Saints: Mormons gather to celebrate temple to be built in their midst

• Angel Moroni Statues on LDS Temples

• The story behind the statues in the Rome Italy Temple Visitors' Center

• Tempio Mormone di Roma: Un Tempio della Chiesa di Gesù Cristo dei Santi degli Ultimi Giorni

• Visita del Sindaco di Roma al sito del tempio

• Il Tempio di Roma è un indicatore importante della crescita della Chiesa

• IL TEMPIO DI ROMA: MARTIRI, MISSIONARI ED AFFRESCHI

• Tempio di Roma

• È stato presentato il Tempio di Roma

• In the shadow of St. Peter’s, a Mormon temple rises

Video Resources