The First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has announced a groundbreaking service for the Harare Zimbabwe Temple.
| Temple Square is always beautiful in the springtime. Gardeners work to prepare the ground for General Conference. © 2012 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. | 1 / 2 |
Elder Edward Dube, of the Africa South Area Presidency will preside at the event.
The new temple will be constructed on a 6.7-acre site on 65 Enterprise Road Highlands in Harare, Zimbabwe. The temple will be approximately 17,250 square feet.
Church president Thomas S. Monson announced plans to build the temple in April 2016. Zimbabwe is home to approximately 14.2 million people and more than 34,000 members of the Church.
As a part of a 2018 world ministry, President Nelson completed his Africa tour in Harare, Zimbabwe. More than 4000 Latter-day Saints in the country gathered to hear the Prophet of the Church speak.
“You deserve a temple here in Harare because that’s where we get the highest of all the blessings that God can give to His faithful children. I want to be here to see that happen,” said President Nelson.
Attendance at the groundbreaking ceremonies is by invitation only. Photos and video of the event will be available to the media and public on Newsroom after the groundbreaking services.
Latter-day Saints consider temples to be the “house of the Lord” and the most sacred places of worship on the earth. Temples are not the same as the Church’s meetinghouses. All are welcome to attend Sunday worship services and other weekday activities in a meetinghouse. In temples, Latter-day Saints participate in sacred ceremonies, such as marriage, that unite families beyond death.